I'm new - Pls help identify this snake!

[judicb]

Hi, I just joined this forum to see if you can help me identify this snake. I live on north central Vancouver Island where we have very few wild snakes. We only have garter snakes, but nothing like we saw on our walk yesterday. It was about 2.5 to 3 feet long and about 1.5" in diameter. Much bigger than our usual red racers. He was basking on an old piece of wood on a grassy/boggy part of the beach. Please can someone help figure out what kind of snake this might be - it may have hitched a ride here on someones RV - doesn't seem to be native to this island that's for sure.
Thankssss for your help!
Judi
Vancouver Island
British Columbia
Canada

[CJPythons]

Nice to meet you. I honestly can't tell what kind of snake that is from the pics. I can't see the face. But I'm gonna take a shot at a Banded Water Snake. I may be wrong.

[katach]

western terrestrial garter snake
Not an expert by any means, this just kind of looked like it. I could be way off.

[judicb]

Hmmm - that is helpful - it does look a bit similar doesn't it. The one we saw had a real black body with blue gray markings though. And the western terrestrial garter is not native to Vancouver Island.........so maybe it did hitch a ride...
Here's a couple more photos of the markings. I'd love to hear some more opinions too please.
Thanks,
Judi

[katach]

From what I read about them they are native to BC though.

[guidofatherof5]

Comox Valley Naturalists Society: Spying a Snake

[ssssnakeluvr]

wandering garter snake, thamnophis elegans vagrans looks like it just had a huge meal too

[judicb]

I sure appreciate everyone's opinions! I found out that the Western Terrestrial actually does live on this part of Vancouver Island after all, although this would be at the top of it's island range. (The first range map I looked at showed that it didn't live here at all.) I know that snakes have very varied markings.....still this is a bit of a puzzler in that it didn't seem to have stripes at all. We went back the following day (but forgot a camera) and it was in the same general area - just basking. It's fat - either full of food or maybe full of little babies lol. I can hardly wait to go again and have a peek and try to get some more pictures.
Thanks,
Judi

[katach]

You are very welcome! Welcome to the forum!!

[infernalis]