CreeDorofl
Member
Thought I'd share this for anyone on the east coast, USA who has been struggling to find a good spot for Bald Eagle watching & photos. Thanks so much to Charley425 on DPreview for the tip... it looks like he registered just to answer my question about good eagle spots. How cool is that?
It looks like you can't embed pics in the middle of posts in this forum, that's a bummer. I got some nice high-res pics I want to share, so I've made an imgur album. You can view it here and skip all the blah-blah
...half the photos are scenery rather than birds, but the bird shots I included are pretty nice (IMHO). Maybe good for wallpaper.
http://imgur.com/a/ufsBz
I was a little worried about making a long drive and having no luck, seeing no eagles or only seeing them distantly... this has happened a few times with the more local suggestions (caledon state park, mason neck, dyke marsh).
I knew of places where I could see ospreys and blue herons all day, every day, any hour of the day. I thought "there has to be a spot like that for bald eagles." And there is. I took a gamble on a 2.5 hour drive and it paid off.
Conowingo Dam is on the northern border of Maryland, close to PA... about an hour from Philly. Your GPS will probably try to take you literally right on top of it... the dam bridges the Susquehanna River.
http://imgur.com/0ep4wLm
If you're coming from the south, along Route 1 (I think it's called Conowingo Road near the dam) you want to turn BEFORE you reach the Dam, turn right onto Shuresville Road. It's time to turn when you just barely see the water and a bunch of sharp left warning arrows that point to the dam. The turn is shortly after the public swimming pool. Anyway, after less than a mile on Shuresville, you'll see a hairpin downhill turn (left) onto Shures Landing Road. Follow it to the end for the Dam's park-like public area. You'll see people fishing, sitting at picnic tables, playing by the water etc. It's a really nice area to hang out.
http://imgur.com/MXTwJir
The first thing you see is a little guard house and about 91891238 black vultures. Parking is near them and periodically park security will roll through and blat their sirens to try to startle them away from people's cars. But it doesn't work. The vultures are tame and kind of cool looking, so if nothing else you can come away with a nice vulture portrait.
http://imgur.com/7WZOmps
http://imgur.com/wg6C8Nj
Right away I can see it's gonna be a good spot. On my accidental trip over the dam, I saw eagles circling on the rocks, and as soon as I parked I saw an immature one. The dam itself is a pretty cool sight, and periodically the sound an air-raid type of siren when they're going to increase water output. There are dire warnings to stay away from the rocks, including threats of arrest, but pretty much everyone was hanging out right by the water and nobody seemed to care.
http://imgur.com/yVbP2Ia
So there's a little strip of grass bordered by trees on one side, and a fence on the other with an open gate so you can get down to the water by clambering on small boulders that look perfect for twisting ankles.
If you just go past, I dunno, 2 or 3 picnic tables, you can stand by the fence and you'll not only have a fine spot for shooting the eagles, the fence itself makes a nice place to brace your elbows and get steadier shots. It's just... you can't be squeamish about the white stains on the fence.
You can go down to shore, which I never did but might try next time. The thing is, the shore is closer, but also lower. From the higher perspective you're level with (or even above) a lot of the flying eagles. The bit of water between you and the opposite shore (actually just a little... islet? is that the word?) is pretty slim, which is nice because it means when the eagles are fishing, they will be in range of a big lens at all times... though maybe only facebook quality if they hit the water near the far shore.
Occasionally you're gonna get lucky and they'll go after one on your side of the river. They will also periodically fly right overhead into the woods behind you, and on 3 occasions I saw them perch at the edge of the strip, making for nice photo ops. I got this within my first 20 minutes and knew the trip wasn't wasted.
http://imgur.com/9u9nMEK
The place has several photographers, and you'll see a few Big White Lenses™ as well as several Tamrons, a few novices with Rebels, and even one or two masochists trying to manual focus with mirrorless systems. One of the guys I ran into says that on some days, you'll see a million bucks worth of gear along the fence. He must be exaggerating... 50 dudes with 1Dx's or D4s, and 600mm f/4 lenses? That's sick.
I made a few friends, one of whom had a d800 with the same lens as mine (Tamron 150-600). He must be one of those million dollar guys cuz he casually mentioned that he had a D4s also, but he left his 500mm f/4 at home because he wanted the lighter lens for this trip. He was coming back from photographing shorebirds in Jersey.
http://imgur.com/neEebAX
Did I mention yet just how buried we were in bald eagles? There were herons, and the occasional osprey, but the VAST majority of the birds here were eagles, young and old. Well, ok, not counting the massive flock of black vultures that hang out near the gatehouse.
This is your 'fish in a barrel' bald eagle spot.
http://imgur.com/QIXQ2pu
I almost hated to leave for lunch, because you feel like you're gonna miss so many great shots. You'll be tracking one eagle and see another start a dive out of the corner of your eye, or you'll see two eagles chasing each other and have no idea which one to follow. While I was in town getting decent italian/pizza, I probably missed some eagles carrying off a unicorn.
http://imgur.com/8fkxNKR
Well anyway, I just wanted to share what a killer spot this is. I have a lot of good shots from the trip and haven't processed most of them. I may have overshot a little bit at 1,000+ pictures =_= ...if you've been looking to get your bald eagle trophy shot, this is the spot, and is generally a pleasant place to hang out, have food at a picnic table or tailgate, and shoot the breeze with fellow photo or birding nerds.
http://imgur.com/scrXiGS
It looks like you can't embed pics in the middle of posts in this forum, that's a bummer. I got some nice high-res pics I want to share, so I've made an imgur album. You can view it here and skip all the blah-blah
...half the photos are scenery rather than birds, but the bird shots I included are pretty nice (IMHO). Maybe good for wallpaper. http://imgur.com/a/ufsBz
I was a little worried about making a long drive and having no luck, seeing no eagles or only seeing them distantly... this has happened a few times with the more local suggestions (caledon state park, mason neck, dyke marsh).
