| It does not matter what species of venomous snake you looking for, the real problems mostly come from humans in the form of robbery, war and other stupidity. Crossing overland from Vietnam in '90 into northeastern Laos landed us in a civil war conflict and practically halted the trip toward the southern part of the country. Left with no other choices, we relayed a Morse message to the Embassy of Hungary in Vientiane for an emergency airlift. Five days later, an old Russian-made helicopter showed up and evacuated us from the conflict spot. In the southernmost islands of the Philippines (Sulu Archipelago), sea pirates are the major factor to watch out. Leasing two soldiers from the local army outpost for armed escort helps to have a feeling of security (and two pairs of extra hand to carry our cargo) while exploring the Sulu sea for sea snakes. In the Amazonian rain forest of Suriname, staying with and getting transportation from gold miners has the inherent hazard that they are the perfect and frequent targets of the local bush negro robbers. |
However, problems of this sorts started a long time ago, during the first summer of high school years. Friends and me (aged 15-17) were collecting snakes in the Sturma valley, in southern Bulgaria. Since this valley feeds directly into the Aegean sea in a southerly direction, the more south you go, the more exotic snakes you can find since the climate and wildlife changes to more and more mediterranean. This theory, along with the ignorance of the "Border zone, No entry for foreigners" signs lead us to the proximity of the Greek border, then straight into a Bulgarian military jail for the weekend (the socialist regime did not like the idea of high school students collecting snakes close to the capitalist Greece). The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences cleared us next Monday, and eventually supported an official permit to collect in the very same border area days later. Lastly, snake bites can potentially occur in the field but they are extremely rare. |
