My grandma Tilly grew up in Minnesota and when I was just a young kid, she told me the biggest whopper story ever and I bought it hook, line and sinker. My only defense is that I was really young and didn’t know that she had such a devious side. Whenever my family visited her and it was time for us to leave, she always made it seem like we had overstayed our welcome and she would playfully herd us towards the door. I would ask her why the rush and she would tell us that she had a date and that he was picking her up at any minute. She slowplayed us and after countless questions finally admitted that she was dating Bud Grant, the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings. Maybe that early moment in my life was when I became suspicious of both Minnesota, and of Bud Grant, who certainly brainwashed my grandmother and subsequently sapped the green and gold from her blood.   

It took a couple of years before Grandma Tilly’s ruse was exposed but it took me a little longer to forgive her, Bud Grant, and the entire state of Minnesota. My grudge with Minnesota is over, and the list of things that I like about Minnesota includes, but is not limited to: White Castle hamburgers, Lake Vermilion, the Minnesota Wild,  Nut Goody candy bars (I can only find them at Fleet Farm), and the Red Wing dam. Today, the coolest thing about Minnesota is the bald eagle webcam on the Minnesota DNR website. For quick reference here is the address: https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/features/webcams/eaglecam/index.html

This is the 10th season of this webcam and the current camera went live in December 2022 in preparation of the nesting eagles. The next important milestone was Feb. 15, when the first egg was laid. Six days later another egg was laid and there was hope for a third egg but that never materialized. I can’t help but wonder if the 13-plus inches of snow we received two days later played a role in that. Regardless, the time lapse video of that storm is amazing. The mother eagle stayed on the nest through the entire blizzard, getting almost completely covered in snow. She never flinched, keeping her eggs safe and warm the entire time. 

I haven’t told you everything about this year’s nesting eagles so for more information, you’ll need to check out the Minnesota DNR website. 

So why am I taking such an interest in eagles? Because I am old enough to remember when seeing an eagle was about as rare as seeing a comet in the sky. Nowadays eagles seem to be flourishing. Hearing them chatter back and forth is about as rewarding to me as hearing a bull elk bugle, a tom turkey gobble, or the yodel of a loon. Hey, that’s another thing I really like about Minnesota: loons! 

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