Snake! and the Handicap Ramp

I'm tending Buckley for a few days and so Carlie and I have altered our trail walking route to account for Buckley's very short legs that aren't as spry as they used to be; and his propensity to lolligag around and stop dead in his tracks if HE isn't in the lead. So tonight we went on this trail at Devils Backbone that isn't used as often as our normal one. I was feeling really good at our progress  until all of a sudden Carlie jumped back straight up in the air and the sound of a VERY angry rattlesnake filled the air. This snake was only a few feet off the trail and all coiled up ready for action. Good size too. I held the dogs (who were very interested) and we watched for a while. I was hoping Mr./Ms. snake would just wander back in the bush, but after 10 minutes of confrontation it was apparent that the rattling, hissing and posturing to strike was not going to quit. Maybe he/she had just woke up after a long winter nap and was NOT going to give up ground with potential dinner to the likes of us. Unfortunately, I couldn't get a good enough picture to see the snake with my iPhone, so all I have is a set of dog heads staring at the bush. ;-) So we turned around and used our same old trail. I had worried about the steps at the beginning of the trail with Buckley, but I should have known he would figure out there was a handicap ramp along side of them.