I think everyone has a story that involves boats and snakes, or dogs that decide not to be in the boat anymore! lol! When I used to go frog hunting with some of my buddies I carried a .22 pistol just for the snakes that hang around the edge of the pond at night. There have been several copperheads that swam out towards our spotlight and tried to get in the boat with us. I learned that you have to get your shot in before they get within 5 feet of the boat, and before the 280 lb guy in the back who is afraid of copperheads decides he is going to abandon ship and to hell with anyone who is still in the boat! He nearly killed us all one night trying to dive out of the boat and swing an oar at the snake at the same time!
We did manage to get rid of the snake and keep big Tim and the rest of us in the boat, but I learned to shoot at the snake a little sooner even if it did take 4 or 5 shots to hit the thing. It was a better option than drowning!