Eagles are back in force at Conowingo

There was a time when I used to think seeing more than one or two Bald Eagles at any given time was a rarity. Last Sunday, I was able to count 46 of them within a couple hundred yards of each another, and those were just the ones I could see. I'm almost positive there had to be at least another couple dozen roosting on the far side of the river too. It was fantastic watching them all fighting, fishing, and hangin out… catching some lazy thermals and yelling at each other with that oh-so-distinct  "ka-chuckcuchukuchuk" squawk. 

Word on the street is that their numbers will continue to increase until mid-December, and that there could be up to 100+ eagles around the dam by then. Wow.

What's even more amazing to me is that I grew up out in Oxford, (about a half hour away) and used to take trips down to my friend Mike Lord's cabin all the time, which is only a mile or so upriver from the dam. I know the area like the back of my hand – or so I thought. I had no idea it was such a hotspot for eagles up until about a year or so ago – but it makes perfect sense. We used to fish for shad, stripers, catfish and anything else we could pull out of the river down there, and there's always been an abundance of fish. Now that I live about 45 minutes away, Conowingo is like rediscovering a goldmine. The eagles stop here on their migration south for the winter, and rumor has it they've caught on to the fact that the fish get stunned or chewed up in the turbines of the hydroelectric plant. Literally like shootin fish in a barrel for the baldies – they can just sit and wait for the next half-dazed dinner to come floating downstream. They've also become accustomed to react to the lights and sirens that go off whenever the dam opens up another control valve. It's like ringing the dinner bell, and even in the short few weeks I've been going down, it's noticeable how the activity picks up right after a siren sounding.

At some point, I'd really like to try renting a small flat bottomed skiff from Port Deposit to try and get to the far side of the island. Most days I've seen the eagles prefer that side for their active fishing routines. I'm also considering camoing up in the ghillie suit to sit on the rocks. I've done it in regular clothes the past few weeks, but I'm interested to see if it'll make a difference in how close the eagles will get to me if I'm well camouflaged. Time will tell.

If anyone is interested in coming down and checking it out, here's a map to the parking area. Easy access from I-95 and US1 in either direction.

A few tips if you do decide to come:

1. Dress warmly. There's usually a breeze, and the air coming off the water is a few degrees cooler and damper than the forecast temperature. Sunday was supposed to be around 65°, but I was wearing long pants and a winter jacket to stay comfortable while sitting for long periods of time. You may be sitting or standing for hours at a time.
2. Bring patience. Wild animals do things on their own schedule. You could very well end up sitting for three hours simply watching the eagles sitting for three hours. Sometimes when they start to fish it happens damn fast, and then they can go back to sitting, or flying back into the woods, or whatever they're in the mood to be doing. 
3. If you have massive glass, bring it. If you don't have massive glass, bring what you have and a pair of binoculars. You may still be able to pull off some great shots in the parking lot. A lot of the time the eagles will perch and do flybys from the trees adjacent to the parking lot, and they'll get surprisingly close.

Mr. Bill Majoros has also written an excellent, thorough primer on the Conowingo eagles, and I'd urge anyone wishing to come down to read this first. I can wholeheartedly agree with many of his tips and suggestions, especially about the use of flash and exposure compensation.