Trek Guide

Nobody tells you most Australian snakebites happen at home, not on the trail

Bites climb from October and peak in summer, and six in ten hospital cases start around the house. The bandage method that works, and four things…

By Bishnu Adhikari · Sep 22, 2026

Read the full story

Snakebites in Australia start rising in October and peak in summer, and most of the bites that put people in hospital happen at or around home, not out in the bush. Deaths are rare, one to four a year, because the first aid works: call 000, keep the person…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

When snake season really starts

Bites start climbing in mid-spring, around October, and summer brings five to six times as many hospital cases as winter. That comes from the largest recent look at the data: a University of Melbourne team, part of the Australian Venomous Injuries Project…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

Why most bites happen at home, not on the trail

Where the place was recorded, about six in ten snakebite hospitalisations happened at or around a home. That was 4,193 cases in the Melbourne study: 67.6% of bites to women and 52.3% of bites to men. It makes sense once you picture it: snakes shelter in the…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

Snakebite first aid, step by step

Call 000, keep the person still, and bandage the whole limb firmly. These are the steps from healthdirect, the Australian Government's health information service. Move away from the snake. Do not try to catch or kill it; you do not need it for the hospital to…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

Which snakes are dangerous

Healthdirect lists seven groups: brown snakes, black snakes, tiger snakes, taipans, death adders, rough-scaled snakes and sea snakes. Brown snakes cause about one in three snakebite hospital visits. You cannot reliably identify a snake by colour, and the…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

Simple habits that cut the risk on a walk

None of these costs much, and together they remove most of the easy ways to get bitten. They apply on any warm-country trail. Boots and long trousers , or gaiters, on any track with long grass. Stay on the formed track and step onto logs and rocks rather than…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

Keep reading

The other warm-weather danger, and how to escape one. Short days, cold, hunters and bears. Sources: healthdirect Australia, "Snake bites" (reviewed October 2024); Afroz, Jackson and Watt, "Trends in injury hospitalisations due to contact with snakes in…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

Plan your trek

Trek Nepal with local guides

NMA-certified guides · permits sorted · 5,000+ treks since 1998.

Plan this trek

Free guide

Get the free Nepal Trek Insider Guide

Permits, costs, seasons and routes — the essentials we send every traveller, plus a free, no-obligation trip quote.

↑ Swipe up

Your free Nepal trek kit

Read the full report and grab the free Nepal Trek Insider Guide — or ask our Pokhara team for a tailored, no-obligation quote.

Read more & get the free guide Plan my trip — free quote