I don’t know about you, but I think of eagles as majestic birds of prey. They are that. They are also scavengers of the worst sort. Just as do their pesky, distant cousins, they will snatch food right off picnic tables. Unlike their pesky, distant cousins, they’re HUGE. So pay attention to your fish and chips!

But there they were, swooping and soaring and nesting all along the waters around Juneau. We saw hundreds of them, which was surprising, because i always thought of them as territorial. On that day the skies were clear and deep blue and the waters were still. To see the eagles stoop on a fish and fly away with full talons was amazing. It’s said that eagle’s sight is so keen that they can travel three miles from their nests and still have one eye on their mate and the eaglets. So that phrase eagle eye means something.

I was certainly in agreement with them about the salmon. Oh, it was good. The cruise ship made sure Alaska’s bounty was always offered. I was happy to indulge.

But the eagles (and the salmon) were just one more piece of Alaska’s abundant beauty. I found it next to impossible to look away from Nature’s display. I’ve never been anywhere that I was as consistently awed and amazed. (But I’ll be glad to keep looking!) There was something about that stark, elemental Beauty that I found incredibly Peaceful. I haven’t quite sorted out all my reactions… but will persevere…