Anyone For A Swim?

[PJM]

A few of the snakes we encountered while kayaking in Congaree National Park in South Carolina.
DSC_0004 by Peter Martin, on Flickr

Banded Water Snake
DSC_0008 by Peter Martin, on Flickr

Water Moccasin
DSC_0031 by Peter Martin, on Flickr

 

[Jeff15]

Nice snakes.......

 

[Flying Panda]

Good shots PJM! I noticed that in the second image there is a smaller second snake just left of the Banded Water Snake. I've been on kayaking photo shoots also here in West Virginia but have never encountered any snakes. Have any of them ever made any threatening advances?

 

[Winona]

Now I know why I’ll never move south. Good shots though.

 

[K9Kirk]

Cool, cotton mouths! Although proven not to be an aggressive snake the smart person keeps their distance and uses zoom to get close.

 

[Photo Lady]

That lens is really working out well.... you can zoom in to their world without worry. great photos. No Swimming for me..

 

[PJM]

This was just a small sampling of the ones we saw. We probably saw a couple of dozen during our paddle. None were in any way aggressive. The banded water snakes are non-venomous and the cottonmouths won't bother you if you don't bother them.

Thanks to all for your comments.