Tyler Sharp
A Brush with Death
Sitting at dinner tonight, one of our guides casually mentioned that I was nearly bitten by a Gabon Viper while trekking through the jungle the other night. Apparently, the tracker and client walked right by the sleeping Viper, which began to hiss when I wandered past. Bringing up the rear, the guide watched as I passed within striking range of this rare, but deadly snake.
When I asked what the procedure was, had I been bitten, an awkward silence followed. I then asked if there was an anti-venom. Another silence. Then there was a quick retort from the end of the table, “Just tell him!”
The guide calmly replied, “You’d be dead. That is unless you can manage to lose the limb in a matter of seconds.”
The thought of having my leg or ankle hacked off by the tracker’s rusted and dulled machete made my stomach drop. I still feel a bit sick, knowing I had such a close brush with death, or even a crude amputation.
But this feeling of horror will forcibly subside as I prepare to film for another week at night in the jungle, and will be countered by prayers and hopes of protection from this camouflaged death.
