Wildlife is Right Around the Corner

 Raising my family in central North Carolina we always had access to greenways that led us to parks with large lakes and then the usual wildlife. That would include the common mallard duck, Canadian geese and of course fish. Walking through Bond Lake in Cary NC it would not be unusual to see a blue heron or two as well as a family of egrets. 

Do you ever wonder how these wonderful lakes come about to being for our enjoyment? It’s simple really, its’ just the damming of a river or stream. For Bond Lake it’s a simple earthen dam of a local stream that runs to Crabtree Creek and then to the Neuse River. 

However, what about those bigger lakes like Jordan Lake just 30 minutes south of Cary? This type of lake is created for flood control and to provide a city drinking water reservoir as well as local recreation for activities such as boating, fishing and hiking. It’s created with a true concrete dam and is usually managed by the US Army Corp of Engineers and the State Parks service.  However, there is one other advantage that I have found. 

I can simply drive the 30 minutes south to the Jordan Lake Dam. This dam controls the Haw River (which eventually becomes the Cape Fear River flowing all the way to Wilmington NC) and creates just shy of 14,000 acres of beauty for everyone to enjoy. However, hike a quarter mile from the dam and for photographers, that’s where the real fun begins! 

Bald Eagles and Blue Herons

Now I used to think I had to travel to Alaska to see Bald Eagles. They certainly fly around that northern state like robins and cardinals fly around NC. However, I’ve recently discovered over the past year that I can simply drive south from my home to see these majestic birds. 

I decided that this year on MLK day, I would do just that and go enjoy nature. So at sunrise I left the warmth of my home (much to my German Shepherds dismay) and go look for Bald Eagles. At first I didn’t see any at all. However, what I did see was amazing. 

As soon as I parked my car at the dam I saw a mass amount of Blue Heron flying and fishing. They were looking for those fish that make it through the dam’s outtake, coming up probably a little disoriented. That seems to be why the Blue Heron love to fish in this spot. 

I always want to get down to the edges of the water so that I can photograph nature not from above but from their point of view. This is a challenge at the Haw River. It’s a little bit of a climb and because of all the winter rain we had, it was MUDDY. 

However, finding a spot to climb down I brought my camera, my very large 150-600mm lens and my tripod down to the shore and started shooting Herons. What a cathartic experience. It was cold but I was fully bundled up (4 layers of clothing). I was getting dirty, but nothing that a washing machine couldn’t fix. 

There I photographed heron after heron sitting and posing for me in the early light. It was like they saw me and were there just to pose. 

After sitting for about an hour and photographing these beautiful birds I decided it was time to get up and walk around and find a different vantage point. In so I met  Steve & Becky, a photography couple (OK, Becky was the photographer and her husband Steve was her spotter (I which I had his eye sight).  We talked for a while and decided to hike together. 

In doing so, Becky found a great spot to climb down to the river edge. Since there’s safety in numbers, I climbed down with her as we took our position to photograph the Bald Eagles that both Becky & Steve spotted. At first I continued to be focused on the Blue Herons. 

Now photographing Birds in flight (or in movement) is a challenge, especially with a very long lens (and on this part of the hike the tripod stayed up on the path).  I saw a heron near me in the water and was curious what he was doing so I focused on him and just waited. As soon as he started to move I started to shoot. 

I thought “I got it... nice and sharp”.  Then I reviewed the images on my camera and to my surprise this is what I saw! 

The heron was running away with his breakfast. For me, this is the exciting part of this type of photography. I knew that this one shot made the entire morning worthwhile. I thought “no matter how cold  or how muddy I was, this is why I do nature photography). 

Becky, Steve and I continued to shoot the Bald Eagles on the far side of the lake. We saw mature eagles (part of a family) keeping an eye on their youngsters. 

The funniest thing is that we saw a pair of mature eagles fussing very loudly when their juvenile children flew a little too far away from them. Reminded me of times as a father fussing at my young daughter when she wondered too far me and her mother. 

A morning well spent with nature. How I love photography and how it helps me commune with nature! I hope you all find your way to commune with this beautiful world that we all share and live in together. 

Of course you can see more images at my website

#naturephotography #nature #baldeagles #blueherons #birds