There's a terrifying place called Snake Island that's home to thousands of the deadliest vipers on Earth

There's a chunk of land off the coast of Sao Paolo, Brazil that has the highest concentration of venomous snakes in the world.

It's called Ilha da Queimada Grande, better known as "Snake Island," and it's home to 2,000 golden lancehead vipers (Bothrops insularis).

These snakes are among the most venomous in the world. Even if you get a dose of anti venom right after you're bitten, you're probably still going to die.

Local fisherman in Sao Paolo tell tales of people who have ventured onto the island in search of food and other resources, and never returned. Some believe that pirates brought the deadly snakes there to protect a trove of golden galleons.

Whether there's truth to local legend or not, the Brazilian navy closed the island to the public in the 1920s. Now the only time anyone can legally set foot on the island is an annual trek by trained navy personnel to tune up the automated lighthouse on the island, and for research experiments conducted by a handful of specially trained scientists who are studying how the snakes' venom could be used in biopharmaceuticals. VICE's editor-in-chief Rocco Castoro and senior producer Jackson Fager tagged along with the Brazilian navy's latest trip to the island.

You can watch the full VICE documentary, or tour the island through our slideshow.