The snake who lives in my yard

The other night Chris and I were about to make dinner. The only ingredient we were sure of was homemade green chili sauce (it is so good we put it on everything). We were standing around in the kitchen just chatting when Chris grabbed the binoculars and ran to the window. I followed, hoping to see a bear up on the mountain, or maybe a bobcat in a neighbor's yard.

Instead, there was a very large snake slithering out of our front yard and across the street. And by very large, I mean perhaps five or six feet long. We tore ourselves away from the window long enough to grab our handy guide to the Sandia Mountains. According to the book, the snake was a cross between a western rattlesnake and a bull snake. His coloring looked like a rattlesnake, but he had no rattle. Hence, the cross.



But, of course, there are no mixed rattlesnake/bullsnakes out there. Our guy was probably a regular bull snake. You can't tell from the picture but his diameter around the middle was over six inches. This snake was huge. We watched him snake his way across the street -- he moved in a very cool S fashion, sideways and forward with all the curves in his body staying curved. When he reached the other side, he raised his head and sniffed (do snakes sniff?) at the overhanging bush, then snaked his way over the curb and into the bushes.

Ahhhhh... wildlife. I am a big fan, but I would prefer to be a fan from afar to snakes. Perhaps this big snake could stay on his side of the street and I will remain on mine?