On Saturday the snow melted away during one of those unseasonal January days, where you are teased into thinking Spring will come early, and optimistic folks sallied out in t-shirts and shorts. I was comfortable enough in a sweatshirt as we took to the old River Road on bikes, hoping to spot some bald eagles, which are known to roost along the Kaw in winter.
Because the snow had just melted, the country roads were fantastically muddy. But after slogging through a couple miles of fresh mud, we saw about half a dozen red-tailed hawks, and no less than 30 eagles, in flight over the broad river, or else hanging out in the bare cottonwoods along the shore. They were unmistakeable by their shadowy mass among the tree limbs, and occasionally they would drop heavily from the trees to soar along the bank, scaring the gulls.
We rarely see the baldies in town, so it was a real treat and well worth the effort.
2 comments:
I thought I was hot stuff for seeing one bald eagle soaring off in the distance. I'm impressed!
I know those are bald eagles in the photo, but if you use your imagination they could be chickens with dark winter coats. Our national bird is a chicken in disguise!
How wonderful. We have a periodic lone bald eagle who hangs in a tree near a pond about 1/2 mile south and sometimes sores over the Wild O Ranch. Great picture.
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