Hawks, eagles, owls, falcons, osprey, vultures… despite the differences in how these large birds look, they all share three common characteristics: excellent eyesight, eight talons, and a hooked beak. We can’t help but stare at these majestic creatures as they soar overhead, dive into the ocean, or perch high atop trees. Yet, despite their hold on our imagination, these, and other raptors, are at risk of extinction. Nearly 30% of raptor species worldwide are endangered (via Down to Earth), and human activity compromises one of the largest risk factors for these birds’ survival. Beyond their own existence, raptors play a critical role in the health of ecosystems on which humans rely. For instance, the presence of osprey near your favorite shore town indicates that the water and landscape is free of pollution and toxic chemicals (via The Golden Star).
Ensuring the preservation of these species is a critical human endeavor and many rehabilitation centers have been created around the country, tasked with rescuing injured raptors and returning them to the wild. Near Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge in Millington, New Jersey exists The Raptor Trust, a non-profit organization that cares for sick and injured wild birds. Birds that cannot be returned to the wild are kept on site, living in enclosures where they can be viewed by the public, part of the Trust’s education mission.
On a warm and sunny (if hazy!) Friday afternoon, my wife and I set off on another road trip, this time to spend some time among the raptors of New Jersey. So come along, then, on this avian adventure. We’ll also share recent trips to the Jersey shore and the Midwest, and finish with some automotive updates.
Let’s begin:
The Raptor Trust
Our adventure would take us to Millington, New Jersey to visit the Raptor Trust. Located an hour west of New York City and ninety minutes northeast of Philadelphia, it is easily accessible from both the I-287 and I-78 highways.Temperatures were pleasantly warm, but New Jersey, like much of the northeastern United States, was blanketed with smoke from the Canadian Wildfires, making extended outdoor activity unpleasant.After forty-five minutes of driving, (including a fun stretch of bouncing down an unpaved gravel road) we arrived at the Raptor Trust.The Raptor Trust (TRT) is open seven days a week, and visitors can take a self-guided tour through an aviary trail, where numerous raptors are kept on display. TRT is free to visit, although donations are appreciated.The birds are kept in large enclosures, and each enclosure is filled with perches and hidden spots where the birds can retreat if they feel stressed or threatened. My wife and I tried to be good visitors, and the birds rewarded us by staying still for their glamour shots… as you’ll see below!This red-shouldered hawk was keeping an eye on me. In the interest of providing as little disturbance to the birds as possible, the enclosures have a mesh netting behind the fencing to provide seclusion. While you can see through it, it confused my camera’s autofocus system. I ended up going old-school and manually focusing, following the steps my photography teacher taught me in high school.“Can I help you?” this red-tailed hawk seems to be asking.Many of the birds are named… this is Hampton, the Peregrine Falcon.While some of the birds were skittish, others had no problem posing for the camera…One of the hallmarks of a raptor is its vision. A human with 20/20 vision can clearly see an object placed 20 feet away from them. Compare that to a hawk with 20/4 vision – it can see clearly at 100 feet what a human would need to be 20 feet away to see.Another hallmark of a raptor are its talons… look at the size of this great horned owl’s feet! One of these owls can typically lift up to five pounds – enough to carry off most small animals that it will encounter.These two barred owls were taking a midday nap. Owls are nocturnal hunters and will typically sleep 10-12 hours, mostly during daylight hours.A face only a mother could love… this vulture was among the least attractive of the birds on display. Despite their appearance, vultures are critical to preventing disease among the human population. A vulture’s stomach acid is capable of digesting anthrax, tuberculosis, and rabies in carrion, helping to prevent the spread of those illnesses further into the food chain (via Wildlife Conservation Society).A pair of bald eagles were also on display. Owing to widespread use of the pesticide DDT, the bald eagle population dropped precipitously in the 20th century. After DDT was banned, the number of bald eagles have rebounded in this country – the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that there are over 300,000 of these beautiful birds in our nation.With a quick snap of the shutter, I was able to capture the eagle’s nictitating membrane. The membrane serves the same function as a human’s blink – it cleans and lubricates the eye.I caught this hawk as it was cleaning itself… to be fair, I doubt I look any less awkward when I’m in the shower!We finished our tour with a visit to this golden eagle. One of the largest and fastest raptors in the world, it is also the symbol of several nations, including Austria, Mexico, and Germany. After snapping a few photos, my wife and I headed back to the Jeep for the drive home.One the way back, we made an unscheduled stop at the Crane Farm roadside stand.One of the hallmarks of New Jersey are the countless roadside stands that pop up during the summertime, showcasing the produce from local farmers. Who needs a trip to the grocery store when you can get freshly-picked fruits and vegetables directly from the farmers who grew them!After a leisurely drive home, we pulled into our garage. Grace, our 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee, is nearing a milestone of her own – a little more than 600 miles to the big 100,000! Onward!
