Join ‘In Search of Eagles’ at three dams along the Fox River Jan. 22

Cindy Skrukrud, Friends of Hackmatack Natioal Wildlife Reguge | Daily Herald 01/18/22

Celebrate the eagles of the Fox River Valley on Saturday, Jan. 22.

Winter is a perfect time to see eagles in the wild as they congregate to feed near the open waters at dams along the Fox River.

The “In Search of Eagles” outdoor event will be held at three dam sites on Saturday morning.

It will be held from 8 to 10 a.m. at the McHenry Dam, Algonquin Dam, and the Carpenter Dam.

Representatives from Friends of Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, McHenry County Conservation District, McHenry County Audubon Society, and Friends of Moraine Hills State Park will help search for eagles and identify other birds using the river.

Attendees are asked to bring and wear their face masks if social distancing is not possible and to bring their own binoculars if they have a pair, but binoculars are not needed to enjoy seeing birds in the wild.

Maps to all locations are posted at tinyurl.com/2022Eagle. For Carpenter Dam, use the parking lot at Fox River Shores Forest Preserve, off North Lincoln Avenue, south of Fox River Drive in Carpentersville. For the Algonquin Dam, go to Cornish Park, 123 S. Harrison St. in Algonquin. For the McHenry Dam, take South River Road to McHenry Dam Road.

In addition to the outdoors events planned for Jan. 22, the cooperating organizations are asking area residents to report where they are seeing eagles throughout January and February.

Sightings are being collected at tinyurl.com/eaglesightings as a resource for people who want to go out looking for eagles on their own.

Sightings and photos can be shared to the Friends of Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge Facebook page at www.facebook.com/FriendsHackmatackNWR or at eBird.org or emailed to info@hackmatacknwr.org.

To learn more about the Friends of Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge, visit hackmatacknwr.org/hack/.

In addition, on Saturday, Feb. 26, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the McHenry County Conservation District will host “Eagles of Illinois” where you can meet in person with a number of injured raptors under the care of the Illinois Raptor Center. The 11 a.m. program is full but there is another presentation at 1:30 p.m.

The program is free, but seating is limited.

Pre-registration is required by calling (815) 678-4532 or at mccd.me/EaglesofIllinois. The program will be held at Prairieview Education Center, 2112 Behan Road in Crystal Lake.