The Big 14 Quest 2022 – Complete!

November 23rd, 2022

We're far enough into the season and the weather has been cold enough recently that the possibility of not finding any more snakes this year is becoming very real. Today might have been one of the last good chances of the year to find anything since it was up into the high 40s, clear, and sunny. The temperature has been falling below freezing and staying in the mid to low 40s during the day recently. I've been skunked several times recently, including this past weekend.

Today I went back to one of the few places where I was still able to find snakes last November. After a little while of searching, I found this tiny garter snake. I'm happy I was able to find something because I didn't want the sickly looking worm snake I found on November 13th to be the last snake of the year. The weather looks decent again on Saturday so I have another chance to get lucky, but if I don't find anything, at least I ended the year on a high note!

November 13th, 2022

I went brown snaking again today, still hoping to break the tie with last year's total of 11. While I didn't find any, I did find an eastern worm snake, which was unexpected. It's the first time I've seen one at that location, and also the first time I flipped one under a board. While normally I'd be really happy about this find, particularly so late in the year, it was obvious to me that the snake was not doing well. It had some pretty nasty legions on its sides and belly, was malnourished, and should probably be deep underground by this time of year. By the looks of it, it might not make it to next year. I'm glad I wasn't skunked today but I'd almost rather be than to have found a snake in such a sad condition. Hopefully, it can pull through.

November 12th, 2022

Today was a great day! I set out this morning once again on a mission to find a garter snake and northern brown snake in order to break the tie I have with last year's totals for both those species. While I didn't find any brown snakes, I did find 2 garter snakes, one of which I got some nice photos of.

Today was also my best day ever for finding northern redbelly snakes. I found a total of 8 which is a new record for me. The previous record, set on October 8th, was five. Very interestingly, all eight were found in pairs of 2, though none of them were mating, as each pair had one baby. I will probably go the rest of my life and never be lucky enough again to find 4 pairs of redbelly snakes like that. There were 3 gray phase and 5 chestnut phase. My favorite snake of the day was the larger of the two chestnut phases found in the last pair, which had a very striking red coloration that I've never seen before and which was absolutely beautiful.

It's almost the middle of November and the forecast ahead looking doesn't look great for snaking, including rain and a 15 degree drop in temperature tomorrow. I'll have to be very lucky to find any more snakes this year. If I can't find any more, today was an awesome grand finale and a great way to finish out the year!

November 6th, 2022

Now that it's November, the end of the snaking season is just about here. I was completely skunked yesterday despite being out all day at 3 different spots. My goal today was to find either a garter snake or northern brown snake. I'm still tied with last year's total for both of those species. I decided to check out a spot where I've found both species before. Coincidentally, it's one of the few spots I was still able to find any snakes last November.

While I didn't find any garter or brown snakes, I did manage to find 3 northern redbelly snakes. The first two were found under the same piece of cover, but I actually didn't realize the second one was there until I was returning the first one. It must have been hiding under the leaf litter and came out while I was taking pictures of the first. They were both the chestnut phase, though the larger one was a bit paler in color.

A little while later, I found a 3rd redbelly snake. This one was a baby gray phase, which is my favorite coloration. I'm very interested to learn more about the genetics behind the different color phrases of redbelly snakes. Overall, it was a very successful day, despite not finding the 2 species I was looking for. It felt good not to be skunked the entire weekend!

October 29th, 2022

Many parts of the state got their first frost last night, so I waited until the temperature warmed up a bit before heading out today. I was hoping to find one last eastern hognose snake for the year, but was unsuccessful. A number of other species can be found at the spots I checked out, but I didn't find anything at all.

Like I usually do when I'm skunked, I made one last stop on the way home. I was hoping to see a garter snake there, as I was still one behind last year's garter snake total. Fortunately, I did spot one, so I'm now tied with last year, but I was unable to get any pictures of it before it slithered away.

A few minutes later I flipped a northern water snake. Ironically, I had just been thinking to myself that I probably wasn't going to see any more water snakes this year. I haven't seen any since mid-September, despite visiting several spots over the last few weeks where they can be found pretty easily when it's warmer. It was an unexpected and pleasant surprise, and luckily, I did manage to get some photos this time.

October 23nd, 2022

For the second day in a row, I only found one snake today, a northern redbelly snake. However, like yesterday, it was the species I was specifically looking for, so I'm not complaining. It was the gray color phase, which I prefer over the brown and chestnut phases (though the chestnut is starting to grow on me). Based on my field observations, the chestnut phase seems to be the most common color phase. This year I've seen 16 chestnut, 3 gray, 2 brown, and 1 gray & brown mix. I will say that the gray & brown mix found on July 16th was pretty awesome and I hope I'm lucky enough to see another one of those someday.

October 22nd, 2022

I was out for about 6 hours today and only found one snake. However, it was a smooth green snake! Overnight temperatures have reached the 30s recently, including last night, so I was pretty luck to be able to find anything at all. After finding the smooth green, I checked out several other spots, hoping to find a redbelly snake. The smooth green / redbelly combo is probably my favorite, but unfortunately, I was unable to locate one. Despite that, it was still a very successful day!

October 16th, 2022

With fall under full swing, the snaking season is definitely past its peak and I'm beginning to see signs that I'm running out of time to fine snakes. It's been getting harder and harder to find stuff recently. My dad and I met up this morning to look around after 3 hours of searching, were unable to locate any snakes. Just like on October 2nd, I decided to make one final stop in the hopes of seeing something so I wasn't completely skunked for the day. And just like that day, it was an eastern ribbon snake that saved the day today. It was probably the easiest-to-spot ribbon snake I've ever encountered. I came upon it stretched out across the path I was on within about 2 minutes of arriving at the location. I was actually afraid it was dead because it didn't move as I approached it and in my experience, ribbon snakes are very elusive and usually take off pretty quickly. Fortunately, it was not dead and I managed to get some decent photos of it!

October 15th, 2022

I found a baby smooth green snake today! I've been trying hard to find another smooth green snake ever since the last one I saw with my dad over a month ago, but my efforts have been fruitless. In the meantime, I've seen baby redbellies, baby ringnecks, baby rattlesnakes, baby garters, and even a baby worm snake. I also saw baby northern brown snakes a few months back. I've really been wanting to see a baby smooth green snake, as well, but finding a smooth green of any size has proven to be extremely difficult lately. Fortunately, luck was on my side today and I finally found one.

Out of all the species and all the sizes of snakes, a baby smooth green snake was the best thing I could have found today. It was probably the cutest thing I've ever seen and it's the snake I've been wanting to see the most. I'm glad I finally found one! I also found another baby ringneck snake as well!

October 9th, 2022

My dad and I went hognose snaking today. It's his birthday today, and Hogtober has arrived, so we were really hoping to get lucky and see one. However, I've been to this location and a couple others recently looking for hogs, but have been unsuccessful. In fact, the last time I saw one was back on July 10th. Fortunately, luck was on our side today.

We spent a little over an hour looking around before we arrived at the last area where we had a chance of seeing one. While walking around to flip rocks, in case any other snakes were around, I caught a glimpse of a small northern black racer. With just 1 more rock to go, I happened to look up and there, hidden amongst the leaves and weeds about 5 feet in front of me, was a hognose snake! It was a lucky find and it made our day.

Later on while walking back to our cars I caught a glimse of an eastern garter snake. Afterwards, we went to another spot where we saw the garter snake pictures below. It was a pretty small one born this year. Finally, we we headed over to dad's house to look for northern brown snakes. I'm tied with last year at 11 so I'm hoping to find at least one more before the year is up. Unfortunately, we didn't see any today, but we did see a very tiny baby ringneck snake. In the last photo of it, you can see that it's so tiny it could fit on top of a quarter if it coiled itself up.

Today was a great way to finish off a pretty successful weekend of snaking and I'm really glad we found my dad a birthday hog!

October 8th, 2022

Today was another awesome day! I got a much later start than usual but I was curious to know if that would make a difference in what I was able to find. I ended up finding a total of 5 northern redbelly snakes and 1 northern ringneck snake. Five redbelly snakes in one day is a new record for me. My previous record was 4. Additionally, the first two were found under the same rock, and it was awesome to get shots of them both together, particularly since one was a chestnut phase and the other was a brown phase. I found them within about 2 minutes of arriving at the spot too, which foreshadowed a great day.

