For 17 years I’ve been introducing folks to the world of nature through our Falconry Experience programs for Hershey Entertainment & Resorts in Chocolate Town here in Pennsylvania. 

I’ve been a licensed falconer for about 40 years, hunting with hawks and eagles, but I had no intention of formally introducing this ancient hunting craft to the public until Hershey asked me to partner with them in establishing a falconry education program.

While my falconry license permits me to hunt with raptors, turning this into a commercial venture requires an additional permit, Falconry Education, issued jointly by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the state wildlife agency, in our case, the PA Game Commission. 

So, after constructing the required facilities at ZooAmerica in Hershey, and obtaining and training our hawks and falcons, we were off and running in the summer 2008. A year later, we added a female golden eagle, a recovered West Nile virus victim, to our flock.

In no time at all, I came to three realizations:

1. Many people are enchanted by bird of prey – their beauty, power, speed, agility and indomitable spirit. After all, one of them is the symbol of our nation!

2. The majority of people – I would say seven to eight out of 10 - have no idea what falconry actually is, but, assuming that it involves falcons is enough to convince them to pay for a hands-on experience.

3. Falconry, by definition, is hunting wild quarry with trained birds of prey. But, while many of us are awestruck by birds of prey, a significant number of us do not care to watch them ply their trade – that is, catch wild animals, kill them with eight daggers, then tear them apart and swallow them in chunks – flesh, organs, bones, fur, feathers, claws and all. 

So, the past 17 years have been quite a fascinating educational experience for my guests, myself, and my falconers, Patrick Miller and Bob Leonard. 

Years ago, an old falconer friend said that he would not be interested in doing what I do for fear of turning his cherished hobby into work. It’s true that there’s plenty of drudgery,  relentless repetition and occasional anxiety involved when attempting to safely put the fascinated but naïve public in touch with nature (just ask any hunting, fishing or birding guide). But, for me, the rewards far outweigh all the above.

First, there’s the magic that happens when a hawk lands on a guest’s arm for the first time, invariably, an emotional experience that can range from trepidation to tears of joy.

Often, my guests bubble over, describing this as a singular experience, even life-changing.

Second, a have a captive audience that I can introduce to an ancient hunting craft that was an integral part of our evolution, giving us yet another option for putting meat on the table and furs on our back long before the arrival of gunpowder and efficient firearms. For me, understanding where we came from is essential to understanding who we are today. Those who might view the practice of capturing and training birds of prey as exploitation usually leave the Falconry Experience with a different outlook – a realization that the human/raptor partnership is nothing short of miraculous and deserves to be held up as an example of H. Sapiens being woven into the fabric of life on earth, rather than being distinct from, or “above” nature. 

So, it’s been a fascinating journey. “I could do this all day!” my guests often effuse after calling one of our Harris’s hawks to their gloved hand. But, let me assure you that calling a hawk to the glove would soon become mind-numbing without our guests. Their responses run the gamut: heart-warming, emotional, unexpected, fearful, funny and often memorable. 

Early on, I decided that many of these encounters should not be forgotten, hence my Hershey Journal.  So, what follows is a record of our adventures on the Falconry Field with pseudonyms to protect my guests from merciless jabs and protect me from litigation. To keep you coming back, I’ll provide regular updates.