Hiker Thinks He's Brushing Yellow Jackets off Feet, Looks Down to See 'Very Large Copperhead'
The adage “look before you leap” has never been as relevant as when you’re on a summer hike in snake country, wherever that may be. One visiting hiker recently had an encounter with an Austin native that left him with a…
The adage “look before you leap” has never been as relevant as when you’re on a summer hike in snake country, wherever that may be.
One visiting hiker recently had an encounter with an Austin native that left him with a new appreciation for venomous snakes, but he’s alive to tell the tale.
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Jay Middleton from Littleton, Colorado, is an avid outdoorsman who enjoys biking and hiking — perhaps part of the reason he lives where he does.
When he was visiting Austin, Texas, in July, he hit St. Edwards trail wearing sandals, and at some point felt something on his feet and a sudden, sharp pain.
Middleton’s initial thought was that he’d been stung by some sort of wasp, but he was met with something far more nefarious when he looked down.
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“Reached down thinking that I was going to be knocking yellow jackets off my feet, and that’s when a very large copperhead slithered away,” Middleton told KVUE-TV.
“I was like, ‘Oh wow.’ I … cold sweat. My wife said I turned kind of gray. I got really, really nauseous, and at that point, they made the call to strap me to the board and, and roll me out.”
EMS arrived to assist Middleton, and footage from the incident shows Middleton being aided by two first responders as he stands in a stream