Eagle Journal

Hello everyone,

I thought I’d give the middle alfalfa field a try seeing that I have not flown there in awhile. As I was getting Widow ready I thought I could have really used a sweater, the temperature has dropped that much. I went out into the field and began to hunt but Widow was not comfortable at all. She’s convinced that there is something over near the water tank that is going to eat her and she’s not happy about it. I tried to hunt as far away from the tanks as possible but Widow was not buying it, so I hooded her up and left. She will need to get over this. It is good that she is suspicious of things, especially man-made things, but this field will play an important role in her development and eventual release. Heck, she caught her first jack in this field! With eagles I’ve learned, when at all possible, not to make a big deal out of things. Give them time and anything can be worked through. Force the issue however, and golden eagles can be very stubborn and she might not ever hunt in that field.

I went over to the small dry field I call the pole field, mainly because there are some telephone poles down one side. I was wondering how Widow would be after not liking the first field — would she want to hunt or pout some? Generally, golden eagles get over things pretty fast, they don’t hold a grudge, but I have flown some that if you crossed them or pissed them off they would make it very clear how they felt.  I was flying a 14 lb female golden eagle some years ago.. I would take her up on this big hill that had no trees on it, completely bald, and she would go into a soar while I ran down and flushed jacks under her. Well, this particular day, she decided that she wanted the food now, all of it, and I said no. She chased me all over the top of that hill trying to hook me in the head! At one point, as I was running and sliding off the side of the hill, she stooped in and took my hat right off my head and landed, looked at me, and proceeded to rip the hat apart! Yes, I was more than a little scared because I had nowhere to run and nothing to hide behind. I felt kind of like a jack rabbit.

I entered the pole field and started to work one of the areas that are not completely covered with hurtful plants that stab you in the leg. In this field, when I say a jack came from nowhere, that’s so true, because in order to keep from falling on your face while walking, you better be staring at the ground with each step. If it wasn’t difficult enough to walk in already, over the winter some moron in a 4×4 drove around in the field when it was muddy and left deep ruts in the ground which are now covered over with dry grass. The only reason I mention this is because I found one and almost did a face plant. I recovered very nicely, I might add, only to have a jack flush from some very close by hiding place. I guess the jack felt that I was not going to regain my footing and this was a great opportunity to put the peddle to the metal. Widow came off the fist fast, flew across the wind and then turned downwind and closed on the jack. The jack did a very smart thing — it turned underneath Widow with a quick and decisive move. Widow reacted about as well as could be expected but, without any real speed built up, she hit the ground short of the jack. At least she showed she was going to hunt.

I kept working this same area because where there is one jack there are many times two. I walked maybe twenty feet and another jack was up and running almost straight downwind. Widow exploded off the fist and overtook the jack and had it!!! Wow, second slip of the day. I have been waiting for a good time to try to multiple fly her and try to catch more than one jack and this seemed like a good time. So I knelt down with a small quail leg and she stepped up nicely. I hooded her up, put the jack in my vest, picked Widow up, and unhooded her. She first looked at the empty glove, then looked at the ground for her jack, then rousted and started to hunt again. I walked the field but did not get her another good slip. So I fed her up and went home.

Hope all is well,

Joe