Golden Time of Year

Autumn in New Hampshire can be considered a golden season for its spectacular foliage. Sugar maple, birch, beech and aspen are notable for casting a golden glow. Autumn's chill also brings golden eagles to the state, winging south on the strong winds of fall. Yes, golden eagles, associated more often with western canyonlands and desert, a known predator of prairie dogs, jackrabbits and marmots.

It's no longer unusual to see bald eagles in New Hampshire, seldom far from our sea coast, major rivers and lakes. But golden eagles? That's news to most of us. Back when New Hampshire's forests were cleared for timber and farms and pastureland for sheep, the state hosted a few pairs. But today's mature forests and golden eagles aren't a good mix.

Instead, golden eagles of the East find the wide open spaces that they favor in the mountains and tundra of Labrador and northern Quebec. And when they pass overhead in November, heading south, they keep right on going. Wher are they heading? The southern Appalachians where farmland, logging and extensive wetlands keep the forest in check.

Counts at eastern hawkwatch sites indicate their numbers are slowly increasing. Credit goes to a ban on shooting golden eagles, once a popular pastime. Watch a golden eagle flying low, following mountain ridgelines south, catching a ride on updrafts – big, powerful, holding steady against the brisk winds of fall – and the glow of goldens stays with you.

They give hope that the truly wild still remains.

Script by Francie Von Mertens.