Northwest school of falconry

Meet Seth, our peregrine falcon.

This morning started early, with a 6:00 AM training session in the field. Every day Seth is becoming more confident and spending a little longer on the wing.

Today he climbed out and began circling about 50 feet above me. Once he was settled, I presented the lure and started our stooping routine. On his very first pass, he made a beautiful stoop, folding into that classic diamond-shaped drop that makes peregrines such incredible flyers.

I let him make five passes before rewarding him with the lure. Keeping the bird motivated is all about balance—enough work to build confidence, but not so much that you take the enthusiasm out of the game.

Tomorrow, I’ll let him gain a little more altitude before offering the lure.

One flight at a time. One lesson at a time. Watching a peregrine falcon put the pieces together never gets old. 🪶🪶 Inspiring appreciation for birds of prey through permitted falconry and educational programs.




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Meet Athena, one of our aplomado falcons, getting ready for a lure exercise.

Lure training helps maintain fitness, sharpens natural hunting instincts, and provides valuable mental stimulation. It’s one of the many ways we keep our birds active and prepared for life as working raptors.

Many people are surprised to learn that educational falconry programs like ours are possible thanks to permits issued and regulated by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and state wildlife agencies. These permits allow us to share these incredible birds with the public through hands-on educational experiences while promoting appreciation and respect for birds of prey.

Athena is ready. Time to fly. 🪶

——-Gifts to your future self.——
The story behind this photo.

I was 14 years old when my dad and I traveled from Lima to the provinces of Huancayo and Jauja, Peru, on a mission that probably sounded crazy to most people: we were looking for kestrels.

The scenery was breathtaking—mountains, valleys, small towns, and endless countryside. We spent hours asking locals if they knew where we could find a kestrel. But every time I used the formal name, cernícalo, people just looked at me with confusion.

Finally, one man smiled and said, “You mean a kilincho?”

He pointed us in the right direction.

We jumped into a mototaxi and made our way through a small town until we arrived at a local market. There, tucked away in a corner, was an elderly woman selling parakeets and a few other small animals.

We approached her and said someone had told us she might know about kilinchos.

She looked at my dad and me for a moment, then quietly invited us down a narrow passageway behind the market.

And there they were.

Two baby kestrels.

She asked me what I wanted them for.

“I want to train them for falconry,” I replied.

She smiled.

Then she looked at my father and said, “Take them.”

My dad immediately reached for his wallet and asked how much she wanted. Since she sold other birds, we assumed the kestrels were for sale too.

She shook her head.

“Don’t worry about it. This was meant to be.”

I hugged that kind, unknown lady, thanked her, and we left.

The photo of me with the two kestrels was taken later that day at a small hostel where my dad and I stayed. We even decided to extend our trip another day so we could continue exploring one of the most beautiful rural places I’ve ever visited.
Looking back, this wasn’t just a trip to find birds.
It was one of the adventures that shaped my life in falconry.

🪶

Throwback to 2011 🦅

This photo was taken back in 2011 while I was training a pack of six male Harris’s Hawks to fly together in a cherry orchard as part of a bird abatement program. Their job was simple: make their presence known and encourage pest birds to leave the farm before they could damage the crop.

Training multiple Harris’s Hawks to work together is one of the things that makes this species so unique. Unlike most birds of prey, Harris’s Hawks are naturally social and can hunt cooperatively.

To conduct this type of work in the United States, a falconer must hold a valid falconry permit and the appropriate bird abatement authorization issued through the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and applicable state agencies.

One of my favorite memories from those days was riding my four-wheeler through the orchard with all six hawks following behind me. It honestly felt like that scene from Jurassic Park where the handler is moving around with a pack of velociraptors. Everywhere I went, the hawks followed, and their constant presence helped push pest birds out of the farm.

Looking back, those years taught me a lot about teamwork, training, and just how intelligent Harris’s Hawks can be.

WorkingRaptors CherryOrchard Agriculture RaptorConservation BirdsOfPrey HawkingLife FalconryLife InkaFalcon NWSchoolOfFalconry ThrowbackThursday FalconryHistory RaptorTraining HarrisHawks WashingtonState FarmProtection 🦅🌱