It’s time to go out and count eagles around Lake Fork, an annual event on Lake Fork. The US Fish & Wildlife Service and the Audubon Society conducts the count all over the U.S., not just on Lake Fork.
Oak Ridge and the Lake Fork Sportsmans Assoc. provides pontoon boats for bird watchers to go out and count as many eagles as bird watchers can see in 3 hours on the second weekend in January.
Beginning at 8:00 A.M. on Saturday and counting until 11:00 A.M. seven boats cover seven sections of the lake looking for eagles sitting, flying, or even fishing. They also have bird watchers in cars circling the lake looking in the back of coves and near the dam.
They do it again on Sunday trying to duplicate the numbers seen on Saturday in each section.
On the 3rd Saturday in January is the Rains County Annual Eagle Fest. The County has been recognized as a great location to see eagles in their natural setting over the last 20 years.
Live birds of prey will be demonstrated during the event, which will be centralized around Rains High School. Food vendors, arts and crafts will also take place during the event, which has become one of the largest nature festivals in Northeast Texas. The cost is $5.00 per person. Children under 10 get in free.