It would have been cool to find a gray phase redbelly today, as well. I've always liked those a little more because of the greater contrast between the gray dorsal scales and red venter. However, the chestnut phase is really starting to grow on me, so I can't complain. Hopefully, tomorrow turns out to be as successful as the last 2 days have been!

October 7th, 2022

After nearly a week of rain, the weather finally cleared up yesterday, and today was a warm and sunny day. Fortuitously, I had the day off from work and it turned out to be a great day of snaking! I found a total of sixteen snakes from six species: 2 northern ringneck snakes, 2 northern redbelly snakes, 2 northern black racers, 2 rat snakes, 2 water snakes, and 6 eastern garter snakes. After hunkering down during the rain, some snakes must have been hungry came out ready to hunt for a meal. The garter snake and rat snake shown both have big bulges in their bellies from their recent last meal.

Interestingly, before today, I hadn't seen any rat snakes at that location since the spring of 2021, so it was surprising to see two today. It was also cool to find two of each species—until the 3rd garter snake ruined that. I was almost a little disappointed that I found more than two, but then I remembered I'm still behind last years total of 75 garter snakes and need to catch up. I'm happy I ended up finding 6, bringing me up to 73 for the year.

Lastly, it's been quite awhile since I've found so many species in one day. The last time I found 6 or more species in a day was May 26th, which was my 10 species day. All-in-all, today was definitely an awesome day!

October 2nd, 2022

I decided to go hognose snaking this morning, but despite my best efforts, I couldn't locate a single snake, hognose or otherwise. Next I went to a pretty reliable water snake spot, but they were a no-show as well. It's cloudy, windy, and cool today, which is not ideal weather for snaking, so I wasn't expecting to see much today. I didn't like the idea of being completely skunked for the day, however, so on the way home I decided to make one final stop to look around.

I was in the mood for northern black racer, so I spent about an hour looking for one of those. I couldn't find any, so I started to make my way back to the car, still keeping a close eye out, but at this point figuring I wasn't going to see anything today. As I walked by a clump of weeds, I saw what was probably a twig, but could have been 3 or 4 inches of the tail of a ribbon snake. I nearly kept going past it, but luckily I stopped to investigate more closely, and it was indeed the amputated tail end of a ribbon snake.

This is the smallest ribbon snake I've seen to date. It was only about 13-14 inches long, but would have been a couple inches longer if the end of its tail hadn't recently been injured. It was missing a couple inches of tail and there was even still a small drop of blood. That was sad to see, but I'm sure it'll be fine eventually. I've seen ribbon snakes who where missing larger portions of their tail than that and were completely healed. It's been awhile since I've seen a ribbon snake so it was cool to see this one today. And I'm glad I wasn't skunked!

October 1st, 2022

Lousy weather was on the forecast for today, so I went to bed last night planning to sleep in and take the day off from snaking. However, around mid-morning, the urge to go worm snaking suddenly came over me. I called my dad to see if he wanted to go and asked him to meet me at a spot where I've found a few other worm snakes this year, and luckily, we caught a break in the rain. After a few minutes of flipping, he spotted this baby eastern worm snake.

I can't say for sure, but there's a good chance this baby was born to the gravid female worm snake I saw on July 3rd of this year, which was found about 50 feet away from where we found the one today. You can see just how tiny it is in the last photo where I put a USB plug behind it for scale. While we only found the one snake today, it was the species we were specifically looking for, so I consider it a successful day!

September 25th, 2022

I went to a couple spots today to see what I could find without really having a goal of seeing any specific species, which is rare. At the first spot this morning, I found two tiny northern ringneck snakes, which must have just recently hatched. Despite spending a couple of hours there, I was unable to find anything else. This afternoon, I went to a different spot and came across two eastern rat snakes. One of them, which may be an individual I've seen before, had the worst case of snake fungal disease I've ever seen. The top of its head was beginning to necrotize along with it's eye on one side, leaving it blind in that eye. It was pretty upsetting to see. Luckily, the second rat snake I found, pictured below, was much healthier.

September 24th, 2022

Today was a pretty good day. I went redbelly snaking this morning and, luckily for me, the only snake I saw all morning was a redbelly snake. In the afternoon, I went to a different spot to look around. I found a decent-sized female garter snaking in the process of attempting to swallow a pretty big toad. Snakes have special jaws which allow them to swallow large pray, but I don't know...that toad was 5 or 6 times thicker than the snake. It would defintely be a big stretch! I didn't stick around long enough to find out if she was able to get it down. I quickly took a few photos with my phone and moved on. Afterwards, I saw two northern watersnakes.

September 18th, 2022

After being completely skunked this morning, I had an incredible afternoon of snaking today. I went to a couple of spots this morning hoping to see a hognose snake, but couldn't find any. Afterwards, I went to a nearby water snake spot, but those were a no-show as well. As afternoon approached, I decided to drive to a different part of the state to look for copperheads.

Soon after arriving, I came across two northern black racers, the second of which was enormous. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of it. However, a few minutes later I found a huge skin shed and spent about 5 minutes extracting it from the weeds and leaves it was tangled up in. It must have come from the racer I'd just seen because it was close by, and it measures 6 feet in length without even straightening it out all the way, which would give it another 4 or 5 inches. I managed to get it out of the weeds without tearing it at all and added it to my collection of full skins.

Afterwards, I came across a gorgeous copperhead that was almost completely exposed instead of hiding under rocks like how I usually find them. It was one of the largest copperheads I've seen, as well. Then over the next 30 minutes or so, I found 4 northern water snakes, and as well as the most garter snakes I've ever seen in a day. I found several individuals alone, then 2 in the process of mating, followed by 3 separate mating balls of 5 or 6 individuals each. The mating balls were all within a pretty small area. I've long suspected that there's a den somewhere around there, but I have not been able to locate it yet. I easily saw more than 20 garter snakes total today. Unfortunately, it wasn't possible to get an exact count, otherwise today would definitely have been a new personal record for most snakes in a day. What an awesome day it turned out to be!

September 17th, 2022

I went redbelly snaking today and had a pretty successful day. I found a total of 4 northern redbelly snakes, 3 northern ringneck snakes, and an eastern milk snake. The first redbelly snake I came across was a recent newborn and probably the smallest I've seen to date. It was a dark reddish color that I'm guessing will turn into the chestnut phase as it grows older. I also found 1 adult chestnut phase and 2 adult gray phase redbelly snakes. It would have been cool to also see the gray/chestnut cross phase like I saw on July 16, but what I saw was cool enough. Four redbelly snakes on the same day is also a new record for me!

September 14th, 2022

I went for a quick snaking run after work today, hoping I'd see some copperheads. Luckily, I did manage to find one, but it was deep under a rock and it was starting to get dark so the photos I took of it are not very impressive. I also saw 2 northern water snakes. The one pictured is so freshly shed that I actually saw it swimming out of its old skin underwater. It's been quite a while since I've seen either of these two species so it was a nice change of pace for me. Not bad for a quick trip!

September 11th, 2022

Today was a pretty good day even though it was cloudy and there were short periods of drizzling rain. I went to my parent's house, which is my best spot for finding both northern brown and northern ringneck snakes. I managed to find 2 browns, 2 ringnecks, and 1 eastern garter snake. Now that the weather is cooling down, snakes are beginning to come back out, which is good because the last time I found a snake at my parent's was back in June.

I love finding brown snakes because I think they're so cute. The two found today were significant because they bring me up to 11 total for the year, which ties me with last year. Now the only two species I'm still trailing behind on this year are the copperhead and garter snake.

The photos I took of the first brown, shown here, came out pretty nicely and are amongst the best photos I've taken of the species to date. I love taking photos of snakes on overcast days because there's plenty of light out in the open without having to worry about harsh direct sunlight. Not a bad day!

