"You hit and don't kill a big swimming cottonmouth with a boat paddle and he might be riding in the boat with you....in my experiences with them they can be one of the most aggressive poisonous snakes out there especially in the spring".

Every North GA frog gigger knows that you don't kill cotton mouth and copperhead snakes with the flat of a boat pattern; you use the edge of the paddle blade. In two pieces snakes can't/don't jump or climb. This method works every time provided you make contact; snakes can swim incredibly fast and can be by you in an instant! I also learned that gigging from a boat with someone who is deathly afraid of snakes can be more dangerous than the snake.