Upcoming Programs-Fall 2024

Hello Everyone,

Sorry, but it has been a while since we updated our blog but we have a few public programs coming up this Fall. The first is on September 21, 2024 at Chimney Rock State Park in North Carolina. We will be there for the Park's 16th Annual Flock To The Rock  16th Annual Flock to the Rock - Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park (chimneyrockpark.com) We will have presentations at 11:30 and 1:00 EDT. This is a beautiful state park located about 30 minutes south of Asheville, North Carolina.

On October 12th, we will then travel a few hours to our southwest to the Anniston Museum and Gardens in Anniston, Alabama. We will be there for their Fall Fest FALL FEST 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM - AMG (exploreamag.org) with programs at 12:00 and 2:00 CDT

On October 26th, we will be in Cartersville, Georgia at the Booth Western Art Museum's West Fest West Fest | Booth Western Art Museum (boothmuseum.org) with programs at 11:15 and 2:00 EDT. This is a world class museum which is part of the Smithsonian Museum System.

On November 17th, we will be at Cumberland Mountain State Park in Crossville, Tennessee  Cumberland Mountain State Park — Tennessee State Parks (tnstateparks.com) with our presentation in the Recreational Lodge at 2:00 CST

If you get a chance, come out to see us. To book a program, contact us at s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com or call 423-605-8917 www.soarsouth.org 

Programs for March 2024

 Hello,

First of all, the program scheduled for Kentucky Dam Village State Park for March 9th has been cancelled. We do have a couple of public presentations scheduled for March 2024. This Sunday, March 10th, we will be at the Chattahoochee Nature Center's Flying into the Future Event Flying into the Future | Chattahoochee Nature Center (chattnaturecenter.org) with programs at 12:30, 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30 Eastern DAYLIGHT time. Yes, it's time to Spring Forward and set your clocks ahead one hour.

Later in the month, March 23-24, we will be in Wabasha, Minnesota for the National Eagle Center's Soar With the Eagles Weekend SOAR Event Page - National Eagle Center We will have programs at 11:00, 1:00 and 3:00 CDT on Saturday and 11:00 and 1:00 on Sunday in the St. Felix School Gymnasium. The National Eagle Center has the best hands-on display educational area for raptors that we have ever seen. Wabasha is on the Mississippi River and during this time of March, migration is in full flight. It's not unusual to go outside and see Bald Eagles, Tundra Swans, Sandhill Cranes and a variety of waterfowl all overhead. If you are in the area, stop by and see us.

 

Upcoming programs 2023-24

 Hello All,

Happy New Year! Our first program of 2024 at the Festival of The Cranes in Decatur, Alabama on January 13th and 14th. This is in conjunction with the Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge. At this time of the year, the Refuge is home for thousands of Sandhill Cranes and a number of Endangered Whooping Cranes as well. Check out this link for program details Events — Wheeler Wildlife Refuge Association (friendsofwheelernwr.org)

The following weekend, January 20th*, we will journey northward a few hours to the Village of the Kentucky Damned, oh, ah,  Kentucky Dam Village State Resort Park Find a Park - Kentucky Department of Parks | Kentucky Dam Village State Resort Park near Paducah, Kentucky with our program starting at 7 p.m. CST.

*This program has now been moved to March 9, 2024

Next up is our annual program at Lake Guntersville State Park near Guntersville, Alabama. This will occur on January 27th at 1:00 p.m. CST in the Lodge. This is park of their Eagle Awareness Weekends 2024 Eagle Awareness | Alapark We always enjoy doing presentations at this beautiful park!

To round out of Eagle Event programs, we will be at Reelfoot Lake State Park near Tiptonville, Tennessee on February 3, 2024. This is for their annual Eagle Weekend Event Details — Tennessee State Parks (tnstateparks.com) We have presentations at 2:00 and 7:00 CST. This is always a special program for me (John) since I have been doing presentations there since 1980. People who were children when they first saw our presentation, now bring their children, and even their grandchildren to see our us. Plus, Reelfoot Lake is one of the best places to see Bald Eagles in this part of the country. The State Park has many activities on this weekend, including guided Eagle Tours. 

If you get a chance, come see us on the road at one of these locations. Also, we are now booking programs for late Winter/Spring of 2024. Contact us at s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com or 423-605-8917. If you haven't already, check out our website at www.soarsouth.org Thanks to Dee Smith for these excellent photos!

