The Old Svalich Road transitions here from being a winding path through the Balinok Mountains to a lazy trail that hugs the mountainside as it descends into a fog-filled valley. In the heart of the valley you see a walled town near the shores of a great mountain lake, its waters dark and still. A branch in the raod leads west to a promontory, atop which is perched a dilapidated stone windmill, its warped wooden vanes stripped here.The Old Mill was once owned and operated by the Durst family from the Village of Barovia. In the centuries since Strahd's victory over the dusk elves, the mill fell to ruin, eventually picking up the moniker Old Bonegrinder after a coven of witches used the mill to produce dream pastries made from the bone flour harvested from Barovian children. Morgantha, the head of the coven, usually takes her cart of pastries around the valley to those who cannot resist the effects of the pastries. In desperate times, pastry addicts have willingly traded children for a quick dose.
The four ancient stones near the windmill were erected centuries ago by the valley's original inhabitants. Each moss-covered stone bears a crude carving of a city, each of which is associated with a different season. The city of winter is shown with snow, the city of spring is arrayed with flowers, the city of summer has a sunburst overhead, and the city of autumn is covered with leaves. Several ravens circle overhead, and one peaks at something on top of the stone that depicts the city of autumn. The mysterious stones are said to boost magical ability.
Morgantha's coven has been making dream pastries for years. In order to make dream pastries, they kidnap children and make devious trades with locals in order to receive children in payment. They take the children and keep them in cages until they can be ground into bone powder. The powder has been said to produce euphoria and vivid dreams. Elizana and Safzira ate dream pastries without realizing what they were made of.
After the Sunseekers were tricked into bringing children from St. Andral's orphanage to the Old Mill, they came to the Mill demanding blood. They rescued all but one of the children, but they took their sweet time holding down Ophelia, a Mill witch, and grinding her face into the large Mill until there was nothing left of it. Morgantha arrived to the fight late and turned the Sunseekers into rats, but not before they had burned down the Old Mill entirely.
