The girls and I have a lot of great adventures together in Ohio and beyond. But they’re all adults and have lives of their own. I’m always so excited when they have adventures on their own or with friends.
Right now, Amanda is in Texas with her volleyball team, but a few weeks ago her fiancé’s grandparents treated them to a really great Ohio experience. I’d never even heard of the Walk with Hawks, or the Ohio Falconry School until after they’d had their adventure, but it sounds like an amazing afternoon.
Walk with Hawks
The program location is in Columbus, just north of 270 and adjacent to Highbanks Metro Park. Programs are offered every Saturday and Sunday at the Ohio School of Falconry between April and the end of the year.
You can view availability and book your experience for the Walk with Hawks and their other program, Introduction to Falconry through their website. The program they experienced takes about three hours and is limited to participants ages 9 and up. Each session is limited to 12 participants.
The program introduced them to different types of hawks and the basic skills of falconry. The most exciting part of the experience is having a hawk drop out of the tree tops and land on your outstretched arm.
Amanda’s Falconry Experience
As they walked into the woods, they learned the basics of falconry, which originated in Japan five to six thousand years ago. Their instructor told them that as a falconer you have to be able to hunt squirrels, rabbits and small prey animals in order to support your falcon. They also learned that your first falcon is one that you would trap in the wild.
He talked a bit about getting a sponsor and an apprenticeship when you enter the world of falconry. He says that he tries to encourage women to get involved with falconry as they are underrepresented.
Their falconer also talked a bit about his own experiences in the field. He discussed his experiences with different types of hawks and even some barn owls. Amanda was excited that she got to hold an owl as well. He shared that one of his birds was used as the mascot for the Ashland University Eagles.
When it was her turn she was initially a little nervous. Then she said it was amazing and an adrenaline rush having the hawk fly down and land on her gloved hand. The falconer uses whistles and a chicken feet placed on the glove to call in the hawks. She got to fly a hawk named Irwin and later held an owl named Henson.
FindingOhio
If you’re looking for an out of the box Ohio experience, Amanda highly recommends you Walk with Hawks. According to her the events are booked up weeks in advance. If you have a particular weekend in mind, be sure to check the website soon.
Ohio sometimes gets a bad rap as a “nothing to do” state. That couldn’t be further from the truth! We have so many amazing adventures, you just have to know where to look!
Are you looking for an island adventure? You can take a ferry to Kelleys Island which is slow-paced and family friendly or Put-in-Bay which has strong island vibes. We don’t have mountains, but we do have hills! Take a day or a weekend in the Hocking Hills. You can travel with your dog or take a handicapped accessible walk to a giant recess cave. Take a tour of the ‘Shoe at The Ohio State University, visit the National Museum of the Great Lakes in Toledo or check at the Ohio Reformatory in Mansfield.
Check back with us often, because we’ll be posting more wonderful Ohio adventures at least once every week. And, as always, we appreciate you sharing our content to your social media. We want to share the message that Ohio is a great place to live and play!
