What to do if you encounter an Anaconda

The other day someone sent me a survival tip on what to do if you encounter an Anaconda, the largest snake in the world – here is what they sent to me:

The US Peace Corps train their workers to deal with any kind of eventuality they might meet in the field, and since they work in the jungles of South America, it’s quite possible that they might encounter an Anaconda, the largest snake in the world. A full grown Anaconda is not just a snake. It is a telegraph pole with a temper! It takes 10 men to carry one — if it is in a good mood. Here are the instructions in one of the Peace Corps’s manuals, posted on the Internet:
1: If you are attacked by an Anaconda, do not run. The snake is faster than you are. Don’t try to outrun it.
2: Lie flat on the ground. Put your arms tight against your sides and your legs tight against one another.
3: Tuck in your chin.
4: The snake will come and begin to nudge and will climb about your body.
5: Do not panic.
6: After the snake has examined you, it will begin to swallow you from the feet, always the feet. Permit the snake to swallow your feet and ankles. Do not panic.
7: The snake will begin to suck your legs into its body. You must lie perfectly still. This will take a long time.
8: When the snake has reached your knees, slowly and with as little movement as possible reach down, take your knife and very gently slide it into the side of the snake’s mouth, between the edge of its mouth and your leg. Then suddenly rip upwards, severing the snake through the top of the head.
9: Be sure you have your knife.
10: Be sure your knife is sharp.

Of course, if you get to number nine, or even ten, and find you’ve forgotten your knife, or that it’s blunt, the rest doesn’t really matter!

After I read it I had to go online to see if there was any truth at all to this being an actual instruction from the Peace Corp because I frankly didn’t believe it was real, and sure enough it wasn’t. However, in looking it up I found that there was actual advise out there on what to do when you encounter this snake and it said to run away…and then avoid it! Now that seems like much better advise to me… Because life is full of “anacondas” of different types – temptations of every kind – so when you come upon one of these “snakes” don’t just lie down and wait to be eaten, hoping you have a knife that’s going to be sharp enough to save you…RUN! And do everything in your power to avoid the snakes!!!

Have a great day everyone!

~Amy Rees Anderson

26 Comments

  • Don Walker says:

    I thought the instructions were for real. Glad I read the rest of the article. They are all around us for sure.

    • Dan says:

      All snakes start eating from the head first!

      • Annie Vadinia says:

        I agree!

      • saikou manneh says:

        That’s exactly what I thought. I mean I’ve never actually seen a snake swallow something or someone but I do know, snakes don’t start from the feet. And anyway if you do lay down flat you’ll probably be dead before you get the chance to stick it cause snakes usually coil around their pray first

      • Anonymous says:

        I dunno. My snake seems to not really care what side to start eating first.

  • lydia bielenberg says:

    I thought that the information was real and didn’t get to reading the end until after I wrote down all of it

  • Vickijolene Reece says:

    Hi Amy!
    I am a United Methodist pastor and have been using this story in messages for 30 years….pre-internet! This is the closest version I have ever seen. You have published the original version! Which I heard in 1982. (I hate aging myself!)

    I’ve never worried about the truth as far as details. What I love is the TRUTH within this story. We need to think of it as a parable…that one must prepare, and carry herself with dignity and skills. She is ready…already. She is careful to be sharp and to make sure she has all she holds is sharpened. She holds it all in her pocket and is patient until the crucial moment.

    Thank you Amy for giving us the best version of the parable. May you always keep your knife sharp….and available!
    VickiJolene

  • Anonymous says:

    For a minute I actually thought that was real happy I read the rest I like anacondas so I wanted to know what to do when u encounter one I thought I would run and obviously I was right hope I’m on land when it happens

  • John cater says:

    Not waiting around to be even smelled

  • hunter says:

    or hears another survival tip when you see
    a snake reach down pull out your sidearm and then shoot it in the face

  • banner says:

    green anaconda,king cobra,salt water crocodile,harpy eagle,siberian tiger,white rhino and african savanah elephant are my fevrouite animals

  • banner says:

    green anaconda(titanoboa), king cobra, siberian tiger, salt water crocodile, great white shark(megalodon), harpy eagle(haast eagle), white rhino and african savanah elephant are my fevrouite animals

  • kelly says:

    The only reason i was lookin at this is because im young and im moving somewhere with a forest with it so just making sure how to protect my self…..now im scared

  • Kitty lindoi says:

    i love animals so what if i dont wanna kill it besides we are faster than a anoconda there only 5 mph so its not all true

  • Glen says:

    I am a snake but I am not too big.If you should come accord my path go around.Please don’t pick me up and tell me how cute I am because I will bite you If you die don’t blame me.You knew I was a snake when you picked me up.

  • Anqi says:

    I agree with someone, all snakes eat their prey from the head!

  • This Guy says:

    I truly hope people didn’t follow those 10 steps. Anyone who knows snakes knows every species of snakes goes for the head. The first alone will get you eaten

  • Harunah cancello says:

    Even they say “GOD Help me to survive while running”, its a true story of my daddy,my daddy was once a hunter,they used to hunt in the big forest #mabira forest in uganda.But once their came a day my daddy was wraped with a python in the forest ,he was lonely no help,my daddy thought that his life has came to an end but he had astrong feeling “to survive”,once the python caught his right leg,these are some of the #tips my daddy told me 1- once caught be calm don’t panic. 2- make ur legs apart so that this animal can get it hard to coilled you, 3-once u see that it had coiled u and u see no room to survive don’t panic with it u still have a chance to fight,some python even anacoda usually love to kill before eating,it will raise its tail into ur nose once u see that its tail its coming cut it with ur mouth cos that its ur last chance and if do it perfectly and make it off it will uncoiled u due to the pain and that is ur chance “that is how my dady survived the python in the forest”

  • Kalema Richard says:

    That’s stupidity I don’t agree!

  • Patrick Obeng Ansong says:

    Thank God I read to the end. I nearly believed the stuff.

  • Patrick Obeng Ansong says:

    Thank God I read to the end. I nearly believed the stuff. Hmmm

  • Alvin says:

    Don’t run my butt! Knew that was crap!

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