My wife is going with me to Namibia this September. We both have well broken in boots that are just over the ankle in height. These boots have lots of Rocky Mtn miles on them. She is concerned that she needs taller boots in case of a snake strike. Unless it's a pigmy, our rattle snakes will usually strike higher than the ankle. The snakes we are likely to encounter in Namibia are at least as large as an eastern diamondback and unless you are wearing leggands, any sort of hiking boot will not offer much protection. I have seen pics of PH's wearing running shoes. The best protection is to be careful and avoid the snake if possible. Could someone advise her on this. She won't listen to me. Thanks, Bob

Your chances of even seeing a snake that time of year are quite remote. If you see any at all, it would probably be warming itself on the warmth of the road.
P.S. there's a reason the trackers go first.

VFR,

Snakes are a non-issue. There is just as much chance of being bitten in Florida as there is in Namibia IMO. Actually Namibia was the country where I didn't see even one snake.

Tell your wife that generally the trackers are much more afraid of snakes than the clients. They definitely will be on the look out for them.

Regards,

Mark

When we went last Sept. we never saw a snake of any kind.

As a matter of fact, we never saw any tracks of a snake and during the same amount of time at home, I would of seen several snakes.

Don't worry about it.

I'm not sure that I'd regard snakes as a non-issue (I recently had occasion to share my hide with a [very unwelcome] black mamba).

Having said that, I guess I get to see a lot more snakes in the bush than most, because I typically hunt alone. And I hunt a lot. I've never thought of doing the actual sums, but I suppose that I have spent several hundred hours in the bush for every dangerous snake I encounter.

The thing to do, is to stay behind the tracker / PH. If there is a snake in the way, they will know about it, and they will know how to react. Just follow their lead. Other than that - when moving around in camp, keep your eyes open. You may well find that the scorpions are a much greater problem than snakes (depending on area). Especially as September is right at the end of the hibernation - October - May is when they're out in full force.

I really hate snakes!

Whether you will see snakes is highly dependant on location and even more so on temperature. I hunted Zimbabwe in July when it was somewhat cold and didn't see or see any sign of snakes. I also hunted Zimbabwe in early May during a period we might describe as Indian Summer and saw a snake up close and personal (South African vine snake) and saw fresh puff adder tracks on more than one occasion. Further, the hunting party there before us saw a black mamba while hanging leopard baits and an Egyptian cobra laying astride the path their land cruiser, the snake actually struck the vehicle grill before moving off. However all this did not stop me from literally crawling on my hands and knees through tall grass and thickets and my PH from wearing shorts and low cut shoes without socks in pursuit of animals. The comment about the trackers being more frightened of snakes and doing most of the leading is very true.

VFR- I too was concerned about snakes but then I went to Namibia and found my concern unjustified. Just got back 2 weeks ago. We typically walked, tracked and stalked everyday. I can't tell you how many miles we covered over 10 days but it was alot. Never saw a snake. Did see a python track in a sandy riverbend but that was all.

SBT and his wife did see a mamba from their vehicle once.

As has been said, your PH and tracker will be ahead of you and your wife behind you. She'll be just fine!!

John

2003, 8 days in Namibia ,0 snakes I hate snakes

Was in Namibia for 11 days in May and only seen one snake suning itself while we were stalking springbok.

I have just returned from Namibia. According to the PH there are 3 snakes you have to worry about while there: black mamba, puff adder and the "zebra snake" ( a version of the spitting cobra). The worst of these is the puff adder as the others will move out of the way when they hear (feel) you coming. The puff adder will not. I saw a black mamba while there, and the trackers claim that we ran over another one (I did not see that one). I also saw python tracks and another snake track, as well as a huge python sloughed skin. Having said all that, I do believe that it is a non issue. The snakes are there, but should not be a problem. Just be aware that they exist! The trackers fear snakes more than you do!
Peter.

I've heard about all kinds of incidents and accidents where clients have left camp for medical care, and have even been involved in a couple myself. Of all the things that have gone wrong, I've never heard a first-hand account of a hunter having been bitten by a snake.

Have any of you heard of client having been bitten by a snake?

The one thing that concerns me the more than anything else is being injured in or around the truck.

