Playing Tourist, Volume 2 AND.....a New Bird Sighting

My cousin and I tried to take in some of the local flavor during her recent visit.  We have a business near us that is located in an old grist mill.  Silver Lake Mill is a really unique stop.  First of all, there is the custom decorative business.  You can tour the upper levels of the building two days/week.  Not only can you get an inside view of how they operate, but you can see the original structure of the grist mill.  Secondly there is a gift shop on the main floor.  They sell handmade items from local artisans as well as factory seconds and overruns of their own items.  And thirdly, there is the setting itself.  The mill sits on Silver Lake which is home to a family of swans.  This year the swan couple had one brood of five eggs, three of which hatched and two of which still survive.  You can watch the swans from the windows of the mill.  The workers take special interest in the swans and other wildlife around them.  They showed us pictures that they took of the eggs, the newly hatched swans and the slightly older young swans. They even brought the third baby swan to the vet when it was clear that he needed some attention.  In addition there is a family of store cats that live in the mill.  Someone has written a few children's books about the cats.  They're for sale in the store.

After we shopped a bit we walked around the outside to see the water wheel and got a rare treat!  We saw an immature green heron fly into the wheel (It wasn't running).  I've done my best to enhance this picture, but it's still pretty difficult to see, so the second picture is there to show you what it really looks like:

I always get a thrill out of seeing a new bird for the first time!