Each and every winter, the Delaware Highlands Conservancy hosts eagle watch bus tours along the Delaware River. This time of year, the water freezes up north so eagles come down to our area to eat so we wanted to go along for a tour to find a glimpse of those majestic eagles.

On a frigid January day, the bus filled up fast in Lackawaxen. Everyone on the bus was bargaining for a tour through the Delaware River watershed in search of bald eagles.

"For me it’s an awesome opportunity to spread awareness not only to eagles but also to environmental issues and get people excited about the environment," said Rachel Morrow with the Delaware Highlands Conservancy.

Morrow organizes the tours for the first two months of the year and coordinates volunteers like Brad Orey who lend their expertise and knowledge along the several-hour experience.

"It’s awesome to watch them interact with the public and share their stories and watch fascination for volunteers who’ve been here 20-plus years and watch in amazement for all they see," Morrow added.

As the bus winds through the river region, it reaches one blind where there have been many sightings of bald eagles.

"This is a pretty popular spot," said Orey. "Last Sunday we had 44 sightings. That doesn’t mean there were 44 eagles. If one flies down that way and out of sight we can’t see the difference other than adult or juvenile, we count sightings."

Armed with binoculars, cameras with big lenses and dressed for the cold, tour participants are eager to see eagles, or at the very least learn about them, their habitat and appreciate the Delaware River region here in the Poconos.

"It’s really special you can look at a lot of birds, these are big things to look at," said Fredrick Sherman of Manhattan. "They teach that on the bus, they teach a lot of stuff."

"Our bus tours they do fill up very fast, if you’re looking to get on a bus the week before it may not happen," added Morrow. "We wish we could bring everybody but we only have so many seats to offer."

On this trip, bald eagles were hard to come by at the first couple stops. Then, when the bus pulled back into the Zane Grey Museum in Lackawaxen, it was the payoff for which everyone was hoping.

A couple of eagles soaring high over the confluence of the Lackawaxen and Delaware rivers.

If the bus tours are filled up this year, put the eagle watch tours on your calendar for next year.