In Chenango County, NY we have a pair of eagles that were released in the hopes that they would breed. And several years later the eaglets are soaring above the river, looking for prey. It is very cool to see the national bird soaring above you in your own community.
I went up the Inside Passage to Alaska. On the way (and after I was there), some of the trees had snow balls up at the tippy top. I found out it was eagles. The trees hid all of their colors except for the their "snow ball" heads. It was so cool!
A couple of years ago, I saw one flying in Kansas City, KS while I was waiting for a bus. At first I thought it was a plane flying overhead until it starting turning - it was quietly gliding, probably looking for prey. There are a few places around Kansas City where there are quite a few bald eagles, which is amazing - I remember in the 1970's when people were worried that they would soon become extinct.
Different.
Much better than the wild turkey that Ben Franklin wanted as our national bird. Can you imagine the ribbing we'd take these days?