September 10th, 2022

My dad finished his quest today! After seeing two adult and two neonate timber rattlesnakes last weekend, which I didn't get any decent photos of, he was up to 13 out of 14 species, missing only the smooth green snake. But after spending the end of July and the entire month of August trying unsuccessfully to find new smooth green snake spots, I wasn't very confident we'd see one today. However, the temperature has been cooling down the last couple weeks which increased our chances.

Since I failed to locate any new spots, we went to my most reliable smooth green snake spot this morning. As is always the case with me, with only one exception, we found the first and only smooth green snake of the day within the first 10 minutes of searching. We spent the next few hours looking for more, but were only able to locate 2 newly hatched northern ringneck snakes and an eastern garter snake.

Although the smooth green snake we saw today was not technically a lifer for my dad, the only other one he's seen was approximately 65 years ago, so it was almost a lifer. Last year he ended the season missing 4 snakes: the smooth green, redbelly, ribbon, and milk snakes. I'm very happy he got to see all 14 species this year and finish his quest!

I'm also happy my smooth green snake curse has been lifted. After spending 6+ weeks looking specifically for smooth green snakes, not finding any, and barely finding any other snakes, I was beginning to lose spirit. It was nice to finally find one today, even if it was at a spot where I've seen them before. However, I will continue my mission to find new spots!

August 20th, 2022

I've spent the entire month of August looking for new smooth green snake spots. Unfortunately, I haven't found any, and I've barely seen any snakes over the last few weeks, despite the fact that some of the locations I visited seemed decent. Perhaps there were no smooth green snakes at any of those spots, or maybe they were there and I didn't spot them, or it was too hot for them to be on the surface. It's tough to say. Up until today, I had only seen one eastern ribbon snake and a couple northern black racers over the last few weeks.

Although I didn't see any smooth green snakes again today, it was a bit more exciting of a day than the last few weeks have been. This morning I saw two small eastern garter snakes sharing the same piece of cover. Later on, I decided to go look for rattlesnakes again since I was close to one of my spots. I saw a large northern black racer eating a small timber rattlesnake which was about a foot in length. When I approached to get a better look, the racer dropped the rattlesnake and took off. Fortunately, the rattlesnake was still alive, but it looked like it's rattle had been chewed off. About a minute later, I saw an adult yellow phase timber rattlesnake, freshly shed. There was also a second racer nearby, patrolling the area, likely looking for more rattlesnakes to eat.

A little while later I saw another adult timber rattlesnake, this time a black phase. Unfortunately, none of the rattlesnakes were in very photogenic positions, so the pictures I took aren't worth sharing. Although I'm disappointed that I couldn't get any decent pictures, I'm happy to have interrupted the racer before it killed the rattlesnake. It has a chance to live another day and hopefully now it's learned to avoid the numerous black racers in the area.

July 31st, 2022

I was in the mood for some crotalus horridus today so I decided to take a quick trip to see if I'd get lucky and find one. Once I got to the spot I found a pretty big yellow phase timber rattlesnake rather quickly. On the way back to the car a couple hours later, I had to walk by the spot where I saw the first one again, so I took a quick peek to see if it was still there. Much to my surprise, a large black phase timber rattlesnake had joined the first one sitting out basking in the sun. It was absolutely incredible to see two rattlensakes out in the open like that because most of the time I find them partially hidden and not nearly as photogenic. When you see them fully exposed it's a lot easier to appreciate how massive they are. It was a pretty awesome sight to behold!

July 30th, 2022

Despite finding 7 snakes today, it was kind of a disappointing day. I really wanted to find a smooth green snake today, but I struck out. My dad and I couldn't find any last weekend either, which means he'll have to wait until September to look again since he'll be away most of August. I did manage to find two redbelly snakes today, however, which I always enjoy seeing. I also found 3 ringneck snakes and 2 eastern milk snakes. 7 snakes isn't bad but I was out for quite awhile today and covered a lot of ground, so I was hoping to see more. Additionally, a lot of the shots I took were out of focus so I was disappointed when I got home and went through my photos. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day!

July 17th, 2022

My dad came snaking with me today. Before today, he still had 3 species to go to see all 14 species this year: the smooth green snake, timber rattlesnake, and eastern worm snake. Next weekend is his last weekend of snaking for awhile since he's leaving for a trip and won't be back until the end of August, so we're trying to find the last 3 species before he goes. If successful, he'll have seen all 14 species before the end of July, which beats my August 21st time from last year. We were originally planning to go rattlesnaking today, but after checking the weather, I thought we had a better chance to find a worm snake today than next weekend, but we'd have to be super lucky because the conditions were far from ideal.

After a little while of searching, we found an eastern worm snake! Afterwards, we went to a different spot where my dad spotted an awesome eastern rat snake. It was freshly shed, had a jet black dorsum, and might be the best-looking rat snake I've seen. It was about 3.5 feet in length. After that, he spotted another rat snake nearby. This one was about a foot longer than the first. Lastly, we saw a pretty large female northern water snake basking in the grass next to a pond.

Another awesome day! My dad is now up to 12 out of 14 species for the year, leaving just the smooth green snake and timber rattlesnake. The end of his quest is within reach!

July 16th, 2022

Today was yet another incredible day! I decided to go smooth green snaking today and found one within about 10 minutes of arriving at the location. That has happened a number of times this year. With the exception of June 11th, when I found 3 smooth green snakes, every other time I've seen a smooth green snake this year I found it within a few minutes, then was unable to find another one all day. That was the case today, as well. However, it's awesome to be able to find one, so I'm not disappointed, especially considering how the rest of my day went.

Less than a minute after I saw the smooth green snake off, I saw the first of three northern redbelly snakes of the day. It was a chestnut phase. Awhile after that, I found an eastern milk snake, my 21st of the year. As I've said repeatedly, I can't believe how many milk snakes I've found this year after only being able to find 3 last year.

Next I found a very cool redbelly snake. It looked like a cross between a gray phase and a brown phase redbelly. Its sides were gray, but it had a brownish stripe going down the length of its back. I've seen photos of this coloration before, though I can't remember if they were from Connecticut, but I've never seen one in person until today. It was pretty awesome!

Finally, in the same vicinity of the 2nd redbelly snake, I found a 3rd redbelly, which was also a chestnut phase. After today's adventure, I'm very interested to learn more about the genetics behind the different color "phases" in certain snakes such as the redbelly and timber rattlesnake. Looks like I've got some reading to do!

July 10th, 2022

Just a quick day out today. I wanted to see an eastern hognose snake so I went to my most reliable spot for them. It took me about an hour, but I eventually found a nice-looking one with a yellowish hue. Like yesterday, the super bright sunlight made it tough to get decent photos. I'll have to work on my full sunlight photography. I also saw a northern black racer closeby. Afterwards, I went to another spot nearby and saw a norther water snake, which is the first one I've seen at that spot this year. Not bad for a short day!

July 9th, 2022

My dad came snaking with me today. Before today, he had seen 10 out of the 14 CT snakes this year, missing only the worm, redbelly, smooth green, and rattlesnake. Coincidentally, he finished last year at 10 of 14 snakes, too, though the 4 he missed were not the same (smooth green, redbelly, milk, and ribbon). We decided to try for a redbelly snake today, which I was eager to look for again since it's one of my favorites, and I've seen fewer redbelly snakes so far this year than any other species.

After looking for a couple hours without seeing any snakes, my dad flipped his lifer redbelly snake! It was pretty awesome and a great relief because I was starting to think we wouldn't see anything. Unfortunately, the sun was super bright so I didn't get the greatest photos, but we still got to see it. Almost 2 hours later, I flipped a milk snake under one rock, and two milk snakes under a second rock nearby. I'm now up to 20 milk snakes for the year compared to only 3 last year. I can't believe how much easier they are to find this year!

July 3rd, 2022

After finding my fourth redbelly snake of the year yesterday, I decided to try to find a worm snake today, since they were now in last place with only three seen this year. Incredibly, I found not one, but three eastern worm snakes. They are a difficult snake to find and I've never seen more than one in a day, so I was really lucky to see three. The first one was the largest of the three by far. The second one was much smaller and may have been in shed as its colors were a lot more muted. The third one was very brightly colored, possibly having recently shed. I also saw a medium-sized eastern black rat snake and a large northern water snake. Not bad for just a couple hours!

