Bicycling

Wait till you start hitting them. You have it easy with a rail to trail. I've seen some thick rattlers and ran over a couple coming around corners in SoCal. The coolest I ever saw was a California King snake on a road that runs along the back side of Laguna Beach. That looks like a harmless garter IMO. I don't know why exactly, but the dangerous ones stick out to my vision when I'm riding. I can spot them as different the second I see them, but I have seen quite a few over the years. I always feel bad when I hit any animal on the bike, and I'm much slower than I used to be now, so it is not as likely to occur. However, garters are pretty funny when they panic and scramble to get out of the way on a paved surface. It is like a cartoon character slipping on ice. If I have any amount of leadup, I'll bunny hop them without issue, by in sharp corners at speed, I've hit several. Even hitting something like a rattler in those circumstances, they don't have the forewarning and posture necessary to strike and the odds of them figuring out how to go after your legs in the middle of the bike, height off the ground and strike above the shoes is pretty low. They are far more likely to attempts a strike at your front wheel if anything. Everything I've ckne across either wanted to GTFO of there or pretend I don't exist. Some start rattling after I've past, stopped, and taken a look, but none have been aware of my presence as a real threat prior to passing them at speeds in the mid to upper 20's (mph).