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Bald eagle pairs rarely get
within a mile of each other. So
wouldn’t it be neat to stumble
onto dozens of them, together in
the wild? To watch them glide
from their perch tree, spiral
toward the water and pluck a
fish from its depths? Well,
snuggle down and start reading.
You’re about to find out where
and when you can find such a
sight.
Seven miles southeast of Coeur
d’Alene is Wolf Lodge Bay, a
well-known migrating spot for
bald eagles. It’s believed they
come down from Canada for a
milder climate
and make the bay their winter
home. The rocky shores,
submerged gravel beds, and tall
trees lure the eagles because
it’s the ideal habitat for
kokanee salmon, a main food
source. The area is chock-full
of the land-locked
 salmon,
which spawn around November,
then die and become the perfect
food to get the eagles through
the winter.
The Bureau of Land Management
together with the Department of
Fish & Game started the
Watchable Wildlife Program. One
portion of that program is the
Coeur d ’Alene Eagle Watch at
Wolf Lodge Bay started in 1991.
It’s a public showing of the
eagles, with wildlife personnel
around to answer questions and
direct you to the best spots to
find them at any given time.
“It’s grown from one Saturday in
December to the seven days from
Christmas to New Year’s Day,”
says Scott Robinson, a wildlife
biologist with the Bureau of
Land Management in Coeur
d’Alene.
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“There are an assortment of
government people and volunteers
who set up telescopes, displays
and handout material. We assist
the public in viewing and
enjoying the bald eagles.”
The eagles start arriving in
mid-November, rising in numbers
to peak around the holiday
season. They start leaving in
mid-January.
“During the one-week period at
Christmas, we have anywhere from
2,000 to 4,000 visitors sign our
guest book,” said Robinson.
“Seventy percent are from within
a three-hour driving distance,
and the other thirty percent are
from everywhere else.”
Idaho Department of Fish & Game
have documented visitors from
all fifty states and Washington,
D.C. The number of bald eagles
that show up at Wolf Lodge Bay
varies from year to year but has
increased to between eighty and
one hundred during the month of
December.
If you think you’d like to see
Wolf Lodge Bay in December, here
are a few tips from the Bureau
of Land Management. It is seven
miles southeast of Coeur d’Alene
on I-90. The suggested viewing
spots are on Highway 97 at
Higgins Point, Mineral Ridge
Boat Ramp and Mineral Ridge
Trail head.
Don’t forget your binoculars and
camera with a zoom lens.
Officials ask that you don’t get
too close to the birds or their
perch trees. If the eagles start
to ruffle their feathers or
appear agitated, you’re too
close. If made too uncomfortable
they will fly off.
If you’d like to watch the bald
eagles fish, get there early.
They usually start just after
dawn and slow around
mid-morning. They position
themselves in perch trees near
the edge of the water and watch
for dead or dying salmon. They
swoop down in a spiraling
motion, snatch the fish out of
the water and take it back to
their perch to eat.
It’s a rare and wonderful chance
to see so many bald eagles in
one place. Isn’t North Idaho
great?
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