Fraser River tributaries around Harrison Mills fill with spawning salmon every October. Attracted by abundant food, thousands of bald eagles soon follow. And to celebrate this natural marvel, we join hundreds of other nature lovers at the Fraser Valley Bald Eagle Festival held in mid-November. (See www.fvbef.ca re this year’s Nov. 19 and 20 event.)
From our cozy cabin at Rowena’s Inn on the River, we reconnoiter Morris Valley Road. At Chehalis Flats Bald Eagle and Salmon Preserve, a roadside placard maps out the enormous wetlands formed at the junction of the Chehalis and Harrison Rivers. Further along, Chehalis River Salmon and Trout Enhancement Facility’s storyboard illustrates the five salmon species and steelhead raised here in huge concrete holding channels. The five million fry released into the Chehalis and Harrison Rivers annually develop in the Pacific Ocean over five years and return home to spawn. Our last stop reveals Weaver Creek’s Spawning Channel, where 30,000 sockeye, chum and pink salmon safely deposit their eggs in the man-made gravel beds during October.
Saturday, Eagle Festival signs lead us along a forested pathway to the Pretty estate’s observation platform, one of several festival sites set up for watching eagle action along the Harrison River. Powerful telescopes and binoculars help us witness countless eagles perching on snags, preening, ambling awkwardly in shallows and gorging heartily. Eagles relish easy pickings, yet also snatch live fish from the water with strong talons.
North America’s bald eagles dwarf most raptors. Their dark bodies and bright white heads and tails, hooked yellow beaks and powerful legs are easily distinguished. Bonding for life, eagle couples occupy the same territory every year. Often seen with parents, juveniles sport mottled white and brown bodies, dark heads and tails. Longer, thicker flight feathers make them larger and clumsy in flight.
One volunteer mentions the annual eagle count, “An estimated five hundred birds arrive daily. Numbers peak about mid-December at five to eight thousand birds, the world’s largest concentration of bald eagles.”
Another adds, “The Chehalis Flats provide one of the last feasting areas of its kind for wintering eagles. From October to February, they put on weight, rest and socialize. Most return to breeding grounds in northern British Columbia, Yukon and Alaska.”
At nearby Kilby Historic Site, kiosks dispense information about scheduled photography walks, guided tours and nature talks given by speakers such as David Hancock, renowned Canadian biologist. Exhibits explain the migration phenomenon; maps show eagle-viewing sites. One booth features local First Nations, traditionally respecting eagles for their spiritual protection. Their wise stewardship of salmon stocks is reflected in maintaining the Weaver Creek spawning channels and other conservation initiatives.
Now a museum, Kilby General Store displays merchandise from the early 1900s. Here, local Fraser bands traded smoked salmon and crafted items for goods. The storekeeper’s collection of native basketry and cedar boxes is exhibited upstairs.
From the beach under Kilby’s rail bridge, we board a 20-passenger jet boat. Travelling upriver from Harrison Bay, its shallow hull passes over shoals and along shorelines without disturbing the eagle crowd as we approach.
Captain Rob declares, “Imagine! Migrant eagles fly up to 2,500 kilometres just to get here!”
Guide Joanne smiles, “We’ll soon see who’s arrived at the estuary.”
At the edge of Chehalis Flats, Joanne grins, “Look! Those fish struggled home, spawned, and died. Now, they’re eagle lunches!” Formidable beaks rip at plentiful carcasses. “Three amigos ahead,” quips the captain. Boat idling near a sandbar, the eagle trio seems unfazed by our presence. Vision sharp, their unflinching stares fascinate and intimidate.
Only two hours east of Vancouver, B.C., Harrison Mills proves ideal for encountering bald eagles up close and discovering the salmon culture.
For more, see www.kilby.ca, www.fraserriversafari.com, www.chehalis-hatchery.shawbiz.ca/Chehalis_hatchery.htm
