Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 18, 2007)
Local man bitten by rattler Z ach W h alen o f Lexington had intended to catch a snake as a trophy, but ended up getting much more than he bargained for—a bite Illlllllllllllllllllllllllllllll on the finger, a close call, a Bessie Wetzell Newspaper Library series of anti-venom shots University o f Oregon and a ride in a helicopter. Eugene, OR 97403 W halen, 21, said he was snake hunting up Rhea Creek last Wednesday with a friend, Sam Martin, when they came upon a rat tler. They caught the snake, which turned out to be a Timber Rattler, put it in a plastic sack, tied it up, then Zach Whalen, bitten h\ a rattler at his home in Lexington put it in a pillow case and tied it up again. They were looking for more rattlers, but couldn’t find anything, so headed home w ith the snake in the bag. “ I really don’t know why we caught it,” said Whalen. “The whole pur pose was to skin it with its head and all, stretch it and tack it to a board.” He left the snake at Martin’s house and then came back the next day to check it out. “ 1 was showing it off and it w rig- gled out of my grip, turned Whalen shows his injured finger around and bit my finger with one fang,” he said. and ran down to GD's Res “ The other fang m issed. taurant in Heppner where Then I dropped it and killed Whal en' s mom, Chris it with a shovel. I had to kill Whalen, was working to tell it, because it could have got her. Oddly enough, Chris me again or got some kid. was w aiting on a group There are kids next door. from the Albany Democrat- Then I went inside and told Herald (an associate editor, my dad's girlfriend. Shelly a photographer and a press Jones, ‘1 think w e’ve got a m an, acco m p an ied by a Timber Rattler VOL 126 NO. 29 8 Pages Wednesday, July 18, 2007 Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon problem.” ' A frantic rush to friend who was an engineer the city o f Lebanon M iehaela's birthday. She 4On the E dge’ travels bring quartet to Heppner the hospital then ensued. with who was serv ing as their turned 12 on July 12. Whalen said that he Whalen said that he co u ld n 't even really feel videographer), when she had “captured lots o f snakes the bite when it happened, heard the news (see story, and killed lots o f snakes this issue). They had been but said it started burning before," but added that he on the way to the hospital. making a trip around the has since learned that the state o f Oregon and made “ By the time I got to the Timber Rattler is stronger hospital it got to the point mention of the snake bite in and more aggressive than where I could barely talk,” cident in their on-line blog. the Western Diamondback Whalen and Gutier said Whalen. He said that Rattlesnake. rez first made a frantic trip emergency staff at Pioneer W halen say s the up to Pioneer Memorial and Memorial Hospital adminis sw elling in his hand has tered one vial of anti-venom then took off by vehicle to gone down somewhat, but serum before the Med-Star the Tri-Cities, as did his dad, his finger still hurts “pretty Ron, and Jones. life-flight helicopter began had” when it “twitches” and Gutierrez said they loading him up to transport it is possible that he could him to Kadlec Medical Cen administered at least four still lose that finger. He ter in the Tri-Cities. He said more v ials to Whalen over emerged from the ordeal a that he felt better even after the next several hours at Ka little bit older and a little bit dlec. “He was so out o f it, only one vial. “ Not very wiser, and says that while he doesn't remember it all,” long after I got the first dose, he will continue to hunt I could talk right again,” he she said. “But, he was doing snakes, he won’t be catch said. Whalen said that al so much better even that ing them alive any time in night.” He was discharged though it was his first ride in the future. He still maintains from Kadlec around 6 p.m. a helicopter, “ It w asn't my his sense o f humor through Friday. idea o f an ideal first ride.” Whalen said that his it all, though. “Can I make In th e m e an tim e Left to right: Steve Lundeberg, David Patton, Richard Matson and Ed Patton with their a suggestion?" he joked. Whalen’s grandmother, Pat family now calls him the bikes pause in Heppner during their travels around the state for the Albany Democrat- “The next time you see a “holiday miner” as his or Gutierrez, learned the news Herald. deal happened on his sister. rattlesnake, run.” spending the night at Ukiah wrote articles about their A group of employ before com ing into H ep experiences, w hich, said ees of the Albany Democrat- pner. Lundeberg, were very well Herald. an associate editor, W hile in H eppner received. C ontem plating a photographer, a p ress they stopped at the Heppner another road trip, they talked The first annual Tex man, and the photographer’s Gazette-Times office to use to their bosses about doing as Hold 'Em Tournament cousin, who is an engineer the computer and sent their a similar series o f articles, will be held on Saturday, with the city o f Lebanon, blog via the internet to the originally thinking that they July 2 1, beginning at 6 p.m. passed through H eppner D em ocrat-H erald. W hile w ould travel to the four at the Heppner Elks Club. last Thursday on a motor eating at G D ’s Restaurant corners o f Oregon. They The event is sponsored by cycle trip around the edge in Heppner, they said their expanded the project to in the Heppner Day Care and o f Oregon. They chronicled waitress, Chris Whalen, had clude the whole perimeter Preschool. their experiences along the just learned that her son, o f Oregon and their idea The buy-in is S40 way, c-mailing accounts o f Zaeh, had been bitten by got their bosses' approval. per player and anyone in their experiences to the Al a rattler, which the group Then a pressman from the terested may register that bany newspaper in a column mentioned in their blog (see Democrat-Herald, Richard evening. called “On the Edge.” The first place prize story). From Heppner the Matson, who celebrated his The group left from quartet was headed to the 60lh birthday on this road will be a 17 HMR Rifle A lbany Saturday, July 7, Gorge, not exactly certain trip, decided to join them, from Pettyjohn’s Building heading first to Newport. where they would stop for as did Ed Patton, 46, Dav id Supply. Second place is a They then rode along the the night, depending on the Patton's cousin who agreed custom putter and an OSU coast, cam ping their first photographer’s wishes, and to videograph the trip for customized golf bag donated night at Lake Selmac. From then it was on to Astoria and them. by Pat Sweeney. Third place there they traveled to Ash finally home to their respec The group said that is a $200 gift certificate do land and Klam ath Falls. tive jobs and families. they have had great experi nated by Morrow County They camped at Lakeview Two o f the group, ences on their travels, es Grain Growers. and then traveled across Steve Lundeberg, 43, an pecially enjoying a stay at For more informa southeast Oregon, camping associate editor, and David a working ranch at Jordan tion contact Brandi Sweeney at Jordan Valley. The next Patton, 44. a photographer, Valley. Their one touch-and- at 676-5530. Brandi Sweeney shows the first-place prize rifle night they stayed at a motel both long-time Democrat- go experience was when at Baker, which they said Herald employees, had pre they hit a 50-mile section of provided a nice change from viously done a 13-article gravel on their bikes. Lunde At th e MCGG GREEN FEED STORE in H e p p n e r: camping out. From Baker series on their travels on the berg rode a Vulcan, Matson, PM l N u tritio n P e t F o o d is n o w R ed F la n n e l they went to Hell’s C'anyon back roads o f Oregon. They a Honda, and David Patton and came back through Jo made 13 100-mile trips and and his cousin, Ed Patton, seph, Enterprise and Elgin, both Kawasakis. 10% OFF SALE New Name... New Look... New Improved Formulas ALL NEW S AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE: MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M. M orrow C ounty Crain Crowers Creen h eed A S eed 242 W. Linden Way, Heppner • 676-9422 • 989-8221 (MCGG mam office)
