Firefighters hiked into the Wendy Trail area Friday night and brought the girl to an ambulance waiting below.
THOUSAND OAKS, CA — A teenage girl riding a bike near the Wendy Trail area in Thousand Oaks was bitten by a rattlesnake Friday evening, prompting firefighters to hike in, reach her on the trail and carry her out to a waiting ambulance for a trip to a local hospital.
The rescue drew attention because it came during an early stretch of snake activity in Southern California and just days after other reported snakebite emergencies in the region. Ventura County fire officials said the girl was in stable condition with minor injuries after the March 20 incident, which happened around 7:30 p.m. near the Wendy Trail Head in the Newbury Park-Thousand Oaks area. The case added to growing concern among first responders and trail users as warmer weather brings more people, and more wildlife, onto open-space routes.
Emergency crews were dispatched at about 7:28 p.m. Friday after a report that a teen girl had fallen from her bike and suffered a possible rattlesnake bite near the Wendy Drive trailhead, a popular entry point to the trail network at the western edge of Thousand Oaks. Because the girl was not close to the road, firefighters had to hike in to reach her. Ventura County Fire Department spokesperson Andrew Dowd said crews were able to get to the patient on foot, assess her condition and then help extricate her from the trail to a safer area where an ambulance was standing by. The girl was then taken to a local hospital. Officials did not release her age, identify the hospital or say exactly where on her body she was bitten. By Sunday, officials said her condition was stable and her injuries were considered minor.
Authorities have released only limited details about the encounter itself. Reports on the incident said the girl had been riding her bike when she fell and was bitten by the snake, but officials have not said whether the animal was in the trail, hidden in nearby brush or struck after the fall. They also have not said whether the snake was captured, whether antivenom was administered at the scene or hospital, or how long it took crews to carry the patient back down to the ambulance. What is clear is that the rescue required a ground response rather than a simple roadside pickup. Dowd said firefighters had to hike in and then bring the patient out, underscoring how quickly a routine ride on a foothill trail can turn into a medical emergency once distance and terrain are involved. No other injuries were reported, and no evacuation of the trail system was announced.
The Wendy Trail area sits near the Santa Monica Mountains and is heavily used by hikers, runners and mountain bikers, especially on warm weekends and evenings. The open-space terrain includes rocky sections, brush and grasslands that can be attractive habitat for rattlesnakes. Wildlife officials in California have long said bites are uncommon but most likely during the warmer months when both snakes and people are active outdoors. The California Poison Control System says it receives hundreds of rattlesnake exposure calls each year, especially from April through October, while national health data show thousands of venomous snakebites are reported across the United States annually but deaths remain rare. In Ventura County, the timing of this incident stood out because spring had only just begun. The bite also followed another recent snakebite response at Wildwood Regional Park near Thousand Oaks, suggesting that emergency crews in the area are already seeing seasonal calls tied to snake encounters.
The regional backdrop has sharpened attention on every new report. Earlier this month, 25-year-old Julian Hernandez of Costa Mesa died weeks after a suspected rattlesnake bite he suffered while mountain biking near the Quail Hill trailhead in Irvine on Feb. 1. That death was widely reported because fatal rattlesnake bites are unusual, particularly in Southern California trail systems used year-round by cyclists and hikers. Ventura County officials have been careful not to draw a direct scientific line between a brief run of recent incidents and weather patterns, but Dowd said warm conditions typically bring out wildlife and increase the chance of encounters as residents head outdoors. He said this time of year is one when people are recreating on local trails and that wildlife encounters are possible during those outings. Officials have not described Friday’s rescue as part of any broader public safety alert, but the incident fits a pattern of early-season calls that has put trail users and first responders on notice.
As of Monday, no law enforcement investigation, citation or park closure had been announced in connection with the bite. The matter has been treated as a medical rescue, and the public record so far centers on dispatch timing, trail access and the patient’s condition after transport. It was not immediately clear whether Ventura County parks officials or wildlife agencies planned to post new warnings at the trailhead, increase patrols or document the specific snake sighting. Fire officials also had not said whether crews were able to confirm the species beyond the initial rattlesnake report. Any fuller account is likely to depend on whether the family chooses to speak publicly or whether fire or park agencies release an incident summary. For now, the next formal milestone is any updated statement from Ventura County fire authorities on the girl’s recovery and whether the department expects more snake-related rescues as temperatures rise deeper into spring.
Even with many details still unknown, the scene described by responders was familiar to anyone who uses the Conejo Valley’s trail network at dusk: fading light, uneven ground and a patient who could not simply walk back to the road. Firefighters moved in on foot, reached the injured rider and brought her to an ambulance waiting below, turning what could have become a more serious backcountry emergency into a controlled extraction. The rescue also showed the narrow margin that often separates a frightening wildlife encounter from a tragedy. In this case, officials said the girl survived with minor injuries and was stable after hospital transport. That outcome stood in contrast to the more severe Orange County case earlier this year, and it offered a measure of relief to a community where trails are part of daily life and warm evenings routinely draw riders and hikers into the hills.
By late Monday, the teenage rider remained the latest known victim in a string of Southland snakebite incidents, but Ventura County officials said she had been taken to a hospital in stable condition. Authorities have not announced further updates, and it remains unclear whether any additional information will be released in the coming days.
Author note: Last updated March 24, 2026.