Eagles in northern maine (Caribou, Fairfield: house, live, move)

[cordoba11]

Does anyone birdwatch in northern maine? I am wondering at what time and at what frequency do eagles frequent northern maine. I have checked out enature.com but i would like to hear it from a person who lives there first hand. When i have visited that area in the past i have seen what looked like osprey nests on the top of telephone poles, but they were much bigger than the osprey nests here in rhode island. I thought maybe they were eagles nests.

[Maineah]

Not exactly the far northern part of the state but I saw a Bald Eagle feeding on a deer carcass frozen into Ripogenus Lake just above the dam a few years ago.

[Bydand]

I see a pair of Bald Eagles almost every day up here on my way into Fort Fairfield. There are at the nest now and have been for a few weeks now. They should be dropping an egg or two in the next few weeks if they stick to their schedule like the past couple of years. There are at least 3 different pairs that I know of within a 10 mile stretch of the river.

Around Madawaska Lake area there are some huge Osprey nests on the power poles. Have had one of those suckers grab a fish out of the lake and almost hit my boat a while back on Cross Lake up between Caribou and Fort Kent.

[cordoba11]

bydand, thanks for the info, hearing it first hand is the way to go.I really liked the fort fairfield area when i was looking for a house last year. I want to prepare myself for all the things that will be new once i get to [the county] sometime soon. thanks

[Bydand]

I know I sound like a broken record, but knowing what I do of the area after almost 20 years, I would pick Fort Fairfield as a hometown over all the other choices up this direction. I am in Washburn, but really, really like what they are doing over to Fort now. Plus if I remember right you like bluegrass and Fort has a good sized bluegrass festival every year that just keeps getting larger and better.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

I had a French visitor who wanted to see an American Bald Eagle. I told him, "Sure, when do you want to see one?"

He didn't understand that I could show him an eagle any day of the week. We put my canoe into the Penobscot River at Mattawamkeag and drifted down the river. We saw a pair of eagles in a dead elm tree, then a solitary adult just below the railroad bridge. Just below Winn Rips as my French passenger was regaining his composure we saw a juvenile eagle with his head still brown. He took off from a big pine tree and flew out over the river. He spotted a fish and turned abruptly. He misjudged the current, wind and fish and crashed into the water. He stuggled to get off the water, but had not mastered that technique either.

I didn't want him to drown so I paddled fast to the eagle. I sure didn't want him in the canoe with me so I boosted him along with the flat of my paddle. He made it up onto a sand bar.

What is the first thing you do when you slip on the ice and fall? You look around to see if anybody saw you do it. That eagle was much less interested in me than he was in looking around to see if the other eagles saw his ignominious crash. He stamped his feet, spread his wings and shook all over like a labrador retriever coming out of the water.

The Frenchman just about went nuts over all this. He shot at least two rolls of film, chattering away in French. He was too excited to talk in English at that point. He probably thought I did things like this every day. I have saved ducks caught in fishing line and one loon, but that's my only eagle save. The Frenchman wrote in his bird notebook all the way down to the bridge at Chester.

I don't have a photo of my eagle, but I have photos of me carrying a live loon.

[cordoba11]

When i finally make the move it will be one of my first places to go to listen to some good 5 string. Since i don't know anyone in maine i hope i can find some new friends there. I havn't carved in stone exactly where to put down roots, frenchville is looking good at this point but i got others to look at as well.

[cordoba11]

wow land man that sounds awesome, there are no eagles where i live here in southern Rhode Island. There are some not to far about 45 miles in parts of the connecticut river. Once while fishing in my stillwater i was trying the quiet approach and letting the wind move the canoe, i was catching some pretty good size bluegills about 2lbs, i was right on the edge of the pond under some trees, all of a sudden a giant whoosh behind me, i thought someone had jumped in the water, come to find out there had been an osprey right above me in the trees, after the fact i figured out it was about 4 feet away from me, it jumped on a fish that i must have chased out of the hydrilla, the fish was a bass at least a pound and a half. It was pretty killer. i had never heard of an osprey fishing in that way before. With me right there to boot it was something i will never forget.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

I just sent some photos to MaineWriter with my loon story. Maybe she will be able to post them.

[forest beekeeper]

I am not very much North, but I am on the Penobscot River, South of Mattawamkeag. I see eagles most any time that I go out. Mostly in the trees along the river.

Here in a few weeks will be heavy into Fiddlehead season. I will see a lot of eagles then.