A TRIUMPHANT RETURN By Brian Hardiman
I
was beginning to have my doubts as I stood there in the cold and snow. We had been waiting and watching in this one spot for over twenty minutes but still nothing. Furiously wiggling my toes and fingers did little to thwart the numbness setting in. A quick scan of the now restless group showed others stomping their feet and huddling together in a losing effort to stay warm. At least I’m not the only one suffering, I thought to myself. And then it happened…I don’t remember who was the first to see it and call out, but suddenly all eyes were on the spectacular sight that appeared almost magically before us. Frozen extremities were quickly forgotten and the conversation about last weekend’s party abruptly ended. An adult bald eagle, with wings pumping slowly, passed by the hushed group of onlookers at eye level, held its course down the river, and disappeared, like a vision, around the bend. It was simply awesome.
Photo courtesy of Unsplash
This eagle sighting occurred in the Poconos on a field trip in February, 1984, when I was a student in Dr. Larry Rymon’s Ornithology class at East Stroudsburg University, and it was the very first bald eagle that I (and most of the class) had ever seen in the wild. It is one that will be forever etched in my mind. Standing on the banks of a remote section of the Delaware River that day was in itself exhilarating and memorable -- snow was falling and the flakes accentuated the green of the towering hemlocks around us. There were no traffic noises to be heard, only the soothing sounds of the rushing water below us. Yes it was cold, but the thrill and anticipation of possibly seeing a bald eagle trumped any hardship. Besides, Dr. Rymon said this was the best place to see a bald eagle, and everyone knew that Doc (as he was affectionately called by his students) had the bird gods on his side. After we actually did see that eagle (just as Doc had predicted), his legendary status only grew.
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2021 POCONO LIVING MAGAZINE© 13