Rock City Raptors and Earthdayz 2023

 Hello Everyone,

We will be at Rock City for their 2023 Earthdayz event on two consecutive weekends, April 15-16 and April 22-23 EarthDayz - Rock City (seerockcity.com) We have shows at 10, 11, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 p.m. EDT.

Come up to the Rock and learn how you can make the world a better place for not only us but for our fellow inhabitants.

We also begin our 19th Season of Rock City Raptors Memorial Day weekend as we will be there for their Summer Music Weekends Summer Music Weekends - Rock City (seerockcity.com) Our shows run through Labor Day. 

To schedule a program, contact us at s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com or 423-605-8917.

Thanks!

Upcoming Programs-Early 2023

Hello and Happy New Year! We have several programs the first few months of 2023. The first of which is on January 14-15, 2023 for the Festival of Cranes in Decatur, Alabama Festival of the Cranes 2023 — Wheeler Wildlife Refuge Association (friendsofwheelernwr.org)  Our programs will be held at the Princess Theatre in downtown Decatur. Our programs times are 11:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. CST on January 14th and 12:30 and 3:30 p.m. on Sunday January 15th. This is the first time we will do this event, but we have conducted a number of programs at the Wheeler Refuge Visitors Center in the past.

The following weekend, January 21st, we will be at Lake Guntersville State Park in/above Guntersville, Alabama for their Eagle Awareness Weekends Event Schedule Flyer Corrected.pdf (alapark.com). Our programs begins at 2:00 CST at the Lodge. This is a beautiful facility overlooking Lake Guntersville. If you don't make for our presentation, please visit this wonderful park.

We begin February on 2/4/23 at Reelfoot Lake State Park in Tiptonville, Tennessee. We will be there for their annual Eagle Festival  Event Details — Tennessee State Parks (tnstateparks.com) We have programs at 2:00 and 7:00 p.m. CST. This is one of the best places to see Bald Eagles in the Winter in the SE U.S.! In addition to our presentations, the Park also conducts Eagle Watching Tours. Contact them for more details. 

We are booking programs for Spring of 2023. Contact us at 423-605-8908 or s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com www.soarsouth.org

Thanks to Ray Helman and Dianne Blankenbaker for the photos!

Rock City Raptors 2022-Summer Music Weekends

 Hello Everyone,

We are currently doing our 18th Season of the Rock City Raptors Birds of Prey Presentations at Rock City above Chattanooga, Tennessee on Lookout Mountain. This is for their Summer Music Weekends Summer Music Weekends - Rock City (seerockcity.com) We conduct seven shows a day on Friday-Sunday in the Critter Classroom with showtimes at 10:00, 11:00, 1:00, 2:00, 4:00,5:00, and 6:00 p.m. EDT. These shows run through Labor Day with shows in July from July 1st through the 10th. Come on up to see our latest additions to our presentation including Antares the albino Barred Owl. Come on up to the Rock, listen to some great music and have a few birds fly over you!

Upcoming shows 2022

Hello, we finally have some upcoming shows in 2022. It is nice we are able to do these events since we were not able to do these in 2021 due to covid. What was to be our first presentation of 2022 at Reelfoot Lake State Park originally on February 5, 2022, has been rescheduled due to inclement weather to March 5, 2022. This is for this annual Eagle Festival at the Park's Visitor's Center Event Details — Tennessee State Parks (tnstateparks.com) This is a great place to see Bald Eagles in the wild. We have presentations at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. CST

Our first public presentation of 2022 now is on February 12, 2022 at Lake Guntersville State Park in northeast Alabama. This is for their Eagle Awareness Weekends Eagle Awareness 2022 | Alapark program time is 2 p.m. CST. There is limited seating so get there early to get a seat. Stick around afterwards at 5:30 p.m. and see our friends from Rise Raptor Project.

The following week we will be in Morgan City, Louisiana for their 17th Annual Eagle Expo sponsored by the Cajun Coast Visitors and Convention Bureau Eagle Expo | Cajun Coast . We will be conducting a public presentation on Thursday February 17th at 6 p.m. at the Patterson Civic Center, Patterson, Louisiana. 