A Night in Cape May
On a recent weekend, my wife and I stopped by Cape May for a quick overnight trip. We hadn’t been to the shore since Christmas, so it felt good to get back. Even the dolphins were happy we showed up!When at the shore, fresh seafood is a must! We got dinner from Fish & Fancy, our usual seafood takeout spot. My wife enjoyed an order of scallops and flounder, while I devoured mahi-mahi slathered in pineapple salsa… deeeee-licous!After breakfast (from Uncle Bill’s Pancake House, of course!), we went for a mid-morning hike and tried to soak in as many beach views as possible!As we were leaving the shore, I pulled over at Roman’s Pizza House in North Cape May to celebrate an automotive achievement…My 2012 Honda Accord passed another milestone – 220,000 miles is now in the books! The big 300k is less than 80,000 miles away – sometime in 2025, if my estimate is accurate. Stay tuned!
A Midwest Trip
We recently flew out to Wisconsin to visit with family. We didn’t do a lot of sightseeing on the trip, but I wanted to pass along a couple odds and ends. Also, you can catch some amazing sunrises from Newark International Airport.Smoke from the Canadian Wildfires was also blanketing eastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin. This is a view of the St. Croix River, which divides the two states – this photo was taken in Birkmose Park in Hudson, Wisconsin, as I looked across the river toward Minnesota. The haze covered much of the area during our time in the Midwest.Did we make a pit stop at Caribou Coffee, one of my favorite coffee chains? You bet we did… several times.Did we also make a visit to Taco John’s, my favorite Midwest taco chain? Yes. Yes we did.Stopping for gas at a local station, I encountered one of the most advanced gas pumps I’ve ever seen – a digital display that not only tells you the price per gallon, but also has a touch screen capable of showing you news clips, a weather report, or real-time traffic conditions in your area. The future is here, man.We visited with friends and family in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. Compared to the East Coast, “rush hour” in the Twin Cities is a far kinder experience.We also spent some time with a family member who has recently started raising chickens in his back yard. This girl seemed rather curious about my phone.Among the special memories from this trip: my wife and I, joined by a dear friend, celebrated our wedding anniversary with a dinner at Pier 500, a restaurant along the St. Croix River in Hudson, Wisconsin. After our meal, we then took a walk along the river at sunset – a perfect end to a fantastic celebration.Finally, a relative gifted me this amazing handmade walking staff, cut from a tamarack pine in the Adirondacks. You better believe this will accompany me on all of my hiking adventures! After a busy and fun week in the Midwest, we said our goodbyes and boarded a plane back home.