July 2nd, 2022

Not one to let a little bit of rain stop me from going out, I decided to go smooth green snaking today. I'm ready to say officialy that the smooth green snake is my favorite snake to see, though I still love me an eastern hognose snake very much. It took me about 30 minutes to find one. Like some of the other smooth green snakes I've encountered recently, this one was in shed (note the cloudy eye caps). It was also a pretty decent size for a smooth green snake. After the photoshoot wrapped up, I spent quite a few more hours searching for another, but to no avail. They are a tricky snake to find. The snakes might have taken a day off today due to the rain because I didn't find anything else that whole time, either.

Just as I was about to start walking back to my car, I noticed a rock that had been hidden from view by a tree, so I walked over to check it out. As luck would have it, there was a northern redbelly snake hiding beneath it! This is another one of my favorite snakes to see (I know, I know. I have a lot of favorites.) However, I've only seen 3 redbelly snakes this year and I was actually planning to stop at some spots on the way home to look for more. Like the smooth green, it was also in shed, but I was happy to see my first gray phase redbelly of the year, which I prefer over the chestnut (brown) phase. The red belly looks more striking in contrast to the gray dorsum.

Despite getting soaking wet and only finding two snakes all day, they were the two that I wanted to see the most, so it turned out to be an awesome day!

June 26th, 2022

I went northern redbelly snaking today. Up until this morning, I had only seen 2 redbelly snakes so far this year, which was my lowest total for any of the 14 CT snakes. They're proving to be tough to find this year. I've been to my most reliable redbelly spot four times this year but have yet to see one there. However, I didn't discover that spot until late last summer, so perhaps it's too early in the year for redbellies to be out at that spot.

I checked out some new spots today and saw this beautiful chestnut phase redbelly snake at the very first stop of the day, which brings my total up to 3 for the year. I also saw 3 eastern garter snakes and an eastern milk snake. I'm now up to 17 milk snakes for the year, compared to only 3 last year. In general, I'm doing much better this year than last year. I still have to catch up on a few species, but there's still plenty of time left in the year for that!

June 24th, 2022

I went to my parent's house tonight to mow the lawn, and whenever I'm there, I can't resist looking for snakes snakes. It ended up being one of my best snaking days there yet. I found 5 eastern garter snakes, 4 northern ringneck snakes, and 3 northern brown snakes. I was suprised to find garter snakes. I just said to my dad this morning that I haven't found any garter snakes there yet this year. The one that I photographed had a lot of green between its scales, but unfortunately, you can't see it in the photos.

I really wanted to find a brown snake, and after my initial search hadn't found any. While I was cutting the grass, I flipped a rock in a part of the yard that I skipped earlier and found a small brown snake. Later on, as I was preparing to go back home, I flipped a a group of 3-4 rocks that I've never seen a snake under before. Tonight, there were two brown snakes under one of the rocks. In total, I found 12 snakes in about an hour of searching. Unfortunately, my photos aren't that great because it was starting to get dark, but it was still a pretty awesome night!

June 19th, 2022

My mission today was to find the elusive eastern worm snake. I've only found 2 so far this year, which is in a tie for last place with the northern redbelly snake for number of times I've seen each of CT's 14 native species. I found this one at the first spot I went to this morning. Afterwards, I went to the spot where I've seen worm snakes previously, hoping to see more than one on the same day for the first time, but I couldn't find any. I did, however, see a very large eastern black rat snake and 4 garter snakes, one of which was a huge, probably gravid female.

I'm now up to 3 worm snakes for the year which ties me with last year. Worm snakes are really difficult to find, second only to the smooth green snake. Though lately, I've been back and forth about which of the two is harder. Considering the luck I've had lately with smooth greens, maybe worm snakes are harder. It seems that the harder a snake is to find, the more you enjoy it when you do. I really like to see worm snakes. They're very beautiful snakes, their irridescent color is so cool, and they have a very gentle demeanor. Now I need to find at least one more to beat last year's record!

June 18th, 2022

Today was a great day. I found a smooth green snake, 5 northern ringneck snakes, and I had incredible luck with milk snakes, as well. I found 6 milk snakes, which was notable in several ways. The first one I found is the first time I've seen one out in the open. Every other milk snake I've ever found has been flipped. The last milk snake I found was probably the largest milk snake I've ever seen. Finally, I've never found 6 milk snakes in one day before. I found twice as many today as I found in all of last year (3). I struggled to find them last year and the beginning of this year, but I've found so many over the last few weeks I'm starting to wonder if my previous inability to find them was just a fluke!

June 12th, 2022

Today was another good day of snaking. I originally planned to look for timber rattlesnakes and eastern worm snakes today. I went to a rattlesnake spot early this morning and after 2 hours of searching, hadn't found anything yet. Finally, in the last spot I checked, I encountered a beautiful yellow morph timber rattlesnake. Unfortunately, it wasn't in the most photogenic position and it was partially obscured by grass and shrubs. After taking a few photos, it looked like it was going to start to rain, so I changed my mind about looking for worm snakes. Instead, I stopped for a quick look around at a spot on the way home. Once there, I found a copperhead in an area I've never seen one before. I'm lucky because at the time it was cloudy, windy, and looked like it was going to start raining at any moment, so I wasn't sure I'd see anything. I also found 3 northern water snakes and a garter snake. I did a lot better than I thought I would!

June 11th, 2022

Today was an awesome day! As I've said a number of times, the smooth green and eastern hognose snakes are my favorite snakes to find (I also really love to find copperheads and redbelly snakes). It seems I have a lot of favorites, but today I was on a mission to find a smooth green snake. I didn't just fine one, I found a total of three smooth green snakes. This is the first time I've found more than one on the same day. Unfortunately, the first and third smooth green snakes were getting ready to shed, so their coloration was pretty dull. However, the second one was a gorgeous bright green and may have just recently finished a shed.

I also found 2 eastern milk snakes and 2 northern ringneck snakes today. Today was a significant day because, in addition to finding the 3 smooth green snakes, I also surpassed the total number of snakes I found last year, which was 252. After last night I was tied with last year at 252, but with the 7 snakes I found today, I'm now at 259. It's exciting to beat my record from last year so early in the season. I wonder what my total will be at the end of the year. I'm also amazed at how many milk snakes I've found so far this year. I'm up to 10 for the year so far after only finding 3 all of last year. I struggled with them earlier this season, but I've been finding them pretty regularly for the past few weeks.

June 10th, 2022

I went for a quick copperhead run after work and saw 2 copperheads. The one pictured was still hanging out near its den site, but the other one had long since left. Unfortunately, I fell victim to a camera malfunction while taking pictures of the second one, shown below (the first one wasn't very photogenic so I didn't take photos). This happens periodically, where some buttons stop working, some act like they're stuck when you press them, and the toggle and enter buttons don't work at all. This results in my inability to adjust the shutter speed, aperture, or ISO. I mangaged to get a couple of shots off but they're pretty disappointing. This copperhead was a real stunner, too. It wasn't very big, but not a baby, looked freshly shed and was a nice bright orange.

I'm not sure what causes this issue to come up, but it happens pretty often. I think it's because of either the camera getting bumped around in my backpack as I hike, moisture/humidity in the air, when it's hot out, or some combination of the above. I have a Nikon camera as backup which I may bring with me tomorrow instead of the Canon I've been using lately. I'm going smooth green snaking tomorrow. That's too important of a mission to risk another camera malfunction!

June 4th, 2022

Today was a great day! I saw another milk snake, a hognose snake, 3 northern black racers, and a northern watersnake. I've been having great luck with milk snakes recently. In the last 2 weeks I've found 4 milk snakes, which brings me up to a total of 5 for the year. I only found 3 all last year. Best of all, my dad was with me today, and the milk snake was among the 6 out of 14 species he still hadn't seen this year. We actually saw that milk snake earlier this morning, but it escaped under some rocks before I could get any pictures.

