The Tennessee Blueway-Bob the Peek-a-Boo Snake

While on our trip down the Tennessee Blueway we had several encounters with wildlife life, but I think my favorite was an evening encounter with a water snake right by our campsite on our second night! Now, I named him BOB because he kept popping up and bobbing up and down. I don’t know his real name because he left before we had a chance to chat! Anyway, I was walking along the bank of the cove we were camping at because my rear-end was screaming don’t sit down after almost 17 hours in the canoe over 2 days! I spotted Bob swimming along with his head slightly out of the water! When he spotted me standing there, he stopped cold and stared straight at me! We locked eyes for about 5 minutes and then Bob went down! The water was so clear I could see him twisting and turning and moving through some moss. I followed him down the bank about 3 feet and he popped his head out of the water. He saw me again and froze! Another stare down! I even called Phyllis over and she watched for a minute, but Bob didn’t move! She went back to her seat and Bob and I continued our game of Peek-a-Boo! Bob went down again, twisted and turned and swam about 3 feet, popped back up and froze when he saw me right there with him! We did this 3 more times for a total of almost 30 minutes! Bob then turned toward the brush on the edge of the bank near our canoe! Now, while I enjoyed playing with Bob, I didn’t want to find him in my canoe the next morning! When his head popped up about 3 inches from the canoe, I picked up a small rock and tossed it in front of him! I did not hit Bob and I did not want to hurt him, just turn him away! Bob disappeared and I figured he swam away, so I walked back toward our campfire! When I glanced at the water, I saw Bob pop up once again and stare at me! He had the most hurt look on his face that said “Why did you throw a rock at me?” He was very unhappy with me, but he wouldn’t leave! After a few minutes, Bob disappeared under the water and it had become too dark to see him! This just got REAL! Bob was out there in the dark, angry and hurt, 5 feet from our tent! I was a little nervous Bob might want revenge! I was afraid I might wake up to Bob sitting at the door of our tent staring me down and saying “Where is your rock now, big boy?” Needless to say, I slept with one eye open and tried not to dream of Bob that night!

As we pushed off the next morning, I had no sight of Bob! He wasn’t at the door or in the canoe! He didn’t even come to say goodbye! I waved farewell to Bob hoping he would forgive me for taking our game too far! Bob was a good Peek-e-Boo player and he entertained me for almost an hour! He deserved better! May he continue to entertain others! Farewell Bob, wherever you are!!