rattlesnake hunting close to Denver

[hatidua]

Found this one a few weeks back on the banks of the North Platte while fly fishing. I shot it at least a dozen times before putting the camera away and wading back into the river. The British guy that was with me stood back about 30' squealing like a 4 year old girl as if we'd located the deviant offspring of Satan and Godzilla though, which was incredibly amusing. the tip of a 5wt fly rod convinced this one to be on its way:

[rocktot]

Ok, is anyone up for a rattlesnake cookout? Why waste the meat?

[Irving]

Ok, is anyone up for a rattlesnake cookout? Why waste the meat?

I didn't really like the rattlesnake I ate, and threw the second one away. However, at $30/lb for the meat, you kind of feel like you HAVE to eat it.

[rocktot]

Was it the way it was cooked? What was the taste like?

[Irving]

Well, it was probably most of the way it was cooked. I don't know how to cook very well at all, so my wife kind of supervised, but wasn't 100% on board because she was grossed out by the fact that it was snake. The one I ate was fried, so the batter tasted great. I boiled the other one to remove the bone and it ended up just being gross. Rattlesnake does have it's own taste for sure, but describing it as "chewy, stringy, shitty chicken" isn't far off either. Certainly worth a try. Don't let my bad experience dissuade you.

[hatidua]

I boiled the other one to remove the bone and it ended up just being gross.

An older guy I used to know told a story once of when he and a friend, both 9 years old at the time, decided to "live off the land" with nothing more than a .22 rifle and a coffee can to cook in. He was 85 when he told the story which would have put this about 1923 when the adventure took place (I think he said they lasted one night before 'living off the land' was no longer tempting). Apparently, he and the friend managed to find a 'black snake' (rural NC) and after killing it, boiled it in the coffee can for dinner. 76 years after that dinner he said he could still taste that snake. In his adult life he had done a great many things, including driving landing craft on D-Day, being the chair of the forestry dept. at NCSU, Etc. He had a tremendous number of life experiences and even taught a class in wilderness eating when he worked at NC State U. but he said that snake really left an indelible memory. It was a rather amusing story. Sadly he passed away several years ago but I'll long value the time I spent sitting on his porch listening to his various tales.

From what I've previously heard, I thought rattlesnake was supposed to be palatable, don't they have annual events surrounding that cuisine in TX?

[Irving]

Oh I'm sure it tastes great when someone who knows what they are doing cooks it. I don't so it didn't turn out well. Imagine just gutting a fish, cutting off the head, removing the skin, and then trying to cook it without knowing what you are doing. The result would not likely be delicious.

You're snake story reminds me of the time that we picked up a shark steak at the Asian store and it tasted like ammonia. Now my wife brings it up all the time and anything that she thinks she won't like (rattlesnake) is going to "taste like the shark!"

[hatidua]

we picked up a shark steak at the Asian store and it tasted like ammonia.

Sharks flush their system with uric acid when hooked/stressed, you simply had a little shark urine with your steak (nature of the species I'm afraid...).

[tmjohnson]

HBARleatherneck
Sounds like with that many snakes hanging around, you need to get a couple of pigs and put in the yard. They'll cure your snake problem in a hurry