Last week we took our annual trip to FRIDAY HARBOR...to do a little yakin' n' Kayakin with friends...and commune with whales and nature...
Speaking of nature...Carol and I watched as an Eagle chase down a SeaGull...that Sea Gull ducked and weaved...but within about 20 sec. that eagle SNATCHED THAT GULL in mid flight.
The Gull however...dived with the eagle attached and both HIT THE WATER in what looked like a good rate of speed.
The water splashed and churned for about 2 minutes...
Everything was quiet for a few seconds...
Then the Eagle picked up the dead Sea Gull, out of the water...and tried to fly about a football field length to shore, but was so tired...he continued to lose altitude, getting lower and lower to the water until the Gull he was packin' finally touched the water...
The Eagle landed in the water...but then didn't have the strength to lift that water laden seagull out of the water.
The eagle let go of his prize seagull lunch...and then, barely had enough energy left to make it to a small tree snag just at the shoreline.
I continued to flew my kite on the beach for about 40 minutes...and by that time the eagle flew back and retrieved the dead floating sea gull and again...this time...almost didn't make it back to shore.
GADS WHAT A TOUGH WAY TO MAKE LUNCH!
Years ago when I lived near the water near DesMoines Beach near Seattle....I WAS FLYING MY NEW SPORT KITE AND.........UNFORTUNATELY..
I accidently snagged a SeaGull IN FLIGHT with my kite bridle lines but continued to fly across the wind window with him in tow, all the while doing my best in trying to untangle him.
I tried doing tight inside and outside loops (without luck and even made the tangle worse.) I flew back and forth the wind window for about 3 minutes. The wind was blowing about 25 mph..and SEA GULLS DO NOT WEIGH MUCH....THANKFULLY MY LARGE 9 FOOT KITE PULLED LIKE A TRUCK IN THAT WIND. Keeping all this in the air was not the problem...BUT THE FUN AND HELL BROKE LOOSE WHEN IT WAS TIME TO TRY AND UNTANGLE THIS SCREAMING MESS which was attracting quite a crowd on the fishing pier just a few yards to the south of us.
Fisherman and folks were laughing and yelling at me....
I landed the kite and ran toward the flapping sea gull that was trying to free itself all the while it was trying its damnest to make LUNCH OUT OF MY BEAUTIFUL NEW 1993 CUSTOM CHORO ZEPHYR KITE.
Thankfully that gull was so tangled and snared with not only the kites bridle line..but also the bullet proof 125 lb spectra flying line.
A bike rider noticed the event from the shore...hopped off and came to my aid.
It was a cold spring day...and lucky again...that I had on a pretty thick coat.
I grabbed the tangled mess of gull and kite...TUCKED THAT FLAPPING BITING CLAWING GULL FROM THE PITS OF HELL...UNDER MY ARM PIT...turned him upside down.....and the bike rider had a pocket knife that saved the day.
He cut the bridle lines and about 5 feet of my new $30.00 set of competition spectra lines...
(I was very surprised by that time...the Sea gull had completely relaxed...(upside down) and just after we cut the last line---------------
THAT DAMNED SEAGULL...(still UPSIDE DOWN..with the butt pointing straight up at both of us...
LET GO WITH A BOWEL RELEASE WITH THE MOST STINKIN CAUSTIC SHOT OF FLYING SEAGULL POOP THAT HIT BOTH ME AND THE BIKER DUDE, RIGHT IN THE SUNGLASSES!I blindly threw him away from us, into the water... The gull then was too tired to fly...but by that time the air above us was FILLED WITH SCREAMING FLAPPING SEAGULLS FROM ALL OVER THE BEACH LINE..
(Perhaps they sensed "LUNCH" and you already know that they have no problem EATING THEIR OWN RELATIVES.
His fellow SeaGulls kept dive bombing both us and the very tramatized and worn out SeaGull.
We (MY BIKER FRIEND AND THE TIRED SEAGULL managed to fight off the sky filled Sea Gulls until that poor ruffled GULL managed to recover long enough to fly under a near bye pier.
MORAL OF THE STORY..
Bye this time...an old grey hair lady that had been watching us from the shore was seen heading toward us with a DesMoines Wa. police officer in tow.
They informed both of us...that if we had HARMED THAT SEAGULL....THAT WE BOTH WOULD BE SERVED WITH A PRETTY SIZEABLE FINE. We were again reminded that SEA GULLS ARE PROTECTED AND KILLING THEM IS A CRIME!
It was about a week before that caustic seagull poop burn that anointed my left cheek healed...hummm?
As much as I love Eagles...after that event....
EAGLES ARE JUST SEAGULLS IN AN EXPENSIVE BLACK SUIT...TO THIS OL GRUNT!
Just kiddin' NOTHING IS A REGAL as an eagle. We have two nests just a few blocks down the street from us..here in Gig Harbor. New chicks about ready to fly..HOW COOL IS THAT?
