90% Chance of Showers

A bald eagle watches from its perch as salmon splash in the river below.

          Yesterday I drove back out to the Nooksack River prepared with the essentials (camera, tripod, camo tarp, chair, hot chocolate, etc.) for a whole day of bald eagle photography. The forecast was a 90% chance of showers so I was planning on spending the day under cover. I made it to the blind well before first light so I could set up before any birds showed up for breakfast. The plan for this day was to gather a few salmon carcasses and put them in strategic places after filleting them open. I have noticed that even though the area is riddled with salmon, the eagles seemed to all be fighting over the few that had already been opened up. I thought this might be a viable tactic to lure them in close to the blind and my lens.
          Still well before there was enough shooting light, I heard the flap of wings and caught movement across the river in front of the small opening of my blind. It was a red-tailed hawk. The small raptor had come to check out the salmon carcasses I had placed there. I was disappointed there wasn't enough light for me to get any glass on him, but it was still a good sign that the salmon might pay off. About an hour later a splash of water stole my attention from my hot chocolate in time to get in position before a great blue heron came walking up the river. This was definately going to be a good day!

A great blue heron stands motionless. These great hunters can stand in one spot
 for hours at a time, waiting to strike with their amazing, lightning-quick speed.

       
          I sat in the blind for a total of about six hours, until I decided to try my luck elsewhere. The forecasted rain hadn't come yet. In fact, besides the misty drizzle that lasted about half an hour while it was still dark, it didn't rain a drop the entire day. I took a walk down a path nearby that runs parallel to the river. I had seen eagle perched in the trees along this path on several occasions and thought I might be able to keep my luck going if I took my time and walked silently. I thought I was doing a good job, but a few eagles would likely disagree, as they noticed me and flew away without me making a single click. One decided to tolerate my presence however, and I was able to capture several frames, including the first photo on the top of this post. Another success!
          I passed the last couple hours of the day photographing several different eagles in flight. Not as close as I would have liked, but they still turned out nice. All of this came from a day with a 90% chance of showers, which almost made me stay home!

A bald eagle soars over the Nooksack River.