I'm bored...I've got an idea, let's go hunting snakes!

One of the things about growing up that was so fun is all of our backhill adventures. We always had a good time out 4-wheeling and riding motorcycles, and one of the things that stands out in my memory as a favorite pastime while 4-wheeling was going out for a drive in our 1980 CJ-5 Jeep and hunting for snakes! This started when we were little kids, it was free to do and we all loved getting out. We'd grab our snake hoops which consisted of a long pvc pipe with a cord fished through it and loop at one end so you could catch the snake in the loop and hold him far away from you at the other end of the pole. We'd take off into the desert by our house usually at night with flashlights in tow and snake hoops ready to go. We had this wash we would always drive through that we called Rattlesnake Road because we typically always came across a rattlesnake or two laying across the warm sand of the wash. We usually kept the jeep stripped down to just the bikini top so we could sometimes access the snakes from the vehicle without having to get on the ground with them. Although dad usually found a reason to get up close and personal with them.. Sometimes we would catch them and take them home with us and let them go later. My brother and I would pester the snakes and they'd strike at the glass of the tea jar that we'd keep them in if they fit. Their venom would drip down the sides of it, kind of a creepy vision now that I think about it. Most of the time we just left them though, snakes never really scared us and they don't bother you unless you bother them. It's just a memory from childhood that I have that was so fun! When we'd have guests or family visiting that was always the thing we'd take them out to do was rattlesnake hunt! It was quite an adventure. Surprisingly, no one ever got hurt either! But there were quite a few screams!