How-To Geek

This may be difficult for some people to watch - and no doubt it's a bit sad and upsetting.

Apparently a mouse had taken up residence in one of the barracks at the United States Military Academy - better known as "West Point" in upstate New York. The academy sits on the hills in a large area of woods and parks.

One of the cadets had discovered the mouse and wanted to help the little fellow survive. With all good intentions, he decided the best thing he could do for "Whiskers" was to release him back into the wild - which is essentially right on the grounds of West Point.

Here is the video of Whiskers' release back into nature.

West Point is less than an hour's drive from where I live.

As you drive upstate along the highways which pass through that area - or decide to take a local route for a more relaxed trip - you invariably see a number of hawks circling above, as the ride the air currents in search of prey.

In this case, there's also a very good chance the hawk who took Whiskers flew back to the nest to feed a couple of hungry chicks.

In the very hot summer of '76, I did a 3 month stint at one of our land stations. I kept windows, and doors open 24/7. A field mouse came and made his bed in the bottom of my wardrobe. He was great, never messed indoors, or stole food. We got on really well.

Now why couldn't the base semi adopt their mouse like that?

A very good friend of mine -who, sadly, is no longer here - was an extremely experienced hiker and backpacker, who could easily spend a week or two in the woods or high on the mountain trails by himself - which he would do occasionally on summer vacation.

I'll never forget the story he told me after having returned from one such trek -

While hiking up a trail in the western mountains, he stopped to take a rest - sitting on a craggy rock out on a ledge, to enjoy the spectacular view.

Wearing a red baseball cap to protect from the sun's intense rays - he happened to notice a hawk circling high above who seemed to be moving in his direction.

The hawk was so high above his head, and the direction from which he was approaching was so indirect, it wasn't until the bird was less than 100 feet above his head that he realized it was swooping down - attracted by his red cap.

My friend quickly reached for his cap to tear it off his head, as the bird realized his error with about ten feet to spare - and he swooped away - my friend being able to feel the rush of air from the hawk's powerful wings.

I'm not sure about the baby - but I have every confidence that Whiskers' fate was real.

Also - PS - My wife and I were visiting a lake in Pennsylvania one summer afternoon and we watched an Osprey swoop down to grab a fish. He missed it the first time - flew right back up to the same perch on a rock, and patiently waited for another chance.

The second time he had better luck - as did my wife, who snapped a photo of the bird with her DSLR camera - carrying the fish less than a foot over the water just seconds after he had snagged the fish.

A great shot in real time - no Photoshop either.

And - come to think of it - that avatar I use of the red Ibis -- she took that photo as well.