Not this year. What you see is an open park in the mountains. It is not quite a mile high where the shooting took place.. Never have seen a rattlesnake up there ever. Out on the prairie one can stumble into a rattler now and again. Two golf players have been bitten by rattlesnake this year, the older fella died. Have seen only one tick this year; seems weird. Years past, younger, and stronger, i guess, i walked more in timber, and came home quite often with ticks. The dam things don't seem to like the way i taste; they keep looking for a better spot, and end up tasting me several times before they start to burrow. Dam bites itch for a month.
When i was in junior high we lived out about 3 mile or so from the foothills into the prairie. We watched out for rattlers all the time whenever we stepped out. One never knew. Dam things would be under the porch, and curled up in other shady spots, by the wheel barrow and mower, and such. Baby rattlers would come visit the lobby of the bowling alley where i set pins, for some weird reason; we played with them when business was slow. Mean little suckers they were. .When we hiked up into the foothills, seeking timber, we were careful all the time. Never killed one. Been close many times; figured karma saved me more than once. After shooting without protection, and being a carpenter; a rattler sounds like wind to me, and i don't pick up on the fact i am too close very quickly.
Tried eating a rattler once; never made that mistake again; tasted like the fishiest awfullest fish one could ever eat. Makes me shudder just to think about it.
We always have snakes around the house right now, but no rattlers, and very very very few ticks..