Swan Lake and Iris Gardens

Another thing we did with our most recent family visitors was to go to the Swan Lake and Iris Gardens.  There were probably several hundred swans of at least eight different kinds.  There were an amazing number of black swans, white swans, white swans with black necks, and others of a variety of sizes.

As we were in the first part of the lake, the more primitive, out-there swampy part, Dear One pointed up at two swans who had just picked up off the water and started flying away.  He raised the question about how "they" were able to keep the swans in the lake area.  A little later we ran into a park ranger who told us that there were only two swans who could actually fly.  We had already seen them and did not know it was an unusual thing to see flying swans at this park!

We saw signs like this one that I thought were rather entertaining...

This reminded me of a time when I was a little girl on the farm in South Royalton.  We had many different animals on the farm.  At one time we had at least one goose.  We could have benefited from a sign similar to the one above!

One day I was walking in the dooryard and that big old goose came out of nowhere and bit me rather sharply on the big soft behinder part of my body!  My father happened to be near by and, with a loud voice and waving arms, shouted, "Hee-yar!!"  The goose must have read the handwriting on the wall because he ran/flew off down the road.  The last time I saw him, he was flying low over the Cross Lots Pasture!

No, I don't remember ever seeing him again.  I also don't remember if we had a large roast "chicken" some time later...