We had our first on the water encounter with a big rattlesnake on Kentucky Lake. Some boats were beached in a bay and shooting what sounded like a large cannon. Moments later we saw something coming out to our boat. It was so big I thought it was a beaver or a big muskrat. As it got closer we had to start the boat up so he didn't try to get into the splash well. We circled him so we could share. We thought it might be a Diamond Watersnake until he popped his rattles up out of the water when he went into defense posture. According to the Ky Snake Guide he's the most poisonous snake in Kentucky. He was just spooked out of his den by those cannon shots.
