i've seen an anaconda once before this. it was back last august when i was in the
pampas in bolivia and one morning we were told put on our wellies and went for a stroll looking for snakes. it was said that we'd need a lot of luck as it had been several weeks since our guide had last seen one. we walked for around three hours in wetland water which was a few centimetres higher than the top of my boots. i was pretty nervous about wading through water infested with caimans and snakes so i made sure i kept to the same route as the guide. we eventually found the serpent, or at least one of the french guys in our group pointed it out to the guide. it was half in, half out of the water, i didn't want to get too close and as a result i didn't get any good photos or much else from the experience. almost one year later our guide was out searching in the rain as we waited on the road, before all of a sudden signalling us to a pool of water. we rushed over, but all i could see was a muddy puddle. the guide then thrust his hand in the water and pulled out a 6 metre long anaconda. i was scarily close this time and couldn't (or indeed didn't want to) take my eyes off the beast. the guide did for a second and the snake went for him, mouth open, teeth out, missing by inches. despite wanting to take a wider photo to give more context i had my broken telephoto lens already attached, and after witnessing how fast the serpent can attack, there was no way i could change. just so we're clear the super close up wasn't an aesthetic choice, but a cowardly choice.
here's the
original