After checking out some other spots, we returned to see if the milk snake had come back out and I found it hiding under a rock a few feet from where it was this morning. This time I was able to get some photos. The milk snake today also proves what an anomoly the milk snake I found last night was. The two were about the same size, but the one I saw last night had a much brighter red coloration. The shades of brown on the one seen today is more typical of a milk snake of that size.

After leaving the milk snake, we went to some other spots to look for hognose snakes, which was one of the now 5 species my dad was still missing for the year. Incredibly, we found a hognose snake, too. It was not very photogenic so I didn't take any photos, but at least my dad got to see it. We knocked out 2 missing species in one day, leaving him with only 4 left to find: the northern redbelly snake, smooth green snake, worm snake, and timber rattlesnake. All 4 are pretty tough snakes to find but I'm confident we can do it!

June 3rd, 2022

I made a quick, but very successful, snaking run after work today. It was a perfect afternoon for snaking. Upon arrival at the spot, I very quickly saw a northern water snake and 4 eastern ribbon snakes. I managed to get some photos of one of the ribbon snakes but it was a little camera shy so I moved on. Afterwards, I saw the same eastern copperhead I saw at this location on May 30th, in close to the same spot. Then I saw three northern black racers all under the same piece of cover.

Finally, the grand finale of the evening was a nice looking adult eastern milk snake. Despite it's size, it still had a nice red and white coloration to it. It was at least 3 times the size of the milk snake I saw on May 26th, my 10 species day, and that one was already much darker than the one I found tonight. It also posed nicely for the camera. Every time I've seen milk snakes in the past I've been disappointed with how my photos came out, but the photos I took tonight are pretty decent. At the very least, they're the best milk snake photos I've taken yet. This was also my favorite milk snake encounter because of it's size and coloration.

I've already seen 4 milk snakes this year, which is one more than I saw last year. In total, tonight I saw a total of 10 snakes from 5 species - not bad for a 1.5-hour trip after work!

May 30th, 2022

My good luck streak finally ended yesterday while looking for smooth green snakes. I only saw a racer and three garter snakes. Today, however, which is the last day of my 10-day snaking vacation, went a little bit better. I saw 2 hognose snakes, 2 racers, 3 copperheads, and a ribbon snake. The first hognose snake was the same one I saw first two days ago, but the second one was a different individual. It was smaller and had a lot more yellow in it than I'm used to seeing. I'm now up to 6 total hognose snakes for the year so I've already beaten last year, when I only saw 5.

After leaving the hognose spot, I wanted to look for copperheads quickly since I think they're starting to leave their dens now to move towards their summer habitat, where they'll be harder to find. I ended up finding one in a new location and 2 more later on at a known spot. I also encountered an impressively fast ribbon snake. I saw it alongside a path and as I was walking, it fled parallel to the path and kept pace with me walking for about 10 seconds. I can't remember for sure, but I may have even had to speed up my pace slightly. I think a racer can go faster than that, but a racer is also a lot larger. The ribbon snake covered a lot of ground in a short amount of time and now I understand how they manage to be so elusive!

May 28th, 2022

My streak of incredible luck continues! Today I found not one, but two, eastern hognose snakes. Additionally, I found the first one underneath the very first rock that I flipped. I've never found one so easily before, nor have I ever found 2 hogs on the same day day. I can't believe how lucky I've been recently. The second hognose snake was found about 2 hours later and is my favorite hognose snake of the year. Unfortunately, it was in shed, but it still had very nice coloration. In addition to some yellows mixed in with the browns, it also had pink on the sides of it's hood, which you can see in some photos.

This entire week has been great for me for hognose snakes. I found one on Sunday, one on Thursday, and two today (Saturday). Combined with the first one of the year I found on April 30th, I've seen a total of 5 this year, which is how many I saw in all of last year. One of my goals this year was to find more hognose snakes, and it looks like I'm off to a good start doing that! In addition to the hognose snakes, I also saw 5 northern black racers today. What a great day! Will my luck continue tomorrow?

May 26th, 2022

Today was my best day of snaking of all time. I found the 3 species I was looking for to complete my 6-day, 14 species blitz. I also found 7 other species, for a total of 10, which is my new personal record for most species in a single day. My previous record was 6 species. Additionally, I managed to get photographs of at least one individual from each species I saw. Also, I was blown away by the northern black racer I saw. It's deep in shed, but I've never seen such a light-colored racer with a bluish hue like that before. And finally, I found 2 copperheads at a site where I've never seen copperheads before.

As previously mentioned, I was looking for 3 species today. In the 5 days since my 10-day vacation began this past Saturday, I managed to find 11 of the 14 CT snake species. I was originally planning to find them all before the end of my 10 days. However, when I mentioned this to my dad last night, he said, "You have 2 days left to do it in a week." Since I can't wimp out on a challenge like that, I planned to find the remaining 3 species today, which were the rat snake, brown snake, and ribbon snake.

I struck out at the first two spots this morning looking for the rat snake, then at the third saw 2 northern water snakes shortly after arrival. Next was the incredibly colored racer. Afterwards, I found an eastern hognose snake, then finally the rat snake I was looking for.

Next, I went to my parent's house, which has always been a reliable spot for ringneck and brown snakes. First, I found 2 ringneck snakes, the second one being a tiny baby born late last summer or early fall. Next, I flipped the brown snake I was looking for. It was an adult, but shortly after I finished taking pictures of it, I flipped a baby brown snake under the same rock as a 3rd ringneck snake.

Finally, I went to my best ribbon snake spot. I found a watersnake pretty quickly. Next, I flipped a few rocks hoping to get lucky with a milk snake, and much to my surprise, saw 2 copperheads coiled up next to each other. This was my lifer copperhead flip and the first time I've seen copperheads at this location. Just a minute later I saw a female garter snake, and incredibly, I flipped a small milk snake just a couple minutes after that. I've always suspected milk snakes could be found at that location but this was the first time I actually found one.

Finally, just as I was starting to get nervous that my luck had run out and I wouldn't find a ribbon snake, the last species I needed to complete the 14 species blitz, I spotted one in some thick undergrowth and was able to get photos of it. What an epic day and I was back home by 2:30pm! I'm sure I'll remember today for a very long time. I'll probably never get so lucky again!

May 25th, 2022

I went on a venomous snake quest today and I was successful! I saw 3 adult timber rattlesnakes and 5 copperheads. Unfortunately, the rattlesnake pictures aren't that great because they weren't in very photogenic positions. With rattlesnakes, you have to photograph them as you found them, you can't move them around and pose them like you can a garter snake. The same goes far copperheads, but I've been a little bit luckier at finding those laying out in decent positions recently.

I also saw 8 total northern water snakes at two different spots, 2 eastern garter snakes, 2 northern black racers. I requested this week off from work early last month, thinking that I might need to do a snake blitz before the end of the month if I hadn't found any of the 14 CT snakes yet. My stated goal this year was to find them all before the end of June, but it became clear in April that I could probably do it before the end of May. While I already found all 14 species by May 7th, I kept the week off because this might be the best time of year for snaking and I wanted to have plenty of time to do it.

It dawned on me today that I may be able to find all 14 species within my 10 day vacation (May 21st - 30th). I've found all of the hardest species over the last few days, and the only species I haven't seen since this past Saturday are the northern brown snake, eastern rat snake, and ribbon snake. Looks like my new quest is to find those 3 over the next few days!

May 24th, 2022

Today I was on a northern redbelly snake quest. It was the only snake I had only seen one of so far this year since finding the worm snake yesterday. Luckily, I did manage to find a redbelly snake! I was a little worried because redbelly snakes are proving to be tough this year. I've been to my best spot for them several times already but have struck out. I guess it's more of a summer and fall spot. However, I did manage to locate one at the same spot I found the first one this year on May 7th. I also found 3 ringneck snakes there as well. I've now found all 14 CT snakes at least twice this year, with half of them found many more times than that.

Afterwards, I went to check out a spot that someone recently tipped me off to. It was supposed to be a good spot for water snakes, and I was not disappointed. I saw 3 large female water snakes and 2 smaller males all in one small area. I couldn't get close enough for any detail shots, but I did get some nice in-situ photos. I will definitely go back to that spot to check it out again and hopefully I can do better with the photography!