If you in the area of any of these programs, drop by and say, "Hello!"

To book a program, call us at 423-605-8917 our e-mail us at  s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com

Visit our website at www.soarsouth.org

Thanks to Ray Helman for the Bob the Barn Owl photo!

 Hello Everyone,

Starting tomorrow, October 2, 2021, we will be at Rock City for their 15th Annual Rocktoberfest https://www.seerockcity.com/events/rocktoberfest/ This event runs through October 31st. We have shows on Saturday and Sunday at 10, 11, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 pm Eastern Daylight Time. This is our favorite time of the year at Rock City, so come up, see a show, learn how to chicken dance, and enjoy some German food and oompah bands. Thanks to Ray Helman for the photos.

We are booking programs (hopefully) for Spring 2022. If you are interested in a free flying raptor presentation, call us at 423-605-8917 or e-mail at s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com

Rock City Raptors 2020

Hello All:

We are at Rock City www.seerockcity.com/birds for the 2020 Season with a few changes. Due to Covid 19, we will be doing our presentations behind netting. We will still fly the birds, but not over anyone. Entry into Rock City is now timed, so you have to get a ticket to enter at a certain time. Our show is also an add on ticket. So if you come to Rock City and want to see our shows, please sign up for a specific time. Our shows are at 10:00, 10:30, 11:00, 11:30, 12:30, 1:00 and 2:00 EDT. Seating is limited to 36 people per show.
We are happy to be back at Rock City, even if we are behind the net. Come on up to see us! Take care and be safe!

Dale and John

Hello 2020 and upcoming presentations

Hello,

Sorry it has been so long since the last post! The Peregrine release went well! The male Apollo stayed around for about a week after release while his sister Artemis hung around for three weeks. I hope they survive the trek to South America and if they make it, should return in a few years. We plan to release a couple more birds this year and at least one will be carrying satellite telemetry.

Meanwhile, it is 2020 and we have several upcoming public presentations. The first is at Lake Barkley State Resort Park near Cadiz, Kentucky. We will be there for their Eagle Weekend https://parks.ky.gov/calendar/details/lake--barkley-state-resort-park--eagle-weekend-2020/76738/ Our presentation is at 7:00 CST at the Lodge.

Our next presentations are at Reelfoot Lake State Park On February 1, 2020 https://tnstateparks.com/events/details/#/?event=live-birds-of-prey-with-john-and-dales-stokes1
at their 16th Annual Eagle Festival. We have shows at 2 and 7 p.m. CST. This is one of our longest running yearly programs. With the exception of 2002 and 2003, I (John) have conducted programs there since 1980. One of the most memorable times was on January 20, 1985. I drove up from Memphis in a blizzard, arrived late for the show and did a program for around 100 captive audience members at Airpark Inn. The next morning we awoke to -15 F! The heater core in my car had frozen, so the trip back to Memphis included stops about every twenty minutes or so to warm our feet. It was around -10F when we made it to Memphis. This turned out to be the balmiest temperature in Tennessee that day...across the state in Knoxville it was -24 F! The forecast for next weekend, 2/1/2020,  looks a lot better than this!

For two weekends in a row, we will be at Lake Guntersville State Park in Alabama https://www.alapark.com/parks/lake-guntersville-state-park . The first weekend, 2/8, we will have one presentation at 2 p.m. CST in the Park's Lodge. Come early for a good seat. The second weekend we will have two presentations on 2/15 at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. We will be in a smaller room for these shows so also show up early for a good seat.

In between the two Guntersville weekends, we will be in Morgan City, Louisiana  for the Cajun Coast Visitors and Convention Bureau's 15th Annual Eagle Expo https://www.cajuncoast.com/event/15th-annual-eagle-expo and will have a program on February 13th at Bayou Vista Civic Center. Show time is at 7 p.m. CST.

In March, we will be at Wheeler Refuge Visitor's Center in Decatur, Alabama https://www.fws.gov/wheeler/education/vc.html for two programs on March 7. Showtimes are at 11, and 1 CST.

Next up are two trips to The National Eagle Center in beautiful Wabasha, Minnesota. We will be doing programs on March 14th and 15th and return on March 28th and 29th. This is in conjunction with their annual Soar With The Eagle's Weekends https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/soar-with-the-eagles/ There will be two program daily on 3/14-15 and 3/28-29/2020. This is one of our favorite places to do programs and if you are ever in SE Minnesota, drop in and see this cool place!

