Hawk Watch

On Sunday Jake and I spent most of the day at the Pembina Valley

Hawk Watch site.

There are several people who do the official count and others come to help by spotting the birds,or just to enjoy watching these magnificent birds fly overhead.

 This Rough-legged Hawk gave us a good display as it soared over our heads.
In the next little while there should be thousands of Red-tailed Hawks passing through this valley.

 A pair of Bald Eagles did some formation flying.It seemed as though they were putting on a show for us.On Sunday they counted a total of 120 Bald Eagles.

 An immature Golden Eagle provided great looks at its beautiful wing patterns.

This is one of the most beautiful immature birds I have ever seen.

The white windows in the wings were so pronounced.

 Here is a look at some of the birders.It was a cool day as the jackets and mitts will show.

I have to say,this is a friendly group,each one trying to encourage the other.

Some of these folks are expert birders and others are very novice,but we are all one big family.

Sunday brought out a lot of people,as we also celebrated the 65th birthday of one of the official counters.

At one point jake counted 16 vehicles,and at least 60 people showed up.

Some of these folks come from Winnipeg,which is about 100 miles away.

Inspite of the cold temperatures it was a very enjoyable day.
I would encourage you to find a Hawk Watch in your area and spend a day just taking in this event.This is truly something one needs  to experience personally in order to appreciate the thrill of hundreds of birds of prey in one day.