May 23rd, 2022

Recently, I've been on a quest to refind the snakes I've only seen once this year. Before today, there were two remaining: the northern redbelly snake and the eastern worm snake. I was originally planning to go after the redbelly snake today. It's been a tough one for me this year, I've struck out at my best redbelly spot every time I've been there. However, I changed my mind at the last minute this morning because the weather conditions seemed like they'd be perfect for worm snakes. That turned out to be a smart decision as it only took me about 45 minutes to locate one this morning. Worm snakes are really hard to find, second only to smooth green snakes in my opinion.

Afterwards, I checked out a couple other spots looking for a smooth green snake, but only saw 1 northern black racer. This afternoon, I looked for copperheads and found 4. One of them was by a den spot I know of but hadn't seen anything there yet this year, which was starting to make me nervous. The three copperheads pictured show a variety of colorations. The first one I saw, not pictured, was pretty dark and similar to the 3rd one in the photos. I also saw 3 northern water snakes, 2 of which were in the process of mating. Not a bad day!

May 22nd, 2022

Today turned out to be another great day and great ending to an all-star snaking weekend. I'm now on a quest to refind all the snakes that I've only found once this year. Yesterday, I got my second milk snake and second smooth green snake. Today, I planned to look for hognose snakes. I didn't get very good photos of the one I found a few weeks ago because it wouldn't stop rolling over to play dead, so I was hoping for better luck today. I ended up finding one shortly after starting this morning. In fact, I was still hiking to the spot where I was hoping to see one when I found it sunning itself across the trail. It would have been hard to miss. Although it did play dead like the last one, it eventually flipped back over and I got some decent photos. Hognose and smooth green snakes are my two favorite snakes to find, so it was pretty awesome to find them both this weekend.

Afterwards, I checked out a couple new spots that I've been meaning to check out. I didn't see anything at the first, but the second turned out to be pretty decent. I saw a garter snakes and 5 northern water snakes. I managed to get some photos of one of the water snakes. I'm sure I'll go back to that spot as it's a big area and there's a lot more to explore.

May 21st, 2022

Today was a pretty epic day. I went smooth green snaking and, not long after starting, flipped a small, dark milk snake. This was a very unexpected surprise considering how much difficulty I've had finding them. The lighting was pretty tough so my photos are kind of disappointing, but that just gives me an excuse to look for more, which I was planning to do anyway.

About half an hour after finding the milk snake, I flipped a smooth green snake. I had gone back to the rock where I flipped a smooth green snake last October, thinking it might be there again. I've come to learn that isn't as farfetched as it sounds. While there was nothing under that rock, the one I found today was under a rock about 5 feet away. They were both pretty big smooth green snakes as well, so it's very possible this is the same individual I saw last year. I get super excited when I find a smooth green. They are the hardest snake in CT to find and, along with hognose snakes, my favorite snake to find as well. I'm hoping to find many more this year.

This afternoon, I decided to go to another spot to look for copperheads and anything else I might find. I ended up seeing 2 copperheads, 5 northern water snakes, and 3 garter snakes, 2 of which were pretty large females. That's 12 snakes total for the day, from 5 different species. Definitely a great day!

May 20th, 2022

I saw two eastern copperheads today. To be honest, the first stuck out like a sore thumb and I saw it from some distance away. The second one put a little bit more effort towards concealment, but not by much. Copperheads are one of my favorite snakes to see so I'm always excited when I find one. I also saw two northern black racers today, but based on where I found them, I assume I've probably seen those individuals before.

May 15th, 2022

Today was a quick day with just a couple of stops. At the first stop, I saw 2 northern black racers. At the second, I saw 2 eastern ribbon snakes, and 3 northern black racers under the same piece of plywood. That's the first time I can remember seeing 3 racers together like that. One of the racers was enormous, but unfortunately I didn't have my phone ready to take a quick photo or video. I'll be better prepared for that next time. The ribbon snake I photographed had some blood on its chin so I suspect it ate a meal not too long ago.

May 14th, 2022

Today was a pretty good day. This morning I went to a spot to look for milk snakes. Although I didn't find any, I found one eastern garter snake and 3 northern ringneck snakes. This afternoon I went to a differnt spot hoping to see both water snakes and copperheads. I managed to see 3 water snakes, but struck out on the copperheads despite an exhaustive search. I did, however, see another garter snake as well as 3 northern black racers all hanging out in the same area, as well as 2 racer at another spot. The garter snake I saw was a large female, and it's possible she's the same female I saw in the mating ball on March 26th. She was sunning herself about 25 feet away from where I saw the mating ball. 13 snakes from 4 different species, not a bad day!

May 13th, 2022

Today was a bittersweet day for me. On the one hand, I saw 6 Northern Water Snakes and 2 copperheads. On the other, one of the water snakes had a very serious wound about halfway down it's body, with its insides coming out of it. I euthanized it to prevent it from suffering, as I didn't think it could recover from a wound like that, but I'm haunted by having to do that. I'm not sure what caused the wound, perhaps a turtle, or it got snagged by a fishing hook (and ripped out), or it was attacked by a human or other animal.

On a positive note, the first copperhead I found was in a new area, so I'll pay more attention to that spot from now on. I have a feeling there are a lot more copperhead spots to discover at this one particular location. Now that they're emerging from their dens, this is the best time to find them. I'm planning to spend the next couple weeks at this location and a few new ones looking for copperheads.

May 11th, 2022

I made another quick snaking run to a local spot after work today. I saw a total of 3 northern water snakes, 1 eastern copperhead, 1 eastern rat snake, 1 northern black racer, and 1 garter snake which was dead, unfortunately. I was able to get some photos of the first water snake, which was pretty small. The other two were much bigger, but they didn't allow me to get close enough to them to take decent photos. After not seeing a copperhead at this spot in a few weeks, I turned up one today. It's tough to say if it's the same one I saw on April 13th, but it was in the exact spot. However, there is a den somewhere underneath this spot, so it could easily be another individual. Unfortunately, it was dug in pretty good, so I didn't get the best pictures. It's always awesome to see a copperhead, however.

May 10th, 2022

I went for a quick snaking run after work. I wanted to see if I could find any copperheads in a new spot where I suspect there might be some. However, I couldn't find any. I've checked this spot a number of times for copperheads but have yet to find one there, unfortunately. However, I did see 3 eastern garter snakes, 2 of which were within a few feet of each other in a new spot for me. I'll check that spot from now one. I also saw 2 northern black racers, the first of which I took some pictures of. The second one I saw is one that I've seen in the exact same spot a number of times. They certainly creatures of habit.

May 8th, 2022

My first mission after completing my quest yesterday is to find another eastern hognose snake. The only one I found so far this year wouldn't stop rolling over and playing dead, which didn't make for appealing photos, so I'm hoping to find another that will pose more nicely for the camera. I went to the same spot I found the last hognose 10 seconds after seeing off an eastern worm snake, so I was flipping rocks and on the lookout for those as well as well. While I didn't find either species, I did find 4 northern black racers and 4 eastern black rat snakes. I managed to get some decent photos of one of the rat snakes. Unfortunately, it looks like it might be infected with snake fungal disease. In the last photo, you can see it has a blister on the side of its face and body. I've seen worse cases, so hopefully it can shake it off!

May 7th, 2022 - Quest Complete!

My quest is complete! Going into this weekend I was still missing 2 out of the 14 CT snakes: the northern redbelly and eastern milk snakes. I planned to spend the morning and early afternoon looking for milk snakes, then hit my best redbelly spot afterwards. As it turned out, I found them in the opposite order. I struck out at the first two spots of the day, then hit a 3rd where I was still focused on looking for milk snakes.

I found 2 ring neck snakes under the same rock where I found one last year. A few minutes later, I got my lifer triple flip: 3 ringneck snakes under the same rock. I ended up finding two garter snakes and 10 total ringneck snakes at this location, all while flipping rocks. I kept visualizing a milk snake every time I flipped a rock, so I was surprised when I found a chestnut colored redbelly snake under one rock. I knew there was a chance of finding a redbelly snake at this location, but I was there primarily to look for milk snakes. This saved me the drive to the spot where I was planning to look for redbelly snakes, so I continued on looking for milk snakes.

