Feeding the Osprey

Yesterday was a beautiful day on the beach and the fishing was okay -- if you like catching Blues.  Another equipment failure resulted in a fairly nice looking fish to escape my cooler.  I was fishing the same hole short of the sandbar where I caught that nice Flounder the other day and I was using the same rig I had caught him on.  This time, the snap on the end of the mono leader was torn open and the fish splashed out of the water just at the edge of the sandbar and got away with my little finger mullet and the hook.  Of course, it didn't help that I had my big surf casting rod in my right hand tending to some bites on it and it slowed me from getting the smaller rod into my left hand as the pole was being doubled over by the fish.  Just cleaned both reels the evening before and the drag was set loose enough -- I thought.  I checked it twice after the fish got away and still think it should have released some line.

Disappointing at best, and since I was down to just a few Mullet, I decided to put away the big rod and just continued fishing with the smaller rod.  As low tide settled out and the waters became shallower, I decided to move farther off the point and stopped at another exposed sandbar where I walked out to fish from there -- some distance from my Jeep parked on the beach.  Another angler came by attempting to get some Mullet with his casting net but, had no luck.

Soon thereafter, I caught another decent Blue and decided to just throw him up on the sandbar after getting him unhooked rather than taking the time to walk back and throw him in my cooler.  A couple minutes after getting more bait on my hooks, two seagulls popped down on the sandbar a short distance from the flopping Blue.  Then, out of the sky this big Osprey dropped down and planted its talons into the Blue and took off over the water as the seagulls tailed him (probably hoping the Osprey would drop the fish).  I noticed the feather that the Osprey dropped and stuck it into my pocket (didn't have my camera there either).

A short time later, after losing a couple more fish and the rest of my bait, I headed back to the Jeep for some artificial bait (Fish Bites) and brought back another Blue from the cooler -- tossed it onto the sandbar about where I had dropped the other Blue.  A few minutes later, another Osprey dropped out of the sky and buried its talons into the dead Blue and took off with it firmly in its grasp.  As I readied myself to leave, I dug out the two remaining fish in the cooler (one Blue and one Whiting) and deposited them on the sandbar -- saved me from having to clean them and two more meals for the sharp-eyed birds of prey.  Beautiful birds.  Would hate to have them plant those talons in me --  guess they enjoyed the fish.  Maybe they will be looking for me to return today (if only the rain would stop).