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Rattlesnake Festival kicks off in Apache

APACHE, Okla. – There is no mistaking their sound.  It signals danger for most of us ordinary folk.  But perhaps not the folks at the 28^th Annual Apache Rattlesnake Festival.  The festival starts today and runs through Sunday.

So far, rattlesnake hunters have brought in about 400lbs of the snakes from the field.  They say that is a little less than usual because there was more cold weather this year, but the snakes that do get captured could wind up hanging from someone's ears or someone's belt.

The snakes are made into products like earrings, belts or buckles.  The men who come to the festival to buy and sell the snakes say there is a whole lot more that goes into this line of work than meets the eye.

"When you chop the heads off you gotta be real careful because up to an hour or so they will still bite you just like they're attached," said snake dealer, Allen Goldsmith.

Goldsmith knows every trick of this trade.  He ha been hunting rattlesnakes and selling rattlesnake products for more than 40 years.

"Eating is what starts the shedding process.  They'll add a rattler every time they shed," said Goldsmith.

And the bigger the rattler, Goldsmith says, the better the product he can sell.

"And that's what I want.  That's why I'm here is to sell somebody something," said Goldsmith.

Salesmen say you can make just about anything about out of snakeskin, like guitar straps, belts, buckles and wallets.  Dealer Jerry Channel says he ends up with a couple thousands snakes every year from area festivals.  That is, after he carefully inspects them.

"There's a whole lot of things you can tell from a rattle.  Did a snake grow slow or fast?  You can tell where the snake came from, a rocky or soft area," said Channel.

And once they are bought…

"Flesh ‘em, clean ‘em, tan ‘em and then make from belts, cut leather, wallets, hat bands, buckles take the rattles and make earrings.  Anything I can think of, I do," said Channel.

But the weekend does not have to be about buying authentic snake products.

"That's ok!  People will come here this weekend bring their family, they'll see the snake pit, and a safety demonstration," said Channel.

Channel says making the snake products is so much work, from the butchering to the tanning to the selling, that he is about ready to give it up as he gets older.  But he says he will never give up his love of snakes.

This may be the last year the rattlesnake festival happens if organizer Ron Orf cannot get anyone to take over.  Orf says even if the festival were to stop, the area would not get overrun with snakes.  He says the festival is more about the fun than controlling the snake population.