Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am in Southwest Oregon. A few days ago, on a cold afternoon,I found a baby king snake. out in the open behind the house (maybe 12 inches long, half an inch across). I watched it for a few hours but it was too cold for it to have any movement. I knew the sun would reach that point later in the afternoon so Ileft it be and waited and waited. A small amount of sun filtered through in the very late afternoon, it was about 52F, and just enough for the snake to start moving excruciatingly slowly - snail's pace - and it was getting close to sundown. I Decided, due to roaming cats and chickens, and snake not having enough time to get back to where it needed to go before it cooled down again, I to put it in a small cardboard box over night with some cotton fabric to nestle in,and planned to set it out next day same place so it could try again. Kept the box outside so would not warmup in the house. Next day was even cloudier and colder, and since then the days and nights have been very cold down to 36 last night. So I have kept it in the box outside but insulated. The next few days until Tuesday will be a bit warmer; afternoon temperature around 50 nighttime 40-45, then freezing predicted for Tuesday night. I want to get this snake back into the wild safely. I don't mind it hibernating under our cabin, but it may not be safe from freezing temperatures there, not sure I should bring it up to temperature so that I can put it back on the spot I found it and hope it slithers to a good spot. Maybe it was out in the cold because it did not have a good spot? What kind of habitat should I release it to? (I'm on the edge of woods, with plenty of rocks and forest Duff around - but that is not where I found it). Should I create some kind of hibernation box for it given how late it is in the season for burrowing a hole? Ideas? Thanks in advance

They are grassland snakes. You can release it in any field where there are burrows or chaparral-type plants that have loosened soil around the roots. The snake needs to get underground or under cover.