Hiking in eastern Gorge? Follow these tips to avoid encounters with rattlesnakes, what to do if bitten

Jan 15, 2024

WHITE SALMON — I was just starting the climb at Coyote Wall, the sunlit hiking trail in the eastern Columbia River Gorge, when a distinct whooshing sound arose.

It sounded like a waterfall, which might have made some sense, since the Gorge is famous for its many waterfalls — but not right here.

The whooshing grew louder as I trucked along. I rounded a bend in the trail — still trying to place that odd sound — and there it was: a big coiled-up snake, head hovering over brown-and-gray body, aimed right at me and loudly rattling.

My nervous system kicked into gear immediately, I am glad to report. There was zero thought process, no slo-mo realization: "Wow, that's a rattlesnake, hmm, perhaps I should …"

I was gone. Racing back down the path in an instant. I’ve spotted a snake or two on Gorge trails, but this was my first face-to-face conference — at a distance of maybe 4 feet — with a creature ready, willing and able to kill me.

To Learn More

For more on snakes in Washington, visit https://wdfw.wa.gov/species-habitats/living/snakes.

But did it really want to? Not according to the experts. They also caution against freaking out and running the way I did. Freezing, assessing the situation and backing away slowly with my hiking poles deployed as defensive decoy would have been the wiser course of action.

Now that I know, I’ll have a talk with my nervous system before my next hiking trip to the eastern Gorge. I don't see curtailing my excursions out there because of one scary snake.

I’ll just heed the following snake-avoiding pointers, gleaned from the Washington Trail Association, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Hmm, was my lizard-brained bolt for safety too sudden, too abrupt? Did that snake actually lunge and almost get me? I didn't look back, so I’ll never know.

Rattlesnake bites are rarely fatal. About 8,000 people are bitten by rattlesnakes in the U.S. annually, but just a handful die. About one-quarter of all rattlesnake bites are dry, injecting no venom at all. But it's still crucial to take the bite seriously — because it might well be venomous — and get medical help immediately.

Most bites occur when people don't take rattlesnakes seriously, leaning in close for photographs, for example. Rattlesnakes do not always rattle before they strike. This is why zoom lenses were invented.

Feel sorry for snakes, which are "misunderstood" and "persecuted," according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and USDA.

"Many harmless, beneficial snakes have met untimely deaths at the hands of shovel-wielding humans," according to the state wildlife department. "Of the dozen or so species of snakes found in Washington, only the Western rattlesnake is capable of inflicting a venomous bite, which it seldom does."

There are about 3,900 species of snakes in the world; 600 or so are venomous. There are 36 species of rattlesnakes, all found in the Americas.

It's too common for snakes to die on highways at night under the wheels of cars, according to state Fish and Wildlife conflict officer Todd Jacobsen. He said he wishes more drivers would watch out and avoid snakes in the road.

Rattlesnakes don't live in Western Washington. The most common kind of snake you might run into in your Clark County yard is the garter snake. It has brightly colored stripes running lengthwise and gray-blue underneath. Garter snakes can grow up to 3 feet long. They are nonvenomous but still may strike, bite or smear foul-smelling stuff on you if threatened. But they’d rather just slither away.

Other nonvenomous local snakes are the Western terrestrial garter snake (likes water, gray-brown, checkered pattern, yellow stripes) and the Northwestern garter snake (slender, 2 feet long, dark with various stripes). The gopher or bull snake (3 to 4 feet, dark blotches against tan) resembles and even mimics rattlesnake behavior — coiling, hissing and striking — but it is not venomous.