Nature Done Wright

On Monday I wrote:

My final hawk watch mystery is a fairly easy one. If you've been here, you know the answer.

I spent a week here as writer in residence a year and a half ago, when I was writing The Screech Owl Companion. The book arrives in two weeks from Timber Press. (Sorry about the shameless plug, but…)

The walking stick was carved with a snake on the handle. The carver was a hawk-watcher extraordinaire.

Bonus points if you can I.D. the carver or explain the tradition behind the basket.

This is the last of five Monday hawk watch mysteries. I hope you enjoyed them.

The answers:

The place is Hawk Mountain, the first (legendary) hawk watch in America and probably the world.

The walking stick was carved by Stiles Thomas (right), who loved Hawk Mountain. (I took this shot of Stiles back in 2009, when we visited for the 75th anniversary celebration. It is my favorite picture of Stiles.)

The basket in the photo is the Adirondack pack basket given to me by Hawk Mountain's wonderful Sue Wolfe.

 According to Hawk Mountain, "Adirondack Pack Baskets are part of the Hawk Mountain tradition and all of our Hawk Counters use them to transport gear to our lookouts daily. Pack baskets are not only traditional but are also very lightweight, strong and functional."

I thought it only fitting to end this tribute to hawk watches with Hawk Mountain.