July, 2020
Oh, I suppose I could make you wait before I tell you what I found this morning. But I won’t. You already know what happened because of the title to this blog post! It happened as I was leaving the area, with trailer in tow. The Eagles were back at that causeway!
I didn’t realize they would be there, so I sort of dawdled this morning, slowly getting my chores done in order to hitch up and head out and head home.
I had a great week of camping and exploring at Scenic Beach State Park. I didn’t really want to leave, but leave I must. As usual, I took my time stowing everything inside the trailer including the remote solar panel and its cabling.
I then hitched up the truck to the trailer, triple checking everything about the connection between truck and trailer.
I then checked the brake settings for the trailer’s electric brakes, checked the trailer lights (running lights, turn signals, brake lights, 4-way flashers), I plugged the monitor into the truck’s dash board for the camera that’s on the rear of the trailer so I could see behind me. I then walked around the trailer one last time, double-checking that all access hatches on the trailer were closed and locked, the windows closed and secure, the trailer door closed and locked, and the trailer door step folded in. That might seem like a lot of things to keep track of and do. There are actually more items to do than what I list here, but I use a checklist, so it doesn’t really take much time and I don’t forget any of the items.
I then sat in the truck and warmed up the engine. I updated my log book with the date, the location I was leaving, my intended destination, the weather, the truck’s mileage, and finally the exact time of day that I was pulling out. I made sure Little Towhee was right there with me, sitting on the dash, ready to speak up if I was not doing everything perfectly properly.
Then I turned on the truck’s headlights, checked that the monitor was working for the camera on the back of the trailer, released the hand brake, put the truck in gear, and I was on my way. I was happy to have been here at Scenic Beach and to have seen what I had seen. It’s gorgeous here! Did I mention that it’s gorgeous here? 🙂
As I passed the Ranger station at the campground entrance, one of the Rangers that I had talked with a few times during the week happened to step out the door just as I was driving past. She waved and smiled and said “safe travels, come back!” I returned the greeting. Those folks are such great people. I always make a point of thanking them.
I drove out to the “main” road, turned left, and drove north through the little town of Seabeck, enjoying the view of things that had become familiar to me by then. And on up the road I went, with the trailer in tow, going over in my mind the route I would take to get all the way home.
About two miles north of Seabeck, the road makes a slight curve to the left as it crests a small hill, and then it coasts gently down to that large bay and the causeway where I had seen those Eagles a few days before. I wasn’t paying a lot of attention, just rummaging around in my mind, remembering special things from the week. Just as my truck started to cross over that bridge at the south end of the causeway, I looked at the north end of the causeway and then I looked UP … whoa!! I slammed on the brakes and pulled over so fast that Little Towhee screeched at me at the top of her lungs. She didn’t like all that bouncing and jouncing!
Here’s what I saw in that moment when I looked UP …
The Eagles were back! 🙂
I parked the truck and trailer off on the side of the road and jumped out with my camera, lickety split. This time, I was not at all hesitant about approaching the Eagles. They weren’t bothered by me being below them earlier this week, and they certainly weren’t bothered today either.
As usual, please do click on photos to enlarge them, especially if you are using a full size monitor or TV screen to view them.
She was on the left … he was on the right.
She looked right at me. She held that stare for several moments. I didn’t think I looked like a meal, but I began to get a little nervous. And then she looked away as if nothing had happened. Maybe she was looking at me and wondering what goofy things these creatures are that walk around on two legs and never fly.
By and by, I walked back to the truck and trailer. Just before I jumped back in the truck, I spotted a third Eagle … on the wing … out over the salt water of Hood Canal … likely with a meal in its talons.
What an exceptional way to end my week here. Scenic Beach State Park is high on my list of places to return to, you can bet on that!
I had a nice drive home. Instead of taking the trailer to the storage lot, I brought it to the house and parked it in the driveway right in front of my house so I could wash the trailer and take care of a few other trailer chores.
I’m looking forward to spending time with friends here at home, doing the laundry, picking up my mail, and getting the trailer prepped for another trip. I already have my next camping trip planned. Stay tuned, and come on along!
OH OH OH!!! These are SPECTACULAR!!! I’ve seen eagles a few times, almost always in the UP of Michigan, though people are starting to see them around here too, and once, several years ago I saw one at one of my favorite parks here in lower Michigan. My brother has them on his lake in Alabama and I’ve seen them there 2x. The first time I saw one in AL was a couple days after my dad was killed. One sat out on a dead tree in the lake and stared at the house all day. We like to think that was dad telling us he was OK. The eagle never came back after that day.
Anyway, I so enjoyed this post! I am already missing camping here, tent camping in October in Michigan is kind of problematic. Though we had a couple nice days I might have gone, but my husband contracted Covid, so he’s isolated in the master bedroom and I’m the caregiver. No more camping for us this season. 🙁
Wow, your dad was an eagle! Even if only for a day. How cool is that?
I’m about to call it done for camping for the year as well. But weather reports say the last two weeks of October are going to be gorgeous here (sunny but cold), so friends of mine and I are talking about heading out for one last week. We have trailers with heat and insulation in the walls and roof, so they are a bit more comfortable than tenting when the weather gets cold.
Sure hope your husband doesn’t get real sick and gets over Covid quickly.
The eagles are magnificent. They are always such a delight to see; you were lucky!
I am a lucky dog. 🙂
You’re like us, we dread the day we have to leave a campsite and head home because we love camping so much and the things we see and the life out there. But we also look forward to our life at home, friends who don’t camp/RV, getting our things tidied up again. We talk about renting out our home and going camping fulltime, but what would we do with all of our treasures at home? It’s a tough choice, and a blessing, eh? 🙂
Yep. My thoughts exactly, Marge. Tough choices but what a blessing to have a life where we have those choices.
Spectacular indeed! I hope everyone is using a very large monitor to look at that last photo of the female Eagle staring at you. Not sure I’ve seen anything like it online or in any book … absolutely spectacular.
Thanks very much, Rob! After reading your comment about online photos, I looked for “eagles staring” on Google and found a bunch of such photos, but when I followed the image links, it turned out most of the photos were of eagles in captivity where a photographer was in close proximity and where the eagle couldn’t fly off at the drop of a hat. If I were an eagle in captivity, I would stare with great anger at everyone!
Thanks for the compliments. 🙂
We LOVE the Eagles. oh my!
Aren’t they just so majestic and handsome?
The eagles are stunning, of course. But I’m also so very impressed with your trailer hitch-up process and check lists. Even to the detail of checking your trailer’s electrical brakes, not many people do that critical check. But I have to say, Ann, that Little Towhee is correct, you should not be slamming on your brakes … she was bounced and jounced just way too much! 🙂 Great blog, thank you.
Ha! Little Towhee would certainly agree with you, Shawn … too much bouncing and jouncing that day. 🙂
Thanks for the nice words about the hitch-up process. I’m out here to relax, and that means that I do my best to minimize the chance of anything going wrong.
So glad you lucked out and were able to see the eagles again and sharing these amazing pictures with us.
So nice that you’re getting another trip in October. I picked up my Escape two years ago in late October and enjoyed the lovely weather and beautiful scenery in Washington state.
Your Escape is just four months newer than mine, Mary. Hope you are loving your trailer, and that you’re getting out to see lots of wonderful things. October can be gorgeous here in the Pacific Northwest. It’s still autumn, not winter yet. Come back to Washington and see more! 🙂