Egrets hunting

Several egrets appear to have constructed nests along the Beaver River that runs through the valley 

below my home.  Nearing the river yesterday just before the bridge, I saw the one in the top photograph

 hunting. As I looked more closely I saw another. However when I got out of my car, the furthest one flew 

away and I missed the photo of it in flight.

I went onto the bridge and caught the second photo and was amazed to see a number of egrets

 further along behind the one in the forefront.

I missed shots of a great blue heron and another bird which looked like a cormorant but was blue backed - the light perhaps shining off its feathers?

What I noticed most though was the quiet and the peace. The river flowed quickly in the centre, current readily visible, but except for the occasional call of a bird, a couple of grackles - one feeding another possibly a youngster on a log at the river's edge,  there was quiet. I could have been a million miles from civilization. The swamp takes on an eerie look in mid-summer with algae collecting at the edges but it was the peace, the feeling of being part of something very special that will stay with me for a long time.