The year was 2020. The season was summer and Covid had only just begun to rock our world. Flights had been canceled. Cruise ships were docked. Some countries were completely shut down. Some states were open, others were shuttered. Travel and its exotic experiences seemed out of reach. The bucket list seekers, the vacation planners all had to place their desires back on the shelf for the foreseeable future. They would have to content themselves with the mundane of their local parks and restaurants, expanding their horizons only in their dreams. At least for travel minded, not so for the opportunist like myself who is careful to find hidden treasures lurking just around the corner. Naturally, shutdowns and limits on travel, could not deter myself and my sister for long from our sister dates. So in early July, after being in semi-lockdown since late March, we departed from our home on a special adventure.

Hershey Pennsylvania is famous for its chocolates, candies and amusement park. What many do not know is that the founder of Hershey Chocolate did not only make candies. He had a hotel and a garden as well. It was not always so, but today the hotel is home to a particularly unique experience, falconry. 

Falconry is an ancient art going back thousands of years. Falconers would take and train birds of prey for the purposes of hunting, often forming close bonds with the bird for a number of years. It takes months of dedication and attention to develop the necessary training and trust to have this wild animal be willing to hunt on the falconer’s behalf and consistently return to the glove. Most falconers have had the experience of “losing” a bird where the bird makes the decision to fly free rather than come back. It should be noted that these birds are not domesticated nor are they really all that tame. They are still wild animals and not pets. Most falcons will not respond well to an untrained falconer, which is why the falconry experience is so unique. There is one hawk species which makes such an experience possible, the Harris Hawk.

Harris Hawks are known for their odd sociability for birds of prey. In other words, they are quite willing to interact with a large number of handlers and are not quite as selective. It is this breed of hawk that Mr. Jack Hubley utilizes in his demonstrations. The demonstrations are made up of small groups to ensure an intimate experience between yourself and the bird. First, you are given the overall history of falconry and a little background on the different birds in his possession. Having been avid watchers of many falconry demonstrations before (as they are frequent at the PA Renn Faire), my sister and I were quite familiar with most of the information and surprised him with our ready answers to the questions he posed. 

With great eagerness, the time had arrived to actually interact with the hawks themselves. The first task was to ensure safety. Hawks as you may already know have sharp talons designed for ripping and tearing into soft flesh, much like your arm’s. For your own comfort and that of the bird’s (who would want to hang onto a yelping, flailing human?)wearing a glove is highly recommended. We were given some basic instructions and allowed to hold the Harris Hawk on our hands. We did so by raising our gloved hands signaling it to land on us. It was exhilarating. 

The bird was surprisingly light on my hand. Even through the gloves I could feel the strength of its grip. It stared at me with its golden eyes clearly investigating this new human. It was clearly a marvelous creature with a keen intellect and clever mind. I will never quite forget the wonder at having called it to my fist. I can only imagine what a true falconer feels when they finally bond enough with the other birds to have them consistently choose to return, but I shall have to content myself with this taste. After each participant had the opportunity to call the bird, we took turns putting it through different flight exercises such as having it fly through a tunnel of people or through hooped arms. 

Despite the oppressive heat of the summer afternoon, it was truly an amazing experience that I would recommend to anyone. It is one thing to view these magnificent creatures behind glass or wire at the zoo or to watch a falconer showcase their skills with a bird, it is quite another to be able to try it out yourself. One of the best parts what that it included photography, so I was able to focus completely on the activity. I am eager to take the next step with my sister, A Hawk Walk, where we walk the grounds of Hershey in an intimate affair of just us, the falconer and of course the Harris Hawk. 

How can you experience falconry?

The sport of falconry is alive and well throughout the country as there is only one state where it’s not legal, Hawaii – I feel for obvious reasons. There are many places that you can look to find similar excursions such as Wing Blade Falconry in Nashville, TN, Troutbeck Hotel in New York, Rancho Bernardo Inn in California, Sky Island Falconry in Tucson, AZ just to name a few! 

Unfortunately, in my brief research it does seem that in the time between this writing and when I went, the price has increased significantly and most places are charging close to $100 per person. Things are only getting more expensive, but by staying in our own backyards we can minimize the costs of travel, hotels, and food so free up our money for the things we really want to do.  

Completed: July 3, 2020

Miles from home: 30 miles 

Cost: As of this writing (2024) these experiences will cost about $100.