Ol' Eagle Eyes

Now that we have lived year-round in Maine for just over two years, I can honestly say that one of my very favorite things to do is kayaking. Our boats are small and easily maneuverable whether hoisting them atop the car or paddling quickly through the reeds. Paddling quickly? An oxymoron. The best part of kayaking is that you slow. down. The slower you go, the more you observe.

Take this morning for instance. We arrived at the put-in at Seal Cove Pond (in Acadia National Park) by 8:45. There was only one other car in the small lot -- as we pulled up to the temporary parking where we take the boats off the car, we spied an older woman at water's edge; she was wearing a wetsuit and a bright red ball cap and trying to put flippers on. She told us was going to get her morning exercise.

We slipped our kayaks into the water and floated out into the stillness. We paddled past the floating water lily leaves and some of them, below the surface, were a vivid orange. No blooms yet. We could see a loon floating off in the distance as we paddled away from it.

Our red-capped swimming buddy had worked her way out into the water and as we approached, she silently pointed overhead. An elegant, great blue heron soared above us, moving its wings in nearly slow motion. We waved to our buddy and paddled on into the morning quiet.

As we rounded the point, I scanned the treetops stealthily and sure enough, a bright spot of white appeared. I whispered to Al -- "Look! An eagle!" Admittedly, they can be hard to spot but my eyes have had lots of practice in recent weeks. A mill pond in Somesville that we drive by several times a week has become a favorite spot for bald eagles. I've trained my eye to quickly scan the trees all the while searching for the bright white head and the solid dark mass of the eagle's body. I've probably spotted an eagle there a dozen times in the last two or three weeks. These birds are huge and their bodies can be easy to pick out against the sky.

While kayaking this morning, my first spotting was a particular challenge because the sky was bright and overcast; the bird's head barely contrasted with the sky. Its massive body was quickly identifiable, though, perched at the very top of a large pine tree. We silently dragged out paddles in the dark water to slow down the boats and give us more time to watch the regal bird without disturbing it.

After a moment or two, we continued to paddle out toward the middle of the pond. This is a BIG pond -- and we love it. There is an island out in the middle that we often paddle out to and then around. About a third of the way to the island, I looked back and spotted a second eagle. This one was very easy to spot among the dark pines -- it was perched about half way up a large tree.

We continued on to the island and a beautiful loon greeted us. Its distinctive call echoed off the water and up toward the nearby mountain. It was magical. And, look! A THIRD eagle! On the island. At first, it almost looked like two eagles perched right next to each other -- we could see two groups of feathers below the branch but only one head at the top. As we slowly paddled closer, the single bird pulled its wings back in --- apparently, it was doing its best imitation of a cormorant in its wing-drying position.

We paddled out past the island rather than around it. It's our first kayaking of the summer season and we were feeling pretty good. And, sure enough, as we worked out way farther down the pond, we spotted yet another eagle. A record. We've never seen four eagles in one kayaking outing. These birds are thrilling to spot in the wild.

We'll never tire of this. Ever. As we paddled back down the pond, an eagle flew overhead and into the trees. We're pretty sure it was one of our eagle buddies asking when we'd be back. Soon.