Lol, I've never had a black racer not do what it's name implies...race away. For me, it's the cottonmouths that absolutely hate me...they inevitably head right for me....I don't stand there to see what their intention is..when they reach me. By contrast, while aggressive when pestered, this snake laid perfectly still hoping that we wouldn't see him....till he was sure he had been detected, then coiled, and struck (repeatedly). He spent some time up with coils in air too...oddly. All in all, he put on as much show as a hognose snake (lol).

Wow! That's a big rat snake! I've been to the Delaware Water Gap a couple times and really liked it there.

As long as there is food (rodents, chicks, eggs) you will have snakes. If you let the ratsnake live, it leaves less food available for venomous species.

This is a young Northern Watersnake (Nerodia sipedon).