the eagle has landed

Last week, kayaking with a friend, we decided to paddle upriver where I had seen an eagle perched on a tree branch the week before.  Years ago, the eagles had built their nest in one of the highest pines along the river.  It was no longer there; but because the eagle I had seen was calling to one I had not, we knew that a nest had to be somewhere in amongst the trees.

We zeroed in on a spot, pulled up next to the riverbank, and waited.  Finally, we spotted one.  Oh, for a pair of binoculars!  We couldn’t really see the white head and tail from our distance, so we assumed it was a juvenile.  Other eagles soared above.  It was pretty special, but we wanted more.  We determined to return on foot with binoculars to the same spot on the river bank. 

The next day we met up with our binoculars and headed out.  Almost right away, my eagle-eyed friend (pun intended!) spotted a mature bald eagle in a tree, near where we suspected the nest was.  As we changed our location, we could almost see the huge construction of branches, just a few trees over and lower from their previous nest.  We watched the eagles put on quite a show, swooping in from overhead, and drafting on the breezes above.  My friend and I would have stayed there all day except there that was nowhere to sit and our arms were tired from holding the binoculars and our necks were stiff from looking up.  (It sucks getting old.  I never noticed things like that when I was younger!)  We strategized that on our next foray we would bring lawn chairs and maybe a picnic lunch.  Why not?

My friend left for a few days, and another good friend came to visit.  As I was sitting on my back porch telling her of our plans to stalk the eagles, a fully mature bald eagle flew in and landed on the top of a pine tree within view at the end of my driveway.  I took this photo, grainy because my I-phone has no telephoto lens.  It felt much closer than it looks here.  Magnificent. 

I texted my eagle-hunting friend right away and said, “Look who came and perched on the tree across from my driveway.”

She responded, “Maybe he’s following you just like we followed him!  He thinks you’re his buddy.”

Or…………

Have you seen “The Birds”?

Love, Liz