A man was airlifted out of Lake Del Valle Regional Park after being bit by a rattlesnake in the lake. Here's the article from the San Jose Mercury News:
www.mercurynews.com/.../man-bitten-by-rattlesnake-at-del-valle-regional
The article says (and I hope it's true) that the snakes avoid the busier sections of the park. There's a 10K race coming up in this very lake in 3 weeks - I'm still planning to swim, but not without some trepidation now.
Some consolation: I've never encountered any snakes at Lake Del Valle, and I have been out there for races at least once a summer for almost 10 years now. Plus, this guy was bit because he picked up the rattler, which is not an idea that would even cross my mind. To me it doesn't matter whether it appeared to be alive or dead, in the water or out of the water, venomous or non-venomous, etc...
Former Member
Rob, I doubt that peeing in a lake - especially since the fisherman's spokesperson calculates that every swimmer does it in the lake - would kill the fish. Most fish kills are from a sudden drop in dissolved oxygen in the water as a result of fertilizer runoff from farms or suburban lawns.
So the fishermen are supposedly holding it?
And in a related story about swimmers striking back…
Swimmers' urine to blame for 500 fish deaths, German fishermen say
I distrust anything Fox News says. The British parliment says Rupert Murdoch is unfit to lead a news organization and I've seen no reason to doubt them.
That being said, I searched the net, and indeed, fishermen are accusing that.
Oddly enough, fertilizer runnoff doesn't seem to be mentioned although other non swimmer causes are mentioned.
According to The Local, the BSU believes that the fish deaths were caused by a combination of natural causes and something far less taboo than public urination: ice skating. “The ice-skaters make a noise that wakes the fish out of hibernation,” BSU spokeswoman Kerstin Graupner told the Local. “Then they can’t breathe and freeze. That’s a very common phenomenon.” Their bodies are only now being found.
Read more: newsfeed.time.com/.../
I'm guessing swimmers don't pee all that much per pound than fish do.
We have Massasaugas, I didn't think they would bite while swimming.
I dove ontop a large snapping turtle once...he was more freaked than me.
I was wondering if anyone has swam in any Asian carp infested rivers yet?..I think that would be a bit unnerving.