Well, that finally has us caught up through March. If you wish to schedule a program,\e-mail at s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com or call 423-605-8917. Thanks for checking in!

Dale and John

Rock City and Peregrine Falcons

Hello,

It has been a while since our last post...sorry! We are now in our 15th season of Rock
City Raptors www.seerockcity.com. We have shows on Friday, Saturday and Sunday
at 11:00,1:00,3:00, 4:30 and 6:00 EST. From June 28th-July 7th we will be at Rock City
as well. Our shows runs through Labor Day September 2, 2019.

We currently have two young Peregrine Falcons that we will release on Monday, July 2nd.These birds were captive hatched by Andy Kramer in Minnesota. This is part of our cooperative effort with See Rock City to restore Peregrines to the Chattanooga area. To see the Peregrines in the hack box, go to: https://www.seerockcity.com/things-to-do/rock-city-raptors/

If you wish to book a program for the upcoming Fall or Winter, e-mail us at
s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com or call 423-605-8917

Thanks!

Dale and John

Upcoming programs-February and March 2019

Hello Everyone,

It has been a while since we've posted anything. We haven't had many programs to start 2019, but that going to change. Here is a list of presentations we have in the near future:

2/2/19- Come join us at Reelfoot Lake State Park in NW Tennessee for their annual Eagle Festival
https://tnstateparks.com/parks/event_details/reelfoot-lake/#/?event=free-flying-raptors-over-the-audience-2pm--7pm-2219 We'll have presentations at 2 and 7 p.m. Central time.

The next two weekends, February 9th and 16th, we will be at Lake Guntersville State Park in NE Alabama for the Eagle Awareness Weekends https://www.alapark.com/Lake-Guntersville-State-Park-Eagle-Awareness-Weekends-2019 Presentaions on both weekends will start at 2:00 p.m. CST

We then travel to Bayou country and to Morgan City, Louisiana for the 14th Annual Eagle Expo
https://www.cajuncoast.com/event/14th-annual-eagle-expo-more We have presentations on February 23rd at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the MD Shannon Elemenatry School Gymnasium in Morgan City.

March begins with us at Wheeler Refuge Vistor's Center near Decatur, Alabama https://www.fws.gov/refuge/wheeler/ We will be there on 3/2/19 with presentations
at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Come early for good seating!

The next weekend we will migrate north to Wabasha, Minnesota to the National Eagle Center's Soar With The Eagles Weekend https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/ We will be there March 9th and 10th
with presentations at 11:00 and 2:30 on the 9th and 11:00 and 2:00 on the 10th. This is a great place to see eagles and other birds as they migrate back to their spring nesting grounds and the Eagle Center has a great facility in a beautiful town.

Next, we spend the weekend in our home state of Georgia and conduct some shows at the Elachee Nature Center https://www.elachee.org/ We will have presentations on March 16th at 10:45 and 1:15.

On March 23rd and 24th, we return to Wabasha for another weekend of Soar With The Eagles with presentations at the same times as 3/9-10/19.

If you get a chance, stop by and see us on the road!

Dale and John
www.soarsouth.org
s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com
423-605-8908

Update...Flock To The Rock 2018 cancelled

Hello,

Sadly, the Flock To The Rock Programs have been cancelled due to Hurricane Florence. There is
no words on re-scheduling the event. Maybe next year!

Upcoming programs-September-October 2018

Hello,

It been a while since our last entry! We will be conducting some open to the public programs. We have one at Chimney Rock State Park near Bat Cave, NC on Saturday September 15 starting at 11:00 a.m. EDT https://www.chimneyrockpark.com/event/10th-annual-flock-rock/

In October, we will be at See Rock City's annual Rocktoberfest http://www.seerockcity.com/events/entry/rocktoberfest
We have shows each Saturday and Sunday in October with presentations on both days at 11, 1, 3 and 4:30 EDT. Come on up and join us for this fun event and learn to chicken dance.

Thanks to Marianne Wilson for the photo!

If you wish to schedule a program, contact us at s.o.a.r.south@hotmail.com

or at 423-605-8917. Thanks!

Dale and John