I knew of places where I could see ospreys and blue herons all day, every day, any hour of the day. I thought "there has to be a spot like that for bald eagles." And there is. I took a gamble on a 2.5 hour drive and it paid off.
Conowingo Dam is on the northern border of Maryland, close to PA... about an hour from Philly. Your GPS will probably try to take you literally right on top of it... the dam bridges the Susquehanna River.
http://imgur.com/0ep4wLm
If you're coming from the south, along Route 1 (I think it's called Conowingo Road near the dam) you want to turn BEFORE you reach the Dam, turn right onto Shuresville Road. It's time to turn when you just barely see the water and a bunch of sharp left warning arrows that point to the dam. The turn is shortly after the public swimming pool. Anyway, after less than a mile on Shuresville, you'll see a hairpin downhill turn (left) onto Shures Landing Road. Follow it to the end for the Dam's park-like public area. You'll see people fishing, sitting at picnic tables, playing by the water etc. It's a really nice area to hang out.
http://imgur.com/MXTwJir
The first thing you see is a little guard house and about 91891238 black vultures. Parking is near them and periodically park security will roll through and blat their sirens to try to startle them away from people's cars. But it doesn't work. The vultures are tame and kind of cool looking, so if nothing else you can come away with a nice vulture portrait.
http://imgur.com/7WZOmps
http://imgur.com/wg6C8Nj
Right away I can see it's gonna be a good spot. On my accidental trip over the dam, I saw eagles circling on the rocks, and as soon as I parked I saw an immature one. The dam itself is a pretty cool sight, and periodically the sound an air-raid type of siren when they're going to increase water output. There are dire warnings to stay away from the rocks, including threats of arrest, but pretty much everyone was hanging out right by the water and nobody seemed to care.
http://imgur.com/yVbP2Ia
So there's a little strip of grass bordered by trees on one side, and a fence on the other with an open gate so you can get down to the water by clambering on small boulders that look perfect for twisting ankles.
If you just go past, I dunno, 2 or 3 picnic tables, you can stand by the fence and you'll not only have a fine spot for shooting the eagles, the fence itself makes a nice place to brace your elbows and get steadier shots. It's just... you can't be squeamish about the white stains on the fence.
You can go down to shore, which I never did but might try next time. The thing is, the shore is closer, but also lower. From the higher perspective you're level with (or even above) a lot of the flying eagles. The bit of water between you and the opposite shore (actually just a little... islet? is that the word?) is pretty slim, which is nice because it means when the eagles are fishing, they will be in range of a big lens at all times... though maybe only facebook quality if they hit the water near the far shore.
Occasionally you're gonna get lucky and they'll go after one on your side of the river. They will also periodically fly right overhead into the woods behind you, and on 3 occasions I saw them perch at the edge of the strip, making for nice photo ops. I got this within my first 20 minutes and knew the trip wasn't wasted.
http://imgur.com/9u9nMEK
The place has several photographers, and you'll see a few Big White Lenses™ as well as several Tamrons, a few novices with Rebels, and even one or two masochists trying to manual focus with mirrorless systems. One of the guys I ran into says that on some days, you'll see a million bucks worth of gear along the fence. He must be exaggerating... 50 dudes with 1Dx's or D4s, and 600mm f/4 lenses? That's sick.
I made a few friends, one of whom had a d800 with the same lens as mine (Tamron 150-600). He must be one of those million dollar guys cuz he casually mentioned that he had a D4s also, but he left his 500mm f/4 at home because he wanted the lighter lens for this trip. He was coming back from photographing shorebirds in Jersey.
http://imgur.com/neEebAX
Did I mention yet just how buried we were in bald eagles? There were herons, and the occasional osprey, but the VAST majority of the birds here were eagles, young and old. Well, ok, not counting the massive flock of black vultures that hang out near the gatehouse.
This is your 'fish in a barrel' bald eagle spot.
http://imgur.com/QIXQ2pu
I almost hated to leave for lunch, because you feel like you're gonna miss so many great shots. You'll be tracking one eagle and see another start a dive out of the corner of your eye, or you'll see two eagles chasing each other and have no idea which one to follow. While I was in town getting decent italian/pizza, I probably missed some eagles carrying off a unicorn.
http://imgur.com/8fkxNKR
Well anyway, I just wanted to share what a killer spot this is. I have a lot of good shots from the trip and haven't processed most of them. I may have overshot a little bit at 1,000+ pictures =_= ...if you've been looking to get your bald eagle trophy shot, this is the spot, and is generally a pleasant place to hang out, have food at a picnic table or tailgate, and shoot the breeze with fellow photo or birding nerds.
http://imgur.com/scrXiGS
