I loved surfing there. Never saw a rattler. The rattlers I do come across usually end up on the grill. Rattlers be good eating.
Back in the early 60s, Rangers from Eglin would come over to the Freeport Rattlesnake Roundup. They would demonstrate the snakes capability with warm balloons. They were surprisingly fast.
They also had an area where they would skin and clean the snakes. The meat looked clean and whitish. They would then batter and deep fry them. Anyone who wanted some could get basically all they wanted.
I didn’t try any but wish I had now, especially since they were given good marks by all who tried them.
The Rangers said they were their favorite food out in the wild tho I am sure they didn’t deep fry them. I bet they could be cooked over an open fire and with just a little salt would be good eating.