by izerion_izek

The Lord of the Rings is a magnificent tale about a long, hard journey to get the One Ring to Mount Doom to destroy it. At Rivendell, it was decided that the Ring must be destroyed at the Cracks of Doom, so the Fellowship of the Ring was formed to get it there. The journey from Rivendell took three months and nearly failed several times. Both Boromir and Gandalf died (although Gandalf was resurrected). Was there another way? There was a way, one that was much shorter and safer. The use of an eagle to fly Frodo from Rivendell (or from Hobbiton, for that matter) directly to the slopes of Mount Doom is much more practical than walking there.

The advantages of flying are numerous. When in the air, Frodo would be safe from Nazgul, orcs, Uruk-Hai, or any other creature that would attack him. There might be creatures in Mordor that could fly and attack an eagle, such as the Nazguls’ flying mounts, but they might not be mobilized in time. The distance from Rivendell to Mount Doom is about 680 miles, which would take an eagle about a day and a half to cover flying at a constant speed of 20 mph. This short travel time does not allow much preparation time for Sauron to intercept Frodo, if he even realized what was going on. The short time would also keep the Ring from becoming too much of a burden to Frodo, so it would be easier for him to dispose of it.

The logistics of the flight are not hard to deal with. There are numerous precedents of people riding eagles, several of them in LotR. Gandalf was carried by Gwaihir several times, and his friendship with the eagles could encourage them to participate in this plan. In terms of weight, Frodo would not weigh very much, and a few loaves of lembas and some water for his consumption would not add many more pounds. If one eagle did not have the stamina to complete the entire round trip, a relay of eagles could easily be set up.

Using an eagle to take Frodo to Mount Doom is a good plan. It could easily be carried out. There is one minor problem: LotR wouldn’t be much of an adventure if it happened this way.