Buckeye Herps - A Photographic Gallery of the Reptiles and Amphibians of the State of Ohio

Snake Road, Illinois

June, 2006

I was saving the look back at the trip till winters icy cold hands threatened to yank our frostbitten bits and pieces off. The old man must have feared me because until now he kept his grimy mitts well away. Well he appeared with a vengeance, and I write this account bundled up and dreaming of warmer times...

This fall there was an organized mass exodus to snake road that was partly orchestrated here on this forum. It had been over a year since my first visit and so I couldn't help but be tempted to make the trip again. I managed to convince Dean that it is a pretty sweet place to be, so Friday after work we climbed into his car and started the trip west. We rolled into the campsite sometime after midnight and quickly set up that camp that would be our home. It was tough to not try and do something, anything after such a long drive, but we retired to our sleeping bags, anxious for whatever tomorrow had in store for us. My primary goal for the trip was to see a siren. I had purchased myself a hefty, super-duper, magical salamander net to try my luck in the areas outside of the preserve. Sat morning after a little chatting in the campsite, we set out with a few others to try and turn up a mole salamander and then to look for sirens. While no moles were seen, we managed to pick a few nice looking roadside ditches to try our luck. The rest of the group headed back to the campsite before making their way to the road, but Dean, Mitch and I decided to try driving to some other surrounding areas to see what there was to be had. Somewhere along the way, we hit a dead end thanks to a fallen tree. Dean had some great pics of me trying to move the beast, but somehow he lost these... At least the view was pretty nice.

We did find a real nice looking bluff and managed to turn up a timber shed. We tried very hard to find the snake that left it, but it wasn't in the cards. Working our way back to the south, Dean and I stopped to try another ditch and got separated from Mitch. I feel really bad about this because on our little detour Dean managed to flip two red milks. Mitch had never seen one and it was one of his main goals for the trip... Sorry man! Here is the prettier of the two.

Worthy of another shot...

Finally on our way to the road, we stopped to take pictures of our first views of the bluffs. This is a pretty classic shot of the area, and completely unoriginal, but one of those things you just have to do.

We started making some finds soon after parking the car.

This is the first cotton spotted on the day. I had a pretty hard time getting a decent shot, but seeing a cotton completely relaxed in its natural setting was worth settling.

That night everyone gathered around the fire, and I have to say it was an amazing time. The brews and Dr. Peppers were flowing freely and everyone had stories to share. I got to finally meet and get to know a few of the people on this forum, and I have to say it was the highlight of my trip. We shared stories from the day's outing, future plans for NAFHA, tomorrow's wishlists and each person's find of the year so far. It seemed like the night ended way to fast, but we all knew tomorrow was a big day with lots of promise. That morning was a little slow to get going. A few people may not have been feeling the best, but everyone laced up their muddy boots, downed some grub and set out to accomplish the days tasks. First off, I went and tried my luck with sirens again. I was very excited, but couldn't help but feel like things were not going to go so well. After giving it a go, and taking countless scoops with my net, Mike C. suggested another spot. It was pretty similar to a few of the places I had tried, but one thing I noticed was there was a lot more shade and cover in the way of vegetation. Trying to file "the look" away in my brain, we started trying our luck with the dipnets. After a few minutes, Mitch managed to snag one of the little beasts. I had lugged a small tank all the way to try and set up a more natural looking shot, but when the time came, it all seemed to be too much work. I was happy to get a few quick shots and head on back to the road. I didn't realize they would be so small, and I am really regretting not having a macro lens for the trip. Well, just another reason to go back!

Back at the the road we were ready to set out again.

I followed Mitch up a path to one of the bluffs. It was pretty narrow running through there and I tried to just kind of retrace his footsteps. I noticed him walk through this...

Something caught my eye a mere inch or two from where his right boot had been...

What it is...

Those tricky little BAST***S! He bolted for his hole in the rock, and I finally was able to get my first cotton to gape.

Climbing up the hill a little farther, I kept hearing Mitch mentioning that he was finding more cottons. I followed warily, second guessing each and every step, and watching closely where I set my fingers. Good thing too... I came right along side this one, about shoulder height.

Now these guys are sly...

The rest of the day was much more uneventful. We saw tons more cottons, enjoyed the company of fellow herpers and had a grand old time traipsing the road. Here are some of the other finds.

I found myself face to face with this.

I thought this was a pretty interesting pose. Too bad he booked it after one shot.

In the end, it was a very long day, an even longer weekend and we had a marathon of a drive to make during the night. Of course it will always be worth it though. Thanks again to everyone who made it out there. I had a wonderful time and all of you really helped make it great. It was an honor to finally be able to meet some of the people here on this forum, and I hope to be able to do it again sometime. Last, many thanks to Scott Albert and Mike Cravens for helping me with my quest, and Mitch for actually netting the beastie. Heres to spring being just around the corner!