Forest,

You have a Ph and you should go no where with out him...It is his responsibility to protect you...Also every time someone gets hurt in Africa they do something wrong or go off by themselves...


Mike

Thanks to everyone. I will have my wife read the responses but she is pretty hardheaded. Whoops, guess she will read this also

This thread is a bit outdated but I thought I'd add my .02c to it. We just came back from Namibia and Limpopo. We saw 3 snakes and tracks of 3 Pythons. You should see the PH jump 10 feet sideways when he sees a Black Mamba up close. At that point I was wishing for a 12 gauge shotgun. This was in Namibia.
All the rest were in Limpopo. We saw a Puff Adder and a Boom Slahger (SP)from the truck. The Boom was a beautiful neon green. The Python tracks were either crossing the track in front of the rig or the trail while we were stalking.
If and when I go back, I'm going to take a pair of the kevlar pants. They may not work, but they would be better than nothing. My advice, just go. The odds are in your favor.

If you're going to be in the central part of the country, then the boots you chose are fine. As far as snakes go, my wife and encountered one harmless type in more than 30 days of hunting in Namibia.

Well after 10 hunts in Africa, 4 of them in Cameroon I have seen more poisonous snakes in an afternoon in Louisiana than all of my time in Africa.

Mike

I am going to echo Mike on this one. My wife and I hunted in Namibia in August, and did not see any snakes, which did not disappoint me.

I don't know of any clients that have been bitten either.

jim dodd

Stats:

2 weeks in Namibia, June 2003.

Sighted: One python, approx. 4 feet long, in water, with a dove in its mouth.


Rick.

In Namibia I have seen a total of one snake and one big leguan. I captured both. Though both were non-poisonous, the leguan was far more dangerous than the snake.

Spent two weeks in Namibia in May, saw one snake track no snakes. Most of the time I was too concerned with the stalk to worry about snakes. Lee in Alaska.

During our hunt in Namibia in April, we had a black mamba slide across the road ahead of us one day as we were checking leopard baits. It disappeared in the tall grass on the other side and we didn't stop to play hide and seek with it.



A 3 meter python had adopted one of the leopard baits and was there for 4 days. The leopard bait also attracted genets and mongooses (mongeese ) and other small furry critters. The python would just curl up in the shade around the base of the bait tree and wait for a live snack to scamper past on the way to feed on the leopard bait.



Another snake of unknown ancestry was killed by a female worker at the lodge one morning. She found it in the grass between our bungalow and the main lodge and pounded it to a pulp with a broom. I was reminded of the fat chick in the B.C. cartoon strip beating snakes into the ground with her club! She put it in the back of Nicky's Land Cruiser with my dead leopard and it gave Holly and me quite a start when we walked up to look at my leopard in the back of the truck!



I'm accustomed to hunting around snakes. I'm not afraid of them, but have a healthy respect for them. I'm always careful to watch where I step and put my hands. The river swamps and pine plantations of coastal South Carolina are full of both poisonous and non-poisonous snakes. Just last weekend I stumbled on a King Snake and a Hog-nosed Snake while out hunting wild hogs. Timber rattlers, Diamondbacks, copperheads, cottonmouths and a number of non-poisonous snakes are all very common around here.



Believe it or not, I just looked out my office window and watched a 30" Black Snake cross my patio! Honest Injun, I really did!



Wow, I wonder if that's some kind of cosmic sign or something?!



Anyway, the point is that there are plenty of snakes in Namibia and you should always watch where you are walking. We were there in April at the end of the rainy season and it was wet and warm with lots of grass and ground cover. The snakes are much less active during the cold, dry season when most hunters visit Namibia. There is also much less vegetation around making them easier to see.



The only time I was concerned about having a bad experience with a snake was when we were chasing Holly's wounded leopard and three Jack Russells in full cry up a rock kopje. I knew it was prime black mamba country, and as we were scrambling up through the rocks, I kept hoping that I wouldn't look over the next rock and find myself face to face with a mamba. Thankfully, the only thing that had a bad experience that day was the leopard!



Tell your wife to keep her eyes open and watch where she's walking and she won't have any problems. If she's still worried about snakes, buy her a pair of snake leggings from Cabelas to wear over her boots. Maybe then she will be able to forget about the snakes and concentrate on enjoying the trip!