Oh, Hi Mr. Rattle Snake...

I see a lot of creatures when I run at the beach.  Most often I see bunnies, lizards and quail.   I see enough road-runners, often with a lizard dangling from their mouths, that they do not surprise me anymore.  Same for the sea lions, though  the dead ones washed up on the beach make me a bit sad - and the ones with large chunks missing make me worry about sharks.  I've seen several different species of hawks, an osprey, and an owl which flew about a foot over my head one evening this summer. Once I even saw a naked surfer.  He wasn't surfing, but changing into is wetsuit on the beach.  While surprised, I enjoyed the view.

Last week I ran across a creature which will keep me on the paths.  This guy:

 

 Not more than 30 seconds before I encountered this rattle snake I walked past an information sign showing animals found in the sea cliff habitat surrounding me.  I said to myself, I'd seen every creature on that board except a rattle snake.  Then I thought, I bet there aren't really any rattle snakes close to the paths because of the number of people strolling up and down to the beaches.  Two steps later - Oh My G!  There is a rattle snake!!

So I did what any normal person would do, I ran to my car, grabbed my camera, and ran back to take pictures.  The top picture was the last one I took.  After snapping it I looked down to see the once sleeping snake awake and looking at me.  Time to go.

What scares me about Mr. Snake is he was about 2 paces off the board-walk path.  That is within striking distance of people on the path.  Many people, especially kids and runners, walk and run just off the path. 

I will be keeping my eyes on the paths from now on - and staying away from the edges.