Replies

Great photo.

Years ago on one of the Lakes in SW Oregon, there was a bald eagle nick named Sam. Which I didn't know BOUT or what Sam would do until a little later on this trip.

Sam would circle around watching fly fishers bring the big trout back to their fishing prams or one man pontoon rafts.

I was up in the late fall and had seen Sam circling that morning and thought nothing of it. I hooked a really big trout and was bringing it closer to my little pontoon raft.

The fish came to the surface about 20 feet away. Suddenly this screech came over my head and the shadow of Sam went zipping over me and the water. He hit the fish and I about lost $1,000 in rod, reel and line as he tried to lift up the still hooked fish.

The light tippet broke and the trout got away and survived. I kicked and paddled into shore, and I was shaking like a cold wet puppy dog. It took me an hour to get back in the water. In the meantime Sam took a fish from another fisher about a quarter of a mile off.

Later I told a guy at the local flyshop about my encounter. He smiled and said that was Sam, and he often got breakfast, lunch and dinner that way.

So your photo reminds me of Sam.