Steve and the Flying Squirrel

January 1, 2025

This is our neighbour Steve. He’s rescuing a squirrel. A flying squirrel.

A few months ago, I heard a skittering in the box that surrounds our chimney and my heart sank. It’s a sound I’d heard before – a trapped flying squirrel. It found its way through the roof to the chimney support box and couldn’t climb back out. Without help, in a couple of days it would die there.

From the inside of the house, the box is over 20ft up. I don’t know how to disassemble it, even if I could get there. From the outside, it’s more like 30ft up, and comes with the kind of drop off the roof you only do once.

Neither Neil nor I had the gear or guts to scramble about on our roof. And getting there would only be step one. There is a flange and goopy sealant and other misc attachments holding the chimney in place.

Our squirrel friend was Rapunzel in a tower, with a buzz cut.

Enter Steve.

I don’t know what made me think to call him. He’s a skilled carpenter who lives nearby. We’d met a few times, but didn’t know him well. We were not yet on flying squirrel rescue terms. But y’know when you meet someone and think to yourself “I bet this is the kind of guy who would answer a late night email about freeing a trapped flying squirrel”?

Steve is the kind of guy who will answer a late night email about freeing a trapped flying squirrel.

He answered right away and said he’d come by first thing in the morning. You could almost hear his superhero cape fluttering the background.

At first light, up rode Steve in his shiny black pickup truck and dazzlingly well-organized tool trailer. Like it was nothing he took his gaggle of ladders and his climbing harness and was up on our roof in a flash. Scraped off the sealant goo. Removed the flange. Opened up the box.

And found the flying squirrel.

Carefully, gently, Steve placed the little flyer in a pillowcase and escorted it back down all the ladders to the safety of the ground. We opened the case at the bottom of a juniper, and our little squirrel friend was up up and away.

You can’t save’em all. But you can save’em some. 💚

Have a good weekend folks. And when in doubt, call Steve. 🙂

// 📷🐿️: Squirrel pics from videos by Steve.