Phil from Maine

Hi all, I decided to do some hard water fishing today and it was windy as heck out there. This is my third time this year. It’s also my third time in five years so it was great getting out there. Well today I had a tip-up blow away plus one went down the hole and another received a broken line. So in those terms not the best of days. But I still enjoyed it and then I caught around twenty smallmouth bass that I threw back. I was after white perch . I only caught one of them and called it quits after an eagle came zooming in and took it away on me.. 😂 Just one of those days but enjoyable none the less. A bad day fishing is still better than a good day working. Here’s a couple of pictures of the eagle with my fish.. 😂

Champlain Islander

Great story Phil and some nice pictures. Around here we do have a lot of eagles but they aren't quite as brazen to swoop down and take a fish. Our gulls though are another matter. They are huge and well fed from many fishermen. On Champlain you don't walk away from a hole with a flopping fish. Gulls will have it in a flash. Sometimes I flip my fish off the hook because I use a barb less bibbit and they start to crowd in hoping the wind blows one more than 10 feet away. I had a decent day today but not as good as yesterday which was 2 full seven gallon buckets of large yellow perch. Today I filled one which was just a little less than 50 pounds.

mrbb

cool pic's for sure, but this time of winter, I gather them birds have it hard and are hungry, and can use that fish more than you too

so, good for it for getting it LOL
after all we can all catch more fish,. but what the odds of a experience like that again, well worth the lost fish IMO!

been a terrible winter here, ZERO safe ice or any real snow all winter, in all my life this is only the second time I can recall so little snow, and other time was 4-5 yrs ago>

weather is for sure NOT what it used to be, seasons are all mixed up

mid 60's yesterday here and snowing now and in the low 30's and calling for near 70 Sunday??
normal average temps should be in the low 40's day time and freezing at night ??
I miss having 4 seasons and gradual changes between them, not this UP and down YO YO weather anymore!

Phil from Maine

Thank you CI.. The eagles here will swoop in and take a fish when you’re not looking most of the time. I saw this one coming in and it was pretty much glare ice from a rain the day before. I never brought my cleats for my boots and knew that I wasn’t going to do anything about. So I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and took some pictures of it. After that got the fish another eagle came in a set on the ice around twenty feet from my four wheeler. Back a quite a few years ago I had one fly right between me and the four wheeler and grab a fish. They keep on going and land a little ways away to get a better hold of the fish and then take off with it. Here’s a picture of the one just beyond the four wheeler..

Phil from Maine

Yeah mrbb, I really didn’t mind the eagle getting my only fish. That wouldn’t of made much of a meal for me and the Mrs anyway. I enjoyed watching them anyway and listening to them squawking.

We have had a lot of warm weather one day and the colder than heck for a few days. Right now it’s been in the twenties at night and upper 30s to low 40s. A few days ago it hit a high of 52. A little over a week ago it hit minus 20. The wardens have been warning about the ice being spotty in places. Where I was fishing the ice was 18 inches. Just up the river around 400 yards the water is all open. I still don’t know how we got 18 inches of ice though.. But yes the weather is crazy here as well..

Champlain Islander

My season ended early on yesterday. Shores are going and I decided it wasn't worth worrying that I would get wet trying to get off. Normally I get to fish into April but not this year. I made it out 65 days this season. Last year was 77 the year before was 78 and three years ago was 80 days so you can see my season ended early.

mrbb

here is a pic of a Bald eagle that had a snow shoe, used to see tons of them catching them while snowmobiling out in WY
they would be pretty tolerant to us on snowmobiles, didnt;l really ever fly off or seem to care we were there at times!
would see 20-30 day or more too, all over out there !

Phil from Maine

We don’t see that many here but do see them at almost every lake. Normally only a couple here and there though. But in the spring of the year I have seen seven setting in one tree waiting for suckers or salmon to start rising in the river. I enjoy seeing them. But when we are ice fishing they will swoop in and snatch a fish off the ice before you know it. You need to keep them close by you..