A 48-year-old woman who lives locally wants to raise awareness about adders after a recent run-in with a large male "danger noodle" at Bolberry Down.

The woman, who wished to remain anonymous, said she was enjoying a picnic with a friend at the popular South Hams beauty spot when she suddenly felt something soft brush against her foot.

"I could feel something soft brushing up against my foot and decided to kick it away," she said. "It then came back, and I could feel it brushing against my foot again, so I kicked it away. It wasn't until it went underneath my foot that I felt a painful bee-sting sensation and realised I'd been bitten by a snake."

She continued: "I did what I now know was the wrong thing, I ran to find a phone signal and call the NHS to tell them I had been bitten by a snake. But in doing so, I pushed the venom deeper in."

After finally getting a signal, she was advised to go straight to the hospital to receive anti-venom. On arrival, doctors warned there was a chance she may never regain full use of her leg, and that there was also a risk of stroke if she had an allergic reaction to the anti-venom.

She spent five days and nights at Torbay Hospital and has been told to rest her leg for at least another three weeks before trying to walk on it again.

"The staff in the hospital were amazing," she added. "I was so thankful for all their help."

The European adder is the UK’s only native venomous snake. In the UK, approximately 50 to 100 adder bites are reported to humans each year. While adder bites are potentially serious, fatalities are extremely rare, with only about ten deaths recorded in the last 100 years. Most bites occur when a person either treads on an adder or attempts to handle it. 

If bitten, it is important to stay calm, keep still, and seek medical help immediately. You can dial 999 even if you have no phone signal, as emergency calls will attempt to connect to any available network.