Falconry, Owls and New Adventures

Many of you know from reading my baking memoir, Confections of a Closet Master Baker (aka My Life from Scratch), that my mother's nickname since childhood was eule (owl in German) and that since she passed, I wear the gold owl pendant she wore since I was born. It's no surprise that owls are kinda a big deal with me.


And if you've spent any time visiting my blog but especially my social media sites, you're saying to yourself, "Wait. Aren't you into all birds?" And you'd be right. I raise chickens and ducks and I have a close, personal friendship with a goose. When I was a kid, mom and I rescued abandoned Starling hatchlings and raised them to adulthood and then I rescued and released chickadee hatchlings here at Freegrace. My only gripe is that I thought we had something special, me and the hatchlings, but once they were old enough they just took off. They never write. They never call.

So when I received an opportunity to visit the new falconry in Woodstock, Vermont, to not only fly hawks but meet owls, I said, "When can I move in?" Even better, one of the most magical places on earth, The Woodstock Inn, is responsible for renovating the barn for this branch of New England Falconry and are single handedly responsible for bringing falconry to our neighborhood.

So if you're one of the many who read the magnificent book, H is for Hawk, we all know that falconry is on your bucket list. I not only got to cross it off of mine but I'm pretty sure that I'm now nurturing a deep and abiding love of falconry and know that it will be a regular part of my life. I'm sharing the video from my adventure at New England falconry with you so you can fly vicariously through me.