Bald Eagles At The PPL Wetlands

Bald Eagles At The PPL Wetlands

PPL Wetlands (7 of 46)
Previous Post
Next Post

Last week I saw two bald eagles while hiking in the  PPL Wetlands in Salem Township.  It is always an awe-inspiring experience to see bald eagles on my hikes.  So  I returned to the wetlands on yesterday  in hopes of seeing them again. 

Last week I scared them as I began my walk. I had the wrong setting on my camera and wasn’t able to  get any photographs. It was another sunny and cold day when I arrived at the wetlands on Saturday  and I got out of my car at the pond near the entrance. There are usually wood ducks on this  pond. Well this time there were two bald eagles perched in the tree right over my head. They flew off before I could aim my camera  and one of them perched in a tree across the pond. 

This time I was able to get a photo of the eagle perched in the tree. This was the best I could do because of the distance the eagle was from me. When I edited the photos I noticed it was keeping an eye on me. It soon flew off and I continued my walk in the wetlands. 

Once again I found the woodlands to be so quiet. The sounds of summer, the song birds, insects and frogs are silent.

I walked to the trail along the canal when I saw the two eagles perched high in a treetop. They also saw me and soon flew off before I could approach and get better photographs. Still I enjoyed the experience of seeing the magnificent birds, once almost extinct, soaring through the deep blue skies of our Commonwealth .

The weak late November sun did the best it could to warm the cold morning air. The temperature was around 25 degrees when I started my hike and only climbed into the mid 30’s during my hike.  The blue skies were reflected in the ponds and canals of the wetlands. 

Like last week, I say  a number of white-throated sparrows on my hike. 

They fluttered in the underbrush as I walked on the newly fallen leaf litter. Higher in the treetops were downy and hairy woodpeckers,

as well as flickers. They were enjoying the poison ivy berries clinging to the large vines in the treetops.

The flowers, insects, frogs, snake, turtles and song birds are all gone now and at times the woodlands are completely silent.  One listens for the distinctive chirp of the friendly winter resident, the black-capped chickadee or

the shrill cry of the red-tailed hawk,  soaring high overhead,  to break the silence. 

I walked through the wetlands to Lake too-A-While.The waters of the lake reflected the deep blue November sky. 

Here I again saw a large flock of Canada geese swimming on the lake. This week there were about 100 of them in the flock. 

I heard s kingfisher and encountered this great blue heron. 

Both of these birds will leave the wetlands when the lake and ponds ice up in a few weeks. 

I  walked to the Great Warrior Trail were I saw a few nuthatches in the leafless trees. 

There were few leaves  remaining on any of the trees but some leaves still  remained on the beech trees and blackberry vines. 

I walked back to my car in the wetlands section of the nature preserve seeing some more nuthatches, woodpeckers and white-throated sparrows along the way. I didn’t see the eagles again but I now know they frequent the wetlands and hope to encounter them many more times during the winter months. And I am sure I will find some other critters on my visits too. And it won’t be long until the skunk cabbage starts to peak through the February snow. 

Here is a link to some more photos from my hike. PPL Wetlands November 23 2019.

“Farewell,” they cried, “Wherever you fare till your eyries receive you at the journey’s end!” That is the polite thing to say among eagles.
“May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks,” answered Gandalf, who knew the correct reply.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien

 

This is my first post