Inside the Forbidden Island Where 4,000 Deadly Snakes Reign and No Human Dares Set Foot

Think we’ve got Earth all figured out? Think again. There are pockets of this planet where humans simply can’t set foot—either because Mother Nature said no, or because humans have a penchant for making really bad decisions. Take that U.S. tourist who, against all common sense and a trail of grim warnings, thought it’d be a brilliant idea to crash an isolated tribe’s pad and leave behind a can of Coke. Spoiler alert: that didn’t end well, echoing the sad fate of previous visitors. Then there’s Scotland’s Gruinard Bay, off-limits thanks to leftover anthrax bombs from WWII—talk about a historic “keep out” sign. But if you ask me, Snake Island off Brazil’s coast takes the crown for the world’s scariest spot—both in name and in sheer deadly nature. Picture a tiny island swarming with thousands of venomous, golden lancehead snakes, critters so lethal that just one bite could have you pushing up daisies within an hour. Curious why this slithery nightmare exists? Or why humans are officially banned from visiting? Buckle up, because we’re diving headfirst into the twisted tale of Snake Island’s fascination and fear factor. LEARN MORE.

As much as we think we know about the Earth, there are actually plenty of areas which humans aren’t able to ever step foot on, for varying reasons.

There was, of course, the case of the US tourist who thought it was a great idea to visit an endangered tribe and leave them a can of Coke recently, despite previous visitors to the island meeting an untimely end.

Some islands closer to home are deadly for different reasons, with humans also banned from visiting Scotland’s Gruinard Bay due to the anthrax bombs that dropped there during WW2.

But it’s Snake Island, a small spot about 30 miles off the coast of Brazil, which perhaps takes the title for scariest island, both in name and nature.

The golden lancehead (Getty Stock)

What is Snake Island?

Queimada Grande might only have an area of 106 acres, but it’s home to around 4,000 snakes, which is probably enough to make Indiana Jones wet his pants.

Different legends speculate why the snakes might be living there, but it’s certainly not worth seeing if the myth of them guarding a pirate’s treasure is true, as you’re unlikely to leave the island alive.

Science and history suggests that the snakes became trapped on Quiemada Grande thousands of years ago following the end of the last ice age, as the rising sea levels disconnected the island from Brazil’s mainland.

Why is Snake Island so deadly?

There are probably some of you reading this that are thinking you love snakes and that the little reptiles are just as cute as puppies or bunnies or otters might be if they lived on an island together but you are most definitely wrong – and also probably a little strange.

The island is home to a critically endangered snake known as a golden lancehead, and they aren’t found anywhere else in the world, so the last thing we need is a silly human coming along to wipe them off the Earth completely.

Golden lanceheads prefer a bird-based diet but their venom can also be lethal to humans, and you could be dead within an hour if you find yourself on the end of a venomous bite.

Why can’t humans visit Snake Island?

In case it wasn’t already clear, it’s for everyone’s benefit that we don’t visit, as if you’re bitten by the deadly snake, you’d probably try and take a few of the endangered species down with you.

Holiday on Snake Island? Think I’m good, thanks (9 News)

What happened to people that have visited Snake Island?

Journalist Tara Brown was allowed to go to Snake Island for a 60 Minutes report back in 2019, accompanied by experts and an entire medical team.

Speaking about her experience, the reporter said: “When we’re speaking to local fisherman, they told us, ‘That’s not a good idea, you don’t want to go there’. There are legends about a whole family being killed there, and of pirates burying treasure on the island and the snakes being put there to protect the treasure.

“The fishermen said they never went there, or they would die.”

Another who warned her was Australian molecular biologist Bryan Fry, who told her that being bitten by these snakes would be ‘a particularly painful death’, and that she would likely ‘die screaming’.

Thankfully, she was able to escape unscathed, while another brave, or brainless, traveller decided to also visit the country and then document his journey on YouTube, but it seems as if most of the snakes were away on holiday that day, as his biggest risk was running out of water.

Still, I’d probably still recommend a trip to a country on the do not travel list before visiting this place.