American Eagle
Went to the store this afternoon, for nothing important. Two sons were with me, one of them spotted a Bald Eagle. The eagle was hunting on the beach, alongside the road, which runs next to Lake Cadillac.
We pulled into a lakeside parking lot, and were within 30 feet of this magnificent bird. I would estimate his wingspan to be around 9 feet. I did not have my camera in the car! arghhhhhhh! Home was only 1 mile away, I ran and retrieved it. Although I did manage to get some pictures, they are from a distance, as the eagle did not cooperate with me and was hunting farther from shore when we returned.
The first time we saw it, the eagle was riding the air, directly above the beach. His target was a mallard duck, which was coninuously diving beneath the waves. The wind was blowing 30 miles an hour, towards the beach. The large wave height made it difficult for the eagle to see the prey. The eagle did manage to grab the duck several times, but was unable to pull it up out of the crashing waves.
This was an amazing thing to see. Lake Cadillac is located in Cadillac, Michigan. Cadillac is not a large city. The eagle was hunting in a city environment, with a steady stream of traffic within 30 feet.
The eagle was persistent and continued to hunt, although he or she was stymied in the first attempts to pick up dinner.
I hope America still hunts, just like the beautiful bird which is our symbol.
Harry
