DESTINATION // HAWK MOUNTAIN SANCTUARY
Fly like an Eagle (Or a red-tailed hawk, or a turkey vulture)
by Doris Zheku
EXCERPT //
If you wind your way to the top of Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Kempton, PA, this summer, you’ll be able to watch from below as migrating raptors—headed for warmer climes in Central and South America—use updrafts to sail across the Kittatinny Ridge. It runs from Quebec on down through Alabama, and in Pennsylvania it starts in Pike and Monroe counties and goes through the Southeast down to Franklin County.
Before the sanctuary’s founding in 1934, as kestrels and Cooper’s hawks hunted prey from high above Kempton, humans were hunting the birds from below. Upon hearing about this practice, Rosalie Edge decided to form the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in order to protect the birds, says sanctuary president Sean Grace. It’s the first raptor conservation organization in the world.
Now, the only shooting is from high-definition cameras. It’s a popular place for a day trip, especially during the fall migration season—members can enter for free, but there are day passes available as well. Not only is the sanctuary important to animals as a habitat and a protected zone to migrate through, but also to people seeking to connect to the rhythms of nature.
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