A Ventura County woman has died after a rattlesnake bit her on a popular Thousand Oaks hiking trail, marking the second fatal snake bite on a Southern California trail in recent weeks as an unusually warm spring drives rattlesnakes out earlier than normal.
Gabriela Bautista, 46, of Moorpark, was bitten while hiking at Wildwood Regional Park on March 14 just before noon. Paramedics responded, performed lifesaving measures, and airlifted her to Los Robles Regional Medical Center. She died five days later. The Thousand Oaks Acorn first reported her identity. The Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed she died from rattlesnake venom toxicity. Friends and family described Bautista as a devoted wife, mother, and passionate hiker.
The death comes just weeks after a second fatal bite in the region. On March 4, Julian Hernandez, 25, of Costa Mesa, died in an Orange County hospital from a bite he suffered on Feb. 1 while hiking on Quail Hill in Irvine.
Ventura County Fire Department Public Information Officer Andrew Dowd told KTLA that his department recorded nine rattlesnake bites in all of 2025. Since March 14 alone, the county has already logged four bites — a pace that has alarmed local officials. Those incidents include a teenage girl who was bitten near the Wendy Trailhead in Newbury Park on March 20. Firefighters hiked in to reach her, used a wheeled stretcher to bring her down, and transported her to a hospital in stable condition. Two additional bites were reported in Thousand Oaks and Meiners Oaks.
Melissa Borde, manager at the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in Huntington Beach, told KTLA that activity has surged noticeably. “In the last two weeks we’ve had a lot of activity, a little more than normal,” she said. “In one day, I had three reports from the public.”
Experts say the spike in activity is tied directly to the weather. Rattlesnakes typically become most active in spring and summer, but Southern California is experiencing the hottest March on record, pulling snakes out of dormancy weeks ahead of schedule. Borde warned the trend is likely to continue. “With the warm forecast over the next couple of weeks, I think they’re going to be pretty active,” she said. “And not just rattlesnakes — you’ll see gopher snakes and other reptiles.”
The U.S. Forest Service in San Bernardino issued a safety alert this week urging visitors to stay alert, watch where they step, and keep pets close.
Trail runner Greg Hardesty, who frequently runs in the foothills of Orange County, said he spotted a large rattlesnake on March 4 — far earlier in the year than he normally would. “When I run on trails, I’m always looking at the ground because the trails are rocky and you can fall easily,” he told the Los Angeles Times. “That’s when I saw a large snake that looked like a baseball bat at first.”
Dowd urged all hikers to take precautions. “The first is to wear hiking boots and long pants so that, should there be an encounter, that can hopefully provide some protection against a rattlesnake,” he said. “The second is to hike on clearly marked paths where you can see in front of you, so that you can avoid snakes.” He also cautioned hikers to avoid tall grass, where rattlesnakes may be coiled and unseen.
In the event of a bite, Dowd advises hikers to remain calm, call 911, and limit movement. “The general recommendation is to avoid the use of tourniquets, to avoid trying to extract the venom, to communicate with anyone nearby and know that responders are on the way,” he said.
Despite the recent fatalities, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that death by rattlesnake bite remains rare in the United States. The agency estimates roughly 8,000 people are bitten by venomous snakes each year, with fewer than 10 deaths.
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