22 October 2013. Carrolls Bay Hamilton ON. Between obligations of a volunteer nature, I made an unplanned and spontaneous stop at a lookout, which in past years was celebrated as a great place to watch the fall hawk migration. I don’t think its any less good now than it was back then; it’s just that it’s just become forgotten. What makes it so great is that it’s a bit of a funnel for migrating birds. Located along the north shore of Lake Ontario on the west side of a smallish inlet, you can stand on one side with a commanding view over the inlet and watch the other side for approaching hawks and eagles.
I happened to be driving not far from this lookout, aware that many southbound Turkey Vultures were sailing through when a large apparently all-black bird with enormous plank-like wings wheeled low over and behind my moving car, I knew then that I had to set aside all the other stuff I was doing and pay more attention. I hung a quick U-turn, parked in a hurry, grabbed binoculars and hurried to the lookout; making myself comfortable, I scanned the opposite horizon.
Soon I spotted an adult Bald Eagle soaring around the inlet. Was this the large apparently all-black bird I’d seen? Maybe, or what if I’d seen a Golden Eagle? – I’ll never know! In any event the bird I was now watching was magnificent in its own right. Then, as if to compete, a late migrating Osprey circled the other way around and eventually landed somewhere on the opposite shore. Sharp-shinned Hawks, a Coopers Hawk and some Red-tailed Hawks appeared over the distant treetops, grew closer and eventually sailed overhead. It was getting good but I have to say not quite the blockbuster cascade of migrants that I’d anticipated. 
My Wow! moment came just before I left when I saw the Bald Eagle again, it rose from the far side of the inlet this time carrying a large fish. I’ll admit that at first I thought it was the Osprey (well the light was funny – or something like that), but it was dangling the fish rather casually, not gripping it in the tidy, two-handed, head forward, style that an Osprey would use; that struck me as odd. But as it turned and I could see it better I realized my mistake. It flew around for a long time dangling the fish, seemingly disinterested in settling down for a lakeside meal; fresh cold fish – yum! Then some minutes later the Osprey circled back into my field of view such that I could see both birds at once. Clearly the Bald Eagle was dangling the fish in a taunting ‘Who’s-catching-the-best-fish-today-then’ show. I left them to it, satisfied with this impromptu hawk watching half-hour, satisfied that I hadn’t missed too much.
And by the way a Coopers Hawk is a pretty darn good sighting too, even if not quite bird of the day.