If you grew up in Western North Carolina, as I did, you probably have snake stories to tell.

One of my memories from my childhood in McDowell County involves a summer day when I was riding my horse Thunder through my front yard. We came to the cement walk that ran from my house to the street, and I happened to look down to see a copperhead stretched near us. Thankfully, Thunder hadn’t noticed the snake. I knew that Thunder, a skittish young Appaloosa, would likely spook and run wild with me if he saw the snake, so I tugged his rein and turned him, clicking my tongue and nudging his sides with my heels. We cantered safely to the backyard corral.

After I dismounted, I hurried to find my neighbor Neal—an older man and outdoorsman—to tell him about the snake. He came down to my yard with his hoe