By Colonel John Getgood of Floyd, Virginia

In March 2024, my daughter Sarah and I visited Panama for 12 days on a birding trip. We visited both the eastern part, specifically the Darien, and the western part, the Anton Valley, with our good friend and guide Norby Lopez.
Sarah and I are both serious birders, and I have a world life list of over 3400 species. We spent Saturday night in a hotel in Panama City, and on Sunday we hooked up with our local guide, Oscar. With Oscar in charge, we headed out on the very poorly maintained Pan-American Highway for the tented Canopy Camp in the Darien. It would be our home for the next five days.
After about an hour into the journey, my type A personality emerged, and I asked Oscar, “What is the chance of seeing a Harpy Eagle?” The Harpy Eagle is the most powerful eagle in the world. It stands over 3 feet tall with a 9 foot wingspan. It feeds on arboreal mammals, such as sloths, monkeys, and large birds. It can carry 20 pounds in its talons. Oscar replied, “We know where there is an active nest, but it requires a 5 kilometer walk in and out. However, the trail is wide and fairly level.”
There was a guarded conversation in the van, and someone asked when we should do this. Oscar’s reply was early tomorrow morning. Having noticed several horses along the road, I asked Oscar, “Are there any farmers with a horse and cart or wagon that could take us down the trail?” His quick reply was, “No, the trail is too narrow, and there are several creeks that we must negotiate.” That confirmed my suspicions that it would be difficult considering my medical issues: hip surgery on Christmas Eve and two back surgeries in April 2023.
As I was digesting all of this information, Oscar said, “However, we can rent horses to ride to the nest site.” I contemplated this additional information, and I said to myself, “John, you are 85 years old and have never ridden a horse in your life but probably cannot walk 10 km on a rough trail. It is decision time.” Oscar then asked, “How many horses?” As I formulated my response, Sarah piped up, “We will take two.” Decision made. I am riding a horse tomorrow. Oscar said we needed to get up at 0500 in order to get our horses out at the indigenous Indian village in the morning. I went to bed thinking “Sweet dreams, cowboy!”
The next morning, we headed out early to the village and loaded up. I was hoisted on top of a picnic table, where a handful of wonderful local Panamanians lifted me on top of my saddled horse named “No Name.”


We rode our horses 3 miles in and 3 miles out of the jungle. When we arrived at the Harpy Eagle nest and saw the young chick, I was amazed. This was one of the most spectacular birding moments of my life. A true bucket list moment. We waited and watched the nest for the next several hours. We witnessed the mother Harpy Eagle come in from hunting and drop a sloth into the nest. We watched mother and chick together, and this was truly breathtaking. What a wonderful moment, special day, and the trip of a lifetime. I finally added the Harpy Eagle to my life list!




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