Automotive Updates
Before closing, I wanted to pass along a few updates from the garage. 220,000 miles of driving in the snow belt can take its toll on any car, and my trusty Accord was starting to show signs of a rust infection in the right rear quarter panel again. The proper fix would be to remove and replace both the inner and outer quarter panels, but that can be pricy (easily $3-4,000). Instead, after talking with the owner of the body shop, we decided to simply fix the affected area. The car looks absolutely great – Al Meschi Auto Body in Highland Park, NJ does amazing work!My old headlights had become yellowed and fogged over – the result of eleven years of sitting in the harsh sun. I had tried several headlight restoration kits, but the cleaning process never seemed to last more than a few months. The body shop owner offered to replace them with new units for only the price of the headlight assemblies (he did not charge labor). He also had his team remove a small dent from the car, free of charge. I was thrilled with how the Accord came out!My Accord also recently developed a few rattles. Despite being 11 years old, and nearly having driven the distance from the Earth to the Moon, my car is ordinarily whisper quiet. Garden State Honda, in Passaic, New Jersey, traced the offending noises to a rusty catalytic converter heat shield (pictured), another decaying exhaust heat shield beneath the car, and a passenger window seal that had begun to deteriorate. All three were fixed by the dealer, and my Accord is back to being a quiet space to pass the miles.Despite requiring some preventative maintenance and repairs over the past few months, I’d still trust this car to take me from New Jersey to California at a moment’s notice. Onward!!Finally, my friend Justin, whose 2003 Honda Accord made the news for reaching 1,000,000 miles on its original engine, conducted the automotive equivalent of open-heart surgery. Justin, with the help of some friends, removed the million mile engine (which he will proudly put on display in his garage) and replaced it with a brand new Honda V6 motor (pictured). Justin, best wishes for the next million miles!!
Wrapping Up
If you enjoy learning about nature, and enjoy seeing wildlife up close, I would highly recommend a visit to The Raptor Trust. TRT is open seven days a week, year round. During the summer months, the facility is open to visitors from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm, and 9:00 am – 4:00 pm the rest of the year. As I mentioned above, there is no charge for admission, but donations (in a small donation box) are welcome. If you stop by, don’t hesitate to check out the fantastic book and souvenir shop as well.
Thanks for coming along on another journey down the open road ahead!
Great pictures of the birds. I’d not heard that fact about vulture’s stomach fluids curbing the spread of disease. Those bids provide a service in Texas of helping keep the roadways clean.
Your car turned out great! Hope the rust stays away for awhile. New lights make cars look so much better and newer. Those look really nice on there.
Thanks for the anniversary wishes! I was really happy with how the bird photos came out – especially since I was basically shooting blind – trying to photograph without autofocus in a dimly lit environment.
I’ll keep an eye on the rust, but aside from completely replacing both quarter panels, there isn’t much I can do. The body shop’s owner has a theory that something at the factory went wrong, because it’s not emerging like typical snow/salt rust. But agreed, it looks good, and the headlights really freshen it up. Thanks for reading!!
I loved all the bird pictures from the Raptor Trust! It looked like a really cool spot. I also enjoyed all the fun facts about them. I didn’t know about that skin covering the eye of bald eagles.
Glad you enjoyed the post! I also didn’t know about the membrane that “blinks” over the eagle’s eye – really cool to see (and photograph!). Thanks for reading!!
The Open Road Ahead 
Very informative blog. Liked the pics of the raptor s. Glad u had fun there. The pic of the food looked great! My favorite place for seafood also.
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So glad you enjoyed it!! I was really happy with how the raptor photos came out. Thanks for reading!
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Happy Anniversary!
Great pictures of the birds. I’d not heard that fact about vulture’s stomach fluids curbing the spread of disease. Those bids provide a service in Texas of helping keep the roadways clean.
Your car turned out great! Hope the rust stays away for awhile. New lights make cars look so much better and newer. Those look really nice on there.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for the anniversary wishes! I was really happy with how the bird photos came out – especially since I was basically shooting blind – trying to photograph without autofocus in a dimly lit environment.
I’ll keep an eye on the rust, but aside from completely replacing both quarter panels, there isn’t much I can do. The body shop’s owner has a theory that something at the factory went wrong, because it’s not emerging like typical snow/salt rust. But agreed, it looks good, and the headlights really freshen it up. Thanks for reading!!
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I loved all the bird pictures from the Raptor Trust! It looked like a really cool spot. I also enjoyed all the fun facts about them. I didn’t know about that skin covering the eye of bald eagles.
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Glad you enjoyed the post! I also didn’t know about the membrane that “blinks” over the eagle’s eye – really cool to see (and photograph!). Thanks for reading!!
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