Many people know to visit Stone Arch Bridge when visiting the Twin Cities. A place that does not get as much attention is Mills Ruins Park right next to the bridge on the south side of the Mississippi River. C and I originally intended to just take a familiar walk on the bridge with Baby Willow, but decided to explore this park first. We are so glad we did.

We saw small birds like: sparrows, robins and goldfinch. We saw honey bees and bumble bees. We even had a small butterfly flutter past us a few times up close. Baby Willow enjoyed seeing the butterfly. There were many native wildflowers reintroduced in the park specifically to encourage pollinators. They were all so busy that I just enjoyed watching them and enjoying the atmosphere.

The park had many views of the former mills and of the Stone Arch Bridge that I had not seen before. Seeing as it was not a large park, we finished our time by walking across the Mississippi River on the bridge and around in a loop. I will confess that a few of the photos were taken from St. Anthony Falls Visitor Center Lock and Dam

Bye for now.