I got into the Moab area around 12:30pm, which was much earlier than I had expected. I thought I would try a small hike at Dead Horse Point State Park, and turned on the road to go there.
When Reptiles Rain from the Sky
Moab was going to be full of visitors/ tourists this weekend, so I was surprised when I found myself alone on a road, driving past ruby red sandstone cliffs.....and then THUMP!!!!!! Something hit the hood of my car. I screamed, lost control of the car, quickly got my hands back on the steering wheel and managed to get to the side of the road where I stopped the car. I was looking down at my controls, thinking that a rock had fallen from the cliff, and ricocheted off the valley floor on to the hood of my car. I had the presence of mind to hit the button that puts on my emergency blinkers. Then I looked up to see what had hit the car.
More screaming!!! Staring through my window was a rattlesnake, about two feet long. It was bleeding on my hood and windshield. It was writhing and had its fangs bared. The rattle was sounding like angry castanets. I thought I was going to die of a heart attack right then and there. But, the Lord knows it is not my time to leave this earthly existence. Had I not been scared spitless, and had more presence of mind, I would have pulled out a camera. I had a camera, smartphone, and iPad on my passenger seat. I can take pictures with all three of them, and this was a great horror picture - but I didn't think of this until the following Tuesday.
I have no idea how much time passed. I was help captive in the safety of my car while the snake continued to bare fangs and shake its rattle. To be honest, I am not sure it was alive, if the writhing was not after death involuntary muscle movement. It didn't occur to me to use my phone to call for help.
Eventually, a van pulled up behind my car, and two men got out. One man, Mike, Nick, or maybe his name was Alan - can't recall - came over to my window. He saw the snake, and yelled back to his friend to get back in the car, it was a rattlesnake. "NickAllan" or whoever he was, went back to his van and got a fishing net, the kind with the handle that can be extended. Telling me to "sit tight" (no problem!), he stood about six feet from my car and netted the snake, which curled up into a coil in the net. He then did this fascinating move, like a Jai Alai player, and flung the net overhand so that the snake went flying into the air, and landed way out on the desert floor.
Then both men got me out of the car to walk out my shakes. They examined the car, and amazingly there was no denting in the hood. I opted not to hike that afternoon, and they followed me back into Moab, and saw me safely to my motel, where I checked in pale as a ghost. I went to my room and stretched out on the bed in an effort to get my heart rate and blood pressure down.
A few hours later, determined to get back to my vacation, I went to the front desk to get some directions. One of the clerks had heard about my adventure when I was checking in - I was asked if I felt okay, and had given a brief account. She told me that young fledgling raptors (birds of prey) often misjudge the weight of animals they attack, and have to drop them. Her father was a ranger at Canyonlands National Park, and their home was on the Moab outskirts. They often found dead, or nearly dead animals in their yard. Some young eagle, falcon, or raven had lost its lunch! I recalled that "NickAllan" and his friend had said something similar, but at the time it did not register with me.
My hotel was next to a carwash, where I went to clean the blood off the front of the car. I then found the restaurant I was looking for, and made myself eat. I also found a rock shop, which would bring back my excitement about my vacation.
Dead Horse Point State Park
The following Sunday, determined to see this park, I did as the Mormon hymn "Come, Come Ye Saints" states Gird up your loins, fresh courage take, our God will never us forsake. Back to the park I went, hoping not to have another snake rain on my parade. Here is the park:
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| The water is potash ponds |
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| One of the "goosenecks" of the Colorado River, and the most famous view of this park. |
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| Tourists posing in a dangerous position. One or two steps back and it is over the cliff! |
On the way home to SLC, I noticed a small crack in my windshield. I took the car in on Monday to have it check out and filled. The man fixing it said something like "Darndest rock chip I have ever seen! It looks like something tried to bite your window!"
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