The call of the wild, I guess.  It must be heartwrenching to put so many years into a relationship and  in a strong gust its gone - hawks, and  human alike.  Thanks for sharing...you should write more of this stuff.  Its gripping.

Batsheva


________________________________
From: Ray Audette <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tuesday, October 25, 2011 12:05 AM
Subject: Gyrfalcon tale




Once my master Falconer, VanWormer, and I were hunting ducks with a Jerkin ( male) Icelandic (pure white)Gyrfalcon on a 19,000 acre ranch in Happy,Texas, when he caught the North Wind and started his long journey back to Canada.
 
We went back to the Amarillo Airport and rented a plane and pilot to track him with his radio telemetry to another ranch about ten miles from where we lost him.  After returning back to Amarillo, we drove to this other ranch ( 40 miles - got there about midnight) and David hiked about three miles from the road to where the radio signal was coming from only to find that the Falcon had chewed off his transmitter and continued on his way back to the Artic.
 
This was the second time David lost a bird with me ( the first was a Harris Hawk he had for 11 years)- he cried both times....
 
Ray