Eagle Days

From St. Louis, it is just a relatively short jaunt down a country highway before you find yourself on the Mississippi River amongst bald eagles during the winter months. Watching bald eagles definitely has an allure, though I am not sure if it is the size and soaring grace, the striking contrast of the head against the body feathers or our devotion to our nation's symbol. Ben Franklin's take on the majestic bird: “I wish the bald eagle had not been chosen as the representative of our country; he is a bird of bad moral character; like those among men who live by sharking and robbing, he is generally poor, and often very lousy." Okay, but he wanted a turkey as our nation's representative for crying out loud, so the Father of France doesn't know best.

From St. Louis - you have a few options on eagle watching. Last weekend we set our sites an hour northwest, going west on I-70 and north on 79. Getting there is half the fun as highway 79 is sprinkled with several small towns that you drive through. From south to north, here are the towns we 'visited', with posted populations:

O'Fallon 17, 425
St. Paul 1634
Old Monroe 250
Winfield 723
Foley 178
Elsberry 2047
Annada 48
Clarksville 490



Our destination was the small town of Clarksville and host of Eagle Days - a weekend of eagle watching on the edge of the river sitting just downstream from a lock and dam. The lock and dam is key to the operation as the dam prevents the river from freezing over and the fish shoot out of the dam a little bit stunned and a whole lot easier for the eagles to catch. During Eagle Days you will also find a handful of shops open - ready to sell bent willow furniture, natural bath products, antiques, and hand-blown glass. Be sure to wander by the V.F.W., where the smoker outside was advertising some kick-ass BBQ, or the concession stand to order up your hot dog or funnel cake. After a few hours taking in all we could, we hopped back into our car and headed home - glad to have ridded ourselves of cabin fever for the day.