What a VT winter will do to a person

Your bird here is showing more white in the wing and underneath than a golden eagle does. It does look good for an osprey though, and they have almost the same wingspan (5ft, vs 6 for an eagle) - very large birds themselves. Golden Eagles trend to travel solo too, tho there are exceptions.

Fantastic sighting! There are only a few thousand golden eagles in eastern North America total. That means your find is an important data point for an uncommon species - please consider submitting this sighting to eBird.org, a open access bird database run by Cornell and used for research projects around the globe.

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As long as you disrobe at home before going out, it's fine

For sure. I didn't mean to imply snowshoers shouldn't ruin tracks. I would just suggest that, in my experience, the best snowshoeing tends to be on trails that aren't mixed use like that, for a variety of reasons.

The flip side for OP is that snowshoeing in heavily skied areas is really just best avoided. Having to jump out of the way to avoid collisions is never fun, it tends to be loud, and finding the actual 'trail' in a heavily skied area can be impossible (while simultaneously trying to dodge skiers).

Same applies for snowmobiles, with the added bonus of them smelling terribly, but you at least tend to hear them coming from far away.

Snowshoeing has slowly become my favorite hiking season over the years. The winter landscape is amazing, and the relative lack of heat, bugs, and crowds really helps. Some random thoughts:

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1. Be safe - winter can be a dangerous time. Snow can obscure trails, and short days mean that it can be relatively easy to get lost and in a somewhat dire spot. Keep an eye on trail blazes, and bring a good emergency kit - headlamp (with lithium batteries that will hold charge in the cold), emergency blanket, whistle, some chemical chest warmers (big hot hands), map and compass or independent GPS unit (cell phones can die quickly in cold - keep them next to your body to hold charge best).
2. I really love my plastic deck MSR snowshoes; they are particularly great for climbing and descending on even somewhat-icy trails. Regardless, you want to decide what kind of hiking you are primarily going to do before you purchase. Long snowshoes will give you more loft and can be fast on flats, but they will be clumsy and awkward on tighter forest trails.
3. On that note, good trails are often the same ones as summer. Camels Hump, for instance, is a wonderful snowshoe. One thing to keep in mind is that it is very different to break a trail vs using one already broken. The heavier-use areas generally get broken out pretty quickly after a fresh snow, but less-used trails might require being broken out fully. Breaking trail is tremendously taxing, and you ideally want a few people to rotate through. Finding trip reports from recent outings on AllTrails, peakbagger, and other northeast hiking forum sites can be very helpful to get a sense of current trail conditions.
4. Climbing in snowshoes is hard work, and you want to bring layers. Managing body temp is as important as anything when you are exerting a lot in cold air. You don't want to work so hard that you are covered in sweat. I regularly climb in winter in a t-shirt. So layering down when moving (particularly climbing) but having warmer layers to put on when cold is pretty handy. Done right, you can balance your body heat with the cold air such that you barely sweat. As someone who naturally runs hot, this is perfect for me.
5. On a related note, you're going to want to take short breaks - it gets cold if you stop too long. Bring easy-to-eat snacks, etc.
6. If you are going to be above treeline, even for just a bit, you will want to have wind-proof layers and a good pair of mittens. A scarf or neoprene face shield can be helpful, too; even goggles in some conditions. On something like Camel's Hump, you could get away without having that, but you will be less comfortable.
7. Wide-mouthed water bottles take longer to freeze over in your pack. Bladders and hoses are tough to keep ice-free and I find generally not worth using in winter. Bottle insulators exist as well, if you are planning for long days.
8. Buy/use gaiters. They are invaluable and a total game changer for keeping snow out of your boots. They will keep you much dryer and warmer. You will want water-proof, insulated boots (but make sure they are for hiking) as well, as the snow will melt and slowly seep in if not.
9. Bring microspikes, too, if you go into mountains. All kinds of frozen spots in trails can become unsafe to navigate in winter. Rescuers in the northeast regularly respond to broken ankles, etc, from falls on ice. Microspikes are incredible, like mini-crampons. And if they trail is firmly broken out already, you can just strap your shoes on your pack and use spikes (though be careful that some places do have local regs requiring snowshoes; high peaks in dacks, for instance).
10. VT has plenty of great stuff, but winter hiking in the White Mtns in NH and high peaks of NY, particularly once you are comfortable above treeline, is really phenomenal.

I'm sorry, but have you ever been there? I've worked backcountry biology jobs in the black hills, and there are old fire areas absolutely everywhere. USFS says they average 99 wildfires per year - that not enough for you?

It's more likely a result of being in an extended La Nina cycle. This is only the third time in the last hundred years that La Nina has gone 3 years. This winter will likely be a bit warm and wet, but the conventional wisdom is that we'll head back into El Nino next year. Not that climate isn't a long-term factor, but variation on the scale of just a few years is generally more attributable to other things.

Very cool! You won't regret it!

They breed in the state, in bogs and higher elevation forests, but their numbers are augmented in winter by birds coming from the north. Their migration was somewhat unknown until just the past few decades. And their feathers glow under a UV light!

Great find! Saw-whets are an amazing little owl and incredibly charismatic. They are also readily captured during migration and are a common research species. I'd encourage folks to check out North Branch Nature Center during their fall saw-whet banding season (unfortunately just wrapped up for 2022). You'll never forget seeing one up close, kids love them, etc

They are a boreal species generally, without long evolutionary history alongside humans and are generally unafraid. At times you can walk up to them and pick them off a branch. When you band them, they will happily pose on your shoulder or top of your head and purr when stroked (ok that last part isn't true). Amazingly charismatic critters