With one snake left to find, I knew my quest could end at any minute. I went to a powerline cut area that I thought would be good for milk snakes. I pressed on, despite it starting to drizzle, having a sore back and sore hands from flipping so many rocks, and a crushed finger from a heavy rock pinning it at the previous spot. One rock I flipped had 3 ringneck snakes and 1 garter, which is a new record. Finally, a came upon a patch of rocks that looked perfect for flipping, and under a flat, medium-sized rock, I found the milk snake.

Today was a pretty epic day. Not only did I find the two missing species and complete my quest, but I set a few new personal records. I found 19 snakes today (13 ringneck, 4 garter, 1 redbelly, 1 milk), which beats my previous record of 14 from last year, as well as a tie with it this year. I also got my first triple flip of the year (3 ringnecks), and my lifer quadruple flip (3 ringnecks, 1 garter). Pretty awesome day!

April 30th, 2022

Today was one of my greatest days of snaking ever. When I left the house this morning, I had 5 out of 14 total species left to find this year. I managed to find 3 of them today: the timber rattlesnake (I saw 2), eastern worm snake, and eastern hognose snake. I also found 5 northern black racers, 2 eastern black rat snakes, and 1 ringneck snake, which is a total of 6 species for the day. That's a new personal record for me. My previous record was 5 species in one day, which I've done a few times, most recently April 16th.

When I planned today's itinerary, I knew it was technically possible to find those 3 species today, but I didn't think it was very probable. All 3 of these species are tough to find, particularly the worm snake which I consider the second hardest snake to find after the smooth green snake. What's even more incredible is that I found the hognose snake about 10 seconds after seeing the worm snake back safely under it's rock.

Unfortunately, today wasn't my best day for photography. The 3 new species were all pretty tough subjects: the lighting wasn't great for the rattlesnakes, the worm snake wouldn't hold still, and the hognose wouldn't stop playing dead. I even tried to wait it out from out of sight for 10 minutes, but it persisted in its antics. Despite not taking the greatest photos today, all three still count. So that's 12 down, only 2 more to go!

April 24th, 2022

I found my first smooth green snake of the year today! I feel incredibly lucky that I found it. I was only at the location for about 10 minutes before finding it. It took me a second to get over my disbelief at seeing it. Because I found it so quickly, I thought there might be a bunch of them around and I was going to see several more. However, that turned out not to be the case. I spent another 3 hours searching for another, but to no avail.

If the timber rattlesnake is the holy grail of snaking in Connecticut, then the smooth green snake is the crown jewel. Not only are they the most beautiful snake in CT, they are also the hardest to find. I feel a big sense of relief that I've found it and I'm planning to find more this year, but for now I'm going to focus on the 5 snakes I have left to find: the rattlesnake, redbelly, hognose, milk, and worm snakes. Despite only finding one snake all day, it was still pretty awesome!

April 23nd, 2022

Despite a slow start, today turned out to be a pretty decent day. I drove a little further than normal today to try to find a hognose snake. I didn't find any, but saw three northen black racers, one of which I got some decent photos of. Afterwards, I visited a spot that I saw water snakes at pretty regularly last year, but they weren't around today. It might still be too early in the season for them to be there. I've been trying to get pictures of an adult water snake recently because the only pictures I've gotten of a water snake this year were of the baby on April 9th, despite seeing a couple of adults since then.

I met my dad later on and we went to a spot hoping to see either a water snake or a racer, both of which he hasn't seen yet this year. As luck would have it, we saw both! I spotted one pretty early, but it took off before he got to see it. A couple minutes later I saw two garter snakes. After that I spotted what I thought was two water snakes together, but as I got closer, they both took off. However, I realized there was a 3rd one there as well, which I was able to get pictures of. After that, we flipped a few boards and I correctly predicted exactly where an northern black racer would be, which I took a few photos of.

My dad is now up to 7 out of 14 snakes, trailing me by only 1. I've seen the rat snake which he has yet to see, and we're both missing the rattlesnake, smooth green, redbelly, hognose, milk, and worm snakes. Those are all going to be tough to spot but I'm confident we'll both see all 14 this year.

April 22nd, 2022

I went snaking with my dad after work today, with the goal of seeing a copperhead. Soon after arrival, we saw a very small ringneck snake, born late last summer or early fall. It somehow managed to slip through my grasp so I didn't get any photos of it. Afterwards we flipped some rocks and a few boards hoping for a milk snake, but still no luck on those. Later on, we checked a few copperhead spots but didn't see any until the very last one. This is the same individual and in the same exact spot as the copperhead I saw on April 15th. I'm glad my dad got to see it. He's trying to see all 14 snakes this year as well, and this was his first copperhead of the year, so now he's up to 5 out of 14!

April 20th, 2022

I was thinking about snaking all day so I went out for a quick look around at two of my favorite nearby spots tonight after work. The milk snake continues to elude me and the copperheads were a no-show today. It was about 55 degrees but a little breezy so perhaps it was too chilly for them to come out today. After getting skunked at the first location, which hasn't happened for a few weeks there, I decided to make a quick trip to the second, despite the fact that it was already past 7pm and I only had about 30 minutes before sunset. That proved to be a good decision as I found a fine specimen of northern black racer there. Despite their fierce reputation, this snake showed me absolutely no signs of aggression and didn't seem to mind having it's picture taken. Not bad for a quick trip after work!

April 17th, 2022

Today was another great day. I went to my parent's house which has always been a reliable spot for both ringneck and northern brown snakes. However, my dad has been looking around recently, including yesterday, and has not seen either species yet. Additionally, it's a little early in the season and it was a bit chilly today. All factors considered, I still thought I had a decent chance of seeing something. Sure enough, I found a good-sized ringneck snake after about a half hour of looking. About a half hour later I found a very small northern brown snake. It was one of the smallest I've seen, if not the smallest, born last year.

I was hoping to find a milk snake, which I found there one year, but the milk snake is proving to be as difficult as I expected it to be. However, I can still cross 2 more species off the list. That makes 8 down, 6 more to go. I'm already past the halfway point! Of course, the remaining 6 are the hardest to find, so it's going to get tougher from here on out.

April 16th, 2022

Today was incredible! Not only did I find a new species for the year, but I also tied two all-time records from last year. I saw 3 eastern rat snakes, which was the new species for the year, 7 northern black racers, 2 watersnakes, 1 ribbon snake, and 1 garter snake. That's a total of 14 snakes in one day, which was my record from last year. I actually saw 15 snakes today, which would have been a new record, but one was just a fleeting glimse of a tail. I believe it was a watersnake, but since I can't be positive, it doesn't count. I found 5 different species of snakes which ties my record from last year, as well. Additionally, the photos I got today of one of the rat snakes and one of the racers are the best photos I've ever taken of either species. It was a pretty awesome day and I can now cross the eastern rat snake off the list. That means 6 species down, 8 to go!

April 15th, 2022

I went snaking after work again today and had a somewhat successful day. I went back to the spots where I was eluded by the two black racers last time. Today I saw 3 all in the same area. I managed to get a couple pictures of one of them before it took off. I spent a little time flipping rocks and looking around for milks snakes but didn't see any. Then I checked out a few different areas where I was hoping to see either more black racers or a copperhead. I didn't see anything at the first area but I found a copperhead at the last spot I went to. It was pretty windy out today but it was in a spot that was sheltered from the wind. Copperheads are one of my favorite snakes to find so it was cool to see another one today!

April 13th, 2022

I went for a quick snaking run after work today and I'm glad that I did! I went to a local spot and was flipping rocks hoping to find a milk snake. While I didn't find any, I did see two northern black racers. However, they both got away before I could get any pictures. So I decided I'd go check in on the black racer I saw last Saturday who stayed still and posed nicely for photos. It was in the exact spot where I saw my lifer copperhead, so I knew there was a good possibility of seeing a copperhead today. When I got to the spot, I saw that there was not one, but two copperheads there! I got some decent photos of the second one, but the first one was pretty well hidden.

