Day Trip to the National Eagle Center

On Saturday, March 1, we took a day trip north to a town called Wabasha, MN where they have the National Eagle Center. On the way, we stayed bundled up in the car. The drive took a little longer than anticipated due to a storm a couple days earlier, (ended up being 2 hours), but we were safe and the boys did great!

We first ate lunch in Rochester at a Greek restaurant. This brought back memories of all the great restaurants in So Cal. Then, we stopped at a place called Lark Toys. It's a really cool toy store with pretty much any toy you could think of, including the trademark handmade wooden toys that Lark Toys is famous for. We could have easily spent the whole day here!

They also had display cases of toys through the ages.

There was also a fudge shop, candystore, mini golf course and a handmade merry-go-round. Tanner is riding on what he thinks is a dragon. We went along with it and said "Oh ya, a brown dragon" even though it was actually an otter. When he got off, he took one last look at it and realized it wasn't a dragon. "Wait a minute. That's not a jwagon!" We just had to cover our laughs, and remind him how much fun he had on the ride.

Can you see me in the background?

Here's the view outside from the merry-go-round area. No sun, but it was a nice day since there wasn't too much wind.

After the toy store, we made it to the main attraction, the National Eagle Center. The place was beautiful!

Everywhere that we stood in the museum we could see the view of the river. This is close to the beginning of the Mississippi River, and since there is so much movement in the water, it doesn't freeze, even during all this cold we've had. The eagles know this, so hundreds of them migrate here every winter to hunt for fish and stay alive. 

We really enjoyed watching the eagles circle in the air, swoop down and grab stuff. We saw dozens  of them!

 Project station

Exhibits

There are four injured eagles that live at the center. We got to meet them face to face and watch them eat! 

Tanner is a smart kid. He obviously understood how dangerous these creatures are. The first thing he asked when we stepped in the room to meet the eagles was "Do they have arms to grab me?" And "Will they fly away?" Once we assured him that they can't hurt us, he was much more comfortable watching them.

Pretty awesome how these birds were almost extinct and now they are thriving! Pretty awesome how we got to enjoy watching them so close! Tanner especially loved it. For the past 2 weeks, he has been looking for eagles with his "noculars," and swears that every big bird we see outside is an "EEEEAGLE!!"

After the museum and eagle presentation/show, we went to a restaurant nearby. We sat by a cozy fireplace, eating yummy food while enjoying another awesome view of the river and eagles. It was a perfect way to end a perfect day!!