Watch Your Step! Rattlesnakes Out Early On Bay Area Trails
BERKELEY (CBS SF) -- Rattlesnakes are out a month earlier than usual in the Bay Area, so watch your step out on hiking trails.
California's drought and unseasonably warm weather are driving the snakes out early this year.
"This is the season when they start coming out, Spring, and since we are having kinda early spring this year, this is where they are out and about," East Bay Regional Parks Spokeswoman Carolyn Jones said.
They are on trails throughout the Bay Area, and most people are surprised to see them.
"I think I came across one kinda just, I'm not sure it it was a rattlesnake or what, but something little wiggling across the path," trail runner Jailian Cathey said.
The snakes usually stay hidden, and want nothing to do with people. Dogs are naturally curious about the sounds along trails.
"Dogs get bitten more than people," Jones said.
There is anti-venom for both dogs and people, but the bites can be very painful.