Afterwards, I went to the spot where I often see two racers hanging out, which is also a good area for copperheads. The racers were a no show, but while exploring the area I noticed a large rock that had a small gap to the side which looked like it could be a den entrance, or at least a good hiding spot. As I began to move leaves out of the way with my hiking pole, I saw that I was correct, there was a copperhead hiding there behind the leaves! I've never seen a copperhead in or around this spot before, so I'll pay more attention to that area from now on. These were my first copperheads of the year, so now I've got 5 species down, 9 more to go!

April 10th, 2022

Today was an awesome day for ribbon snakes. My dad came out with me so I was really hoping he'd get to see at least one. He didn't get to see any last year and he's not sure if he's ever seen one in the past. When we arrived at the spot, I pointed out an area where I had seen a ribbon snake hanging out a couple times before. As we approached, we saw there was one there again. Then we moved on to a second spot nearby where I had seen one previously, and right after telling him so, we saw a second ribbon snake there, too. The pictures and video below are of this individual.

A little while later we approached the spot where I saw the pair mating on April 3rd. As we got closer, we saw a pair within a few feet of that same spot, too! It was definitely the same female I saw last time, who is easily identified by her partially amputated tail. I'm not sure if it was the same male. Finally, before heading back to the cars, we returned to the spot where we had seen the first one, and saw a fifth, much smaller ribbon snake there. Despite being below 50 degrees, it turned out to be a pretty awesome day. Not only did my dad get his first "confirmed" ribbon snake, he got to see five, which is more than I've ever seen in one trip!

April 9th, 2022

Despite periods of rain throughout the day, today turned out to be a pretty awesome day! I went out this morning to continue looking for water snakes. I found a ribbon snake pretty quickly. A half hour later, my water snake quest came to an end when I flipped a rock and found a tiny water snake. While not what I had in mind when I visualized the win this morning, it was cool to see such a tiny water snake. I've never seen one that size before. Even at less than a year old, it was still pretty defensive and struck at me several times. After that it started raining pretty hard so I went back home.

The sun came back out this afernoon so I went to a different spot to see if I could find a larger water snake. While ascending a talus slope, I saw the tail of a racer disappear beneath the rocks about 20 feet above me. This was in the exact spot that I saw my first two racers last April 4th, and I continued up the slope wondering if I'd see another. Sure enough, I did, but it was a little far to get good photos. I'd bet that these were the same individuals as last year, and just like then, the second one came straight at me until it ducked beneath the rocks just a few feet away.

After that encounter, I decided to check out the spot where I saw my first copperhead a year ago today, last April 9th. Sitting in the exact spot, to the foot, was my third northern black racer of the day. I crept over to it slowly and it allowed me to take pictures of it for about 15 minutes. It didn't move an inch other than a few flicks of its tongue. When I finished, I got up slowly and backed away, and it was still in the same spot when I left. I checked off two species today!

April 8th, 2022

I got out of work early today to go to a follow up appointment for my foot. The doctor cleared me to resume normal activities, so I'm going to start hiking some inclines instead of just on flat ground like I have been for the last few weeks. On the way back home, I stopped to do a little water snaking. While I didn't find any water snakes, I found a pretty nice looking ribbon snake. It's my 5th of the year. It's good to see that they're doing reasonably well at this spot, I've been able to find them the last 3 times in a row that I've been here.

April 3rd, 2022

With rain on the forecast for today, I didn't think I was going to be able to go out. However, I had about an hour window before the rain started this morning, so I decided to go out for a quick ribbon snake quest. I returned to the spot where the ribbon snake had eluded me yesterday, and in almost the exact same spot, I once again saw a ribbon snake, but was not able to photograph it. I'm guessing it was the same individual yesterday.

I continued on and, just a few minutes later, came across a pair of mating ribbon snakes, a first for me. Luckily, this time I was able to get some pictures, though they're not the greatest because I was afraid to get too close and disturb them. You can see that the female is quite a bit thicker than the male. You can also see that her tail has been amputated, unfortunately.

Afterwards, I worked my way back to the spot where I had been eluded by a ribbon snake twice in two days, stopping along the way to photograph a garter snake, which was my 2nd of the day. As I slowly crept over to the spot, I saw that the elusive ribbon snake was back once again. This time, I was able to get some pictures of it. Ribbon snakes are listed as a species of special concern in the state of CT, so I'm glad they're so elusive. And since I finally got some ribbon snakes on film, I can cross them off the list. 2 down, 12 to go!

April 2nd, 2022

I went to a couple of my favorite spots this morning but I didn't see anything. I wasn't feeling well due to a bout of food poisoning, so I decided to go home early instead of heading to a spot where I was planning to look for ribbon snakes. After returning home, and throwing up a few times, I started to feel a bit better. And since it's supposed to rain tomorrow, I decided to go back out. I've gone out looking for ribbon snakes a couple times over the last few weeks but haven't seen any. After arriving at the spot, I saw a couple inches of the back of a snake submerged in water, and I grabbed it hoping it was a ribbon snake. However, it turned out to be a garter snake, but I got some great photos of it glistening in the bright sun. Shortly after, I saw and photographed a second garter snake. Towards the end of the afternoon, I caught a glimpse of a ribbon snake's tail, but it escaped before I was able to get any photos of it, unfortunately. I have come to learn that ribbon snakes are quite elusive, which is a good thing considering their classification as a species of special concern.

March 26th, 2022

After not seeing any snakes for the last two weekends in row, I finally got lucky today. I went to one of my favorite nearby locations, and while walking around the perimeter of a resevoir there, I came upon a garter snake. A second later, I realized there was another one just a few feet away. I took a few pictures of them, then as I started to look for more, I realized there was an entire mating ball of garter snakes nearby, which I've never seen in person before. It consisted of 4 smaller males competing to mate with a larger female. In total, I saw 7 garter snakes, all within a 15-foot stretch of the resevoir shoreline.

These are the first snakes I’ve seen in more than 2 months. My foot is still recovering from the surgery I had in January. I still can’t do any strenuous or steep hiking, but I started doing some short hikes on flat terrain 2 weeks ago. I’m glad I finally saw something today!

January 14th, 2022

I took advantage of a half day of work and relatively warmer weather (39°F) to check in on the garter snake I saw on both Dec 31st and Jan 1st. I was happy to see that it was there once again. We got about a foot of snow last week and it would have been cool to get pictures of it while there was still some snow on the ground, but between yesterday, when it was up in the 40s, and today, all of the snow on the upper portion of this talus slope has melted. There was still some snow lower down the slope, but the snake wasn't in a good position to get that in the background and I wasn't about to move it just for a photo.

I tore some ligaments in my foot 2 years ago on an ill-fated afternoon jog and I'm having surgery on the 24th to fix everything. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like the weather will be warm enough for any snakes to be out between now and then. I'm glad I had a chance to get out and see this garter snake because I'll be on crutches for 6 weeks following the surgery and have to do PT after that, so this is proably the last snake I'll see for quite a while. However, I should be back on my feet just in time for snake season to start up again in March, and without the stability and pain issues which slowed me down a little bit this past year. I'm looking forward to getting back out there and finding more snakes than I did last year!

January 1st, 2022

2022 is off to a good start! I returned to the same spot I went to yesterday to see if the same garter snake was still hanging out there. However, it was rainy, windy, foggy, and wet (see 1st video), so I was only cautiously optimistic that it would be there again today.

When I arrived, I didn't see it at first, but a few seconds later noticed it was further up the slope, laying motionless and partially emerged from what must be the entrance to its den. I was pretty sure the snake den lobby rock was the entrance to a den, and today's discovery makes it clear that this area is in fact a den "zone" with multiple entrances in the vicinity. Now that I know the precise location of that one entrance, I'll pay more attention to that area when I revisit in the spring time.

Finding a snake on January 1st in Connecticut is pretty cool. I now have a new record for "earliest snake seen in the year". Unfortunately, this snake appears to have some blisters on it, indicating a possible snake fungal disease infection. That's likely the reason why it's been coming out of it's den this time of year. The sunlight and UV rays can help a snake fight off SFD. Hopefully, this garter snake can fight it off and make a full recovery.