The morning started out with a hazy sun, no wind and pretty warm air (28-degrees F). The roads have even been clearing themselves of ice. I daresay, the riding was quite pleasant. That’s a darn good thing too, because this weekend I’ll be waking up to sub-zero temperatures again. Oh well, whatever.

I had ridden only about 50-feet after taking that picture when a bald eagle flew over me as close as any bald eagle has ever flown over me. Of course, my phone was buried in my sweatshirt which was under my coat. By the time I came to a stop, ripped off my mittens, and dug for the phone, the eagle was across the river. Bottom line–no photo.

In lieu of a photo, I’ll tell an old story related to bald eagles. One of the very few things I remember about third grade is an activity in which each student had to write a report about a bird of his or her choosing and read that report in front of the class. I chose the bald eagle.

My reading went well and I was proud of my achievement. Then Mrs. Higman ruined it all with a follow up question. “Do bald eagles fly south for the winter like other birds,” she asked?

Man, she really put me on the spot. I could not remember reading about that, so I just blurted out, “Um, yes.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“I think so.”

“Maybe you should go back and do a little more research,” she replied.

Can you imagine how humiliating that interrogation–in front of the whole class–was to a third grader’s mind? I’ll tell you, it was SO humiliating that I still clearly remember it to this day. I also clearly remember NOT doing a little more research. It was either an act of defiance, or an act of laziness.

Years later, still haunted by that event, I looked up the answer out of curiosity. Damn, it was a trick question. Bald eagles will fly south if there is no open water for it to fish in. Otherwise, they will stay put in the north country. That proved to be true today. In the picture above, note the open water on the Mississippi River.