Snake, Rattle And Roll Down South

The Sunday Age

Sunday March 27, 2005

Alistair Smith

All over the world little communities dream up weird festivals either to draw in the tourists or just keep the locals from getting bored.

And Waurika, capital of Jefferson County, in the Great Plains Region of south-west Oklahoma, near the border with Texas, has been running a doozie for 40 years - the annual rattlesnake hunt and festival. It's "fangtastic".

The festival is free, but if you want to go out into the scrub chasing rattlers it's going to cost you three bucks (no mention of public liability insurance or medical cover, and the use of gas and firearms is not permitted). Mind you, it could be worth your while, for there are heaps of prizes to win - for instance, the longest snake fetches $150, plus a $50 bonus if it is more than 1.8 metres.

However, if you prefer not to be a participant, you can watch a special snake-wrangling show performed by James White and the Outlaw Handlers, of Granbury, Texas, whom event organisers assure us are top class. There's a butcher shop selling meat and hides, souvenir and gift stands (boots and belts are top selling items), and the concession stall specialises in deep fried snake meat. Or perhaps you would prefer just to watch the slow motorcycle race.

There's not much else for a visitor to do in Waurika, population 2000 and falling, where the main employer, ironically, is a mobile home manufacturer.

But travellers on the famous Route 66 pass through Oklahoma. It's cowboy territory, of course, and tourists like to sample that life. For those with a taste for wildlife other than rattlers, Oklahoma's lakes, rivers and mild winters attract significant numbers of migrating bald eagles. January and February is the best time to go. -- Alistair Smith

LINKS: rattlesnakehunt.com, waurika.net, travelok.com

© 2005 The Sunday Age

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