Yesterday I was guiding a husband and wife pair of fly anglers. All was going well a few fish had been captured but nothing remarkable. As I was working the boat around the outside of a flat so that they could fish the dropoff a loon appeared about 10 feet from the boat. Not at all concerned with us or the boat and close enough that the red eyes were quite visible. Not unusual and I frequently have them come close not far from that spot when I am fishing for perch on a family fishing trip
The conversation turned to the loon and the stories we have all heard of loons taking trout from fishermen on the remote ponds in Northern Maine. I mention frequently having them come near the boat looking for a fish that has been injured or even slightly disoriented after being caught.
In that second a fish takes the fly that had been offered on the other side of the boat from the loon. We are in about 3 feet of water so I can see pretty well even in the brown stained water. The second the fish is on the line and moving erratically the loon passes under the boat and straight to the fish in the blink of an eye. Quickly deciding that this was not the fish he or she had in mind for breakfast.
The thing that saved the entire scenario; the fish was a little over 4 pounds, much too big for a loon to take or even eat if he managed to get it off of the line and kill it. Interesting for sure and not the sort of loon encounter I am planning to repeat. You just never know what will happen next!
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