When the phone rang and my neighbor said there was an eagle out front, I raced out with my trusty digital camera and got a shot of a young bird on their bulkhead.

But a few seconds later, two adult birds came swooping overhead being chased by several seagulls.

I watched in fascination and suddenly one eagle landed right on top of the gold ball on our flag pole.

People along the shoreline from Alki to Dash Point see a number of these magnificent birds throughout the year. Burien even has a park called Eagle Landing where you can watch the hatchlings being fed.

I have never seen one land on a flagpole though. That is first for us.

One way to catch bald eagles up close is to follow Burien's most successful fisherman. He is John Richards and he plays the shoreline around both sides of Three Tree Point regularly.

So successful is he that seagulls and eagles now recognize him standing on the beach. They just hang around until he hooks a fish and swoop in for dinner when he cleans his catch.

I am sure they wait till they see his green pickup coming down the road and watch where he parks it. He is no doubt the talk of the town in bird circles.

"Stop bawling, kids. Your dad said he spotted Mr. Richards this morning. He will bring you some food soon.”