For several years now I have taken part in the midwinter bald eagle survey, hosted by Vermont Audubon. I have had the same route each time–the Winooski River from Waterbury to Lake Champlain. There are over a dozen spots along the river I can stop and scan for eagles, and of course I scan for them from the car when I can. I did see eagle this year, soaring over the river in Jonesville. Along the way I took photos of the river, so here is my 2025 Winooski River portrait.
Yesterday I volunteered to look for eagles for Vermont Audubon’s annual eagle survey. My route is the Winooski River, from Waterbury to Lake Champlain. I did see two Bald Eagles, one immature in Williston and one fully mature in Essex. There have been years when I have seen none, so this was a success. It was cold, in the twenties, with a light wind, and a recent coating of snow. I saw some remnants of flooding this fall–plastic jugs half full of oil, lots of branches and leaves, even a complete futon frame. There were a couple of locations I could not go to, closed due to flooding damage, but mostly I had a full survey. Along the way I took a portrait of the river.
Yesterday I participated in the annual Midwinter Bald Eagle Survey. My route was the Winooski River, from Waterbury to Lake Champlain. I have surveyed this route several years now. While I did not see even one eagle, I did get to see the river in winter.
Last year the day was warm and there was much less ice. Yesterday I started with single-digit temperatures. By the time I was finished in the early afternoon the temperature was considering hitting 20, but had not yet decided.
Here is my portrait of the Winooski River for January 2022.
I took part in the mid-winter Bald Eagle survey today. Yesterday was the target day, but I have been out of commission with a cold for a week. I tried to go into work on Wednesday, but I left early. I felt like garbage. I stayed out the next two days. Today, finally, I felt OK. Yesterday I was on the mend but I am glad I rested.
I saw zero Bald Eagles. There were not a lot of birds out in general. The day started at -6º Fahrenheit. It got as low as -9º. It was 11:00 before I saw the thermometer rise into positive territory. Our high was 13º. I guess the eagles were not interested in the cold. As I have the past two years, I took photos along the way. Here is my Winooski River portrait for this cold day.
Yesterday I participated in the Winter Bald Eagle Survey. My route was the Winooski River, from Waterbury to Lake Champlain. While I did not see any eagles, I got to see the river in its winter splendor. It was cold. The day started at 3 below zero and got all the way up to 6 degrees. Here is the Winooski River as I saw it yesterday.
Just after sunrise in Waterbury
Winooski Street Bridge, Waterbury
Deforge Hyrdoelectric Dam. Note the ice after high water earlier in the week.
From the Long Trail access point, Duxbury
Long Trail footbridge
From Jonesville bridge
Warren and Ruth Beeken Rivershore Preserve
Town park, Richmond
Near Fontaine Canoe Access, Williston
Overlook Park, Williston
Woodside Park, Colchester. The river is under all that ice.
Winooski River Walk, Winooski
Winooski, Vermont
Flooded fields at Ethan Allen Homestead
From the bike path bridge as the Winooski River ends at Lake Champlain
Yesterday I volunteered for the second time for the Mid-Winter Eagle Survey. My route was the Winooski River, from Waterbury to Lake Champlain. I stopped at several spots along the river, crisscrossing and paralleling as I went. Unlike last year, this year I did see one Bald Eagle, perched overlooking the mouth of the river. Like last year, I took photos as I went. Here is my January 2017 Winooski River Portrait:
River’s edge, Waterbury, Vermont
Winooski Street Bridge, Waterbury, Vermont
Bolton/Duxbury Dam
Duxbury, from Long Trail next to Winooski River
View of Winooski River from Long Trail Bridge
Pancake ice
Common Merganser, seen from Jonesville Bridge
From Warren and Ruth Beeken Rivershore Preserve
Looking west from Volunteers Green in Richmond, Vermont
Discarded television, Williston, Vermont
View of Winooski River from Woodside Park, Colchester, Vermont
Winooski, Vermont
Ice at Ethan Allen Homestead, Burlington, Vermont
Bald Eagle looking out over Winooski River and Lake Champlain
I recently volunteered for the Midwinter Bald Eagle Survey. The target date was today so I headed out early to look for our national bird. My route was the Winooski River, from Waterbury to Lake Champlain. This is a pretty long route and it meant lots of planning to figure out which spots I could stop along to river to try to find eagles. I ended up stopping at 14 points along the river. I saw no eagles. I did, however, get to see a lot of the river.
The day was cloudy, just above freezing, with snow showers and rain showers and a mix falling briefly. Following is a January portrait of the Winooski River, or, at least, part of the Winooski River. It was beautiful. I was lucky to get to see so much of it in one day.
Waterbury, from River Road
Waterbury, at Winooski Street Bridge
Bolton Dam
Long Trail Bridge, Duxbury to Bolton
Jonesville
Richmond, from Beeken Rivershore Preserve
Richmond
Williston, North Williston Road Bridge
Essex, from Woodside Park
Colchester, from Burlington bike path
Winooski River flowing into Lake Champlain
Mercury on the Move 