Teatown’s 6th Annual Hudson River EagleFest 2010

It was so cold today that I can’t believe we actually braved the 25° F temps (with wind chills of about 17°F) to attend Teatown’s Hudson River 6^th Annual EagleFest at Croton Point Park (Croton On-Hudson, NY) but we did, and I must say, I am truly glad we did!

EagleFest 2010

Of course, growing up along the banks of the beautiful Hudson River, I have seen many eagles soaring overhead, perched in trees around the shore line of Lake Meahagh in Verplanck, NY and of course floating on the ice drifting down the river.  Yet, I was thrilled to attend this event where I learned a few things that I may not have otherwise known about these wonderful birds of prey and our national bird. 

First we sat in on an informative lecture (check out a few sound bites from the lecture below) where we learned that the female eagles are usually the largest of the pair.  And, did you know the word “Bald” is from the Middle English word balled, meaning shining white. Some of the previous names are American Eagle, White-headed Eagle, and American Fish Eagle.   Did you also know that eagles generally take a mate for life; eagles will only separate if after a few years they are not able to have their own eaglets.   So how many of you know that eagles do not like to get their wings wet?  I knew that, but I can honestly say, I didn’t know the real danger it could pose – if an eagle’s wings get too wet as they dive into water for food it could actually prohibit them from flying.  If an eagle’s wings get too wet, they would actually have to swim/paddle to shore (which could be quite a distance) and then hope they can keep warm long enough for their wings to dry out – amazing!

Other interesting activities during the day included an Eagle Exploration Bus Tour, Hudson River Eagles talk by Christopher Letts, and Jonathan Kruk Storyteller (who we seen recently saw at the Knickerbocker Ice Festival) and more! 

We took the Eagle Exploration Bus tour which was a two hour tour of the “hot spots” best known for eagle spotting.  Funny thing is, my mom called me about 8:30am this morning to tell me to look out my window as there were two eagles sitting on the ice of Lake Meahagh (my backyard) LOL! Maybe next year’s EagleFest should include a trip to Lake Meahagh in Verplanck, NY.  Our tour stopped at three well known eagle spotting sites. 

1.  First we stopped at Croton Boat Ramp at Croton-Harmon Train Station.  Here we spotted a young eagle perched in a tree (too far away to get any good pictures unfortunately).  Here we also learned that the eagles not only dine on fish, but they will also scavenge for food and are often seen picking at a deer unfortunately killed by the passing trains.  The sad fact here is that eagles don’t react fast enough to sounds and/or light and it is estimated that approximately 2-10 eagles are killed each year by fast moving trains.

2.  Second stop was George’s Island Park Dutch Street, Montrose, NY.  Here we spotted a young eagle perched in a tree.  It was so bitterly cold along the river’s edge we were grateful for the warming tent serving hot cocoa!

Looking for Eagles-George's Island-Montrose

Young Eagle Perched In Tree-George's Island Park

As with the lecture, we learned more interesting facts about the eagles while on our bus tour.  For instance, did you know that Benjamin Franklin didn’t want the Bald Eagle to be our nation bird but instead fought for the Wild Turkey!  Who knew!  All in all we enjoyed the bus tour and the additional knowledge we learned from Lisa and Aaron our tour guides—thank you Lisa & Aaron! 

Informative Bus Tour

 I have always had a strong appreciation for the beauty of the area in which we live.  Attending today’s event only increased my awareness of the beauty that surrounds us each day and the fact that we need to do our part in preserving nature.  As it was stated today, the land or natural surroundings here along the Hudson River are the bald eagles home.  You wouldn’t go into your neighbors’ home and be disrespectful by littering or worse, so please, don’t be disrespectful of the homes of our national bird, the bald eagle!

For more information please consider contacting and/or visiting the

Teatown Lake Reservation 1600 Spring Valley Road, Ossining, NY? – (914) 762-2912?

DIAL - LISTEN & LEARN

As always, I wish you days filled with happiness and “wonder” – take the time to “wonder” what it is that made you smile today!

Winter sunset over Lake Meahagh-Verplanck, NY

It seems appropriate to take some time to reflect on the year which is about to come to an end, 2009.  For me, reflecting back over the years brings smiles to my face J and joy in my heart for I was blessed with a wonderful year!  

The year was filled with great times spent with my family and exciting and fun-filled “day-trips” with my fiancé.  From celebrating birthdays and holidays and weekends with my family to fishing excursions in and around the area, state and county fairs, trips to the Catskills, Newport, waterfront dining on the Hudson River and more!

In April 2009 I launched my “Wonderful Wonders” blog which I’m thrilled to say has been viewed nearly 1,000 since it’s launch!  So to all my readers, I say thank you for taking the time to stop by and read about my travels and adventures.  I am looking forward to another year sharing with you places we visit in the hopes that you may find them interesting and want to visit if you hadn’t already.  Warning…..although the snow can be beautiful (as seen in the picture above of a beautiful sunset over Lake Meahagh in Verplanck, NY) I am not a huge fan of the cold so I do not do as much getting out ‘n ‘bout in the winter, as such, my blogging will be a bit less frequent. 

I hope we all take a moment to look back and reflect on the year as this helps us to remember; remember the events and activities we were fortunate to have been a part of and the people that we were blessed to have in our lives over the year. 

Happy New Year to all!

As always, I encourage all of you to take the time to stop and “wonder” – wonder what it is that made you smile today!

I love sitting on my deck listening to the many sounds of nature on a beautiful summer evening or enjoying my first cup of coffee early in the morning.  The sounds of the winds blowing the trees, the many birds (nuthatches, gold finches, woodpeckers, cardinals and more) singing and the geese, swans ands ducks swimming happily in the lake–who could ask for more!

 Flowers, flowers, flowers, who would not enjoy a beautiful summer evening sitting on a deck overlooking a lake enjoying the sounds and beauty of flowers blooming/shinning in the evening sunset.  For the first time ever I mixed lobelia and impatients in strawberry pots and the results–well spectacular to me! 

We should take the time to enjoy our surrounds–not worry about if we can or should go away on vacation.  Times are difficult and we need to learn to appreciate what it most likely right in front of our eyes — so to all of you I wish you a happy summer filled with breath taking views, enjoyable sounds and most importantly laughter and love from those closest and dearest to you everyday!