Pond Digging Time

Although it doesn't look like much what we have here is the Lantau equivalent of the Peckham Spring! (a la only fools and horses).
It actually is a natural spring and the water seeps out of the rock face.
This pond was about 1 foot deep with about 2 feet of thick mud.
After tipping the water out with buckets and having our toes bitten by the fresh water crabs, some of which were a fair old size we got down to the gloop.  A few hours later and the pond is as close to its original shape as we can figure.  There are four more ponds to sort out!!!!!!

And what we have here is the newly cleared stream bed at the bottom of the garden.   Thank you Mr. Government for doing this for us!    Next some gabion walls to stop the sides collapsing, a little bit of digging and hey presto we should have a fully functioning stream.

Man Kok Tsui towards Hong Kong

Heard some sad news today.    A work pal in UK on his way home from work had to learn from his daughter that his wife was gone.  He had spoken to her on the phone earlier in the afternoon and everything was normal.  By the time he reached home his whole world had been turned upside down.  I cannot imagine how he and his children must be feeling.   How would I cope if it were to happen to me?   I have absolutely no idea.   I just know I would be devastated as I am sure he is today.    

How is it and what is it that makes some people tick along I wonder?   The proud gent in the pictures is in his nineties, yes, nineties and just keeps on trucking.   He lives a simple life and always has a smile and time for anyone who cares to give him time.  He clambered into the boat from the pier virtually unaided and was telling jokes and larking about with the boys as the boat bounced over the waves.  Where is he going?   To his younger sister's funeral.   OK he's a bit mutt and jeff but other than that he's as fit as a fiddle.   It all makes me wonder about what is actually important and what is just irrelevant.   Be brave Jonny!




  

Neolithic stoneware fragments

How exciting, a few months ago the boys appeared with some pieces of broken pottery that they had found in the sand down on the beach.   We never gave them much thought except agreeing that they were quite unusual.   In fact we just let the boys play with them and then left them on a shelf.   Anyhow, curiosity got the better of me and after a little bit of research on the internet I discovered some archaeological reports of an archaeology  dig done in the 1960s by HK University and blow me, there are pictures of nearly identical pieces of pottery found in Man Kok Tsui that were dated back to the late Neolithic and Bronze ages.   That means the boys have stumbled across pottery that is some three or four thousand years old!!!   Any one know what we should do with the pieces we have found?

Percy Thrower shows off the garden

River Silver (Mui Wo)

A quick walk around the garden in Man Kok Tsui, before the typhoon came along.

Typhoon Signal 10 and Eagles

A real bumpy night of wind and rain.   Trees down all over the shop in the morning.   The tide was surging too.   Luckily Man Kok Tsui seemed to weather the storm and the beach remained intact.   Last time the beach was trashed and covered in debris.   I suppose this time the winds must have been from another direction.   5 in the afternoon and not much happening but by midnight it was a very different place.

When Nuch and I took the boat round to Man Kok Tsui to check the house we counted six or seven kites soaring over the headlands.   As we looked closer we noticed the birds seemed to keep diving down onto a slightly larger bird with broader, wider and fingered wings and a distinctly rounded tail.  The bigger bird seems to be about 25% bigger than the kites.  The kites seemed to line up and take turns to mob the bird, occasionally locking talons and tumbling over and over before letting go.    Too far away to properly ID I guess it was a stranger to the shores that had been blown off course by the typhoon winds that had swept up from the Philippines.

Matthew turns 7

   
A birthday celebrated with a party on the beach is always fun, especially when there is an home made cream cake involved.   How we managed to serve it up without sand in every mouthful is beyond me.   Succeed we did though.   The cake was gone in less than five minutes; his new bike we hope, will not be so quick to disappear!  It is hard to imagine that seven years ago, on 4th July, we (that is Nuch and I were getting a free helicopter ride to the hospital.)   

Black Drongo

Yesterday spotted a fine black drongo.  The first I have clearly been able to see the elongated tail feathers.   I first noticed it as it flew up to an overhead cable, its tail feathers seemed to bounce along behind it.

News snake sighting

Over at Mui Wo I was lucky to meet my first Copperhead racer snake.  Alerted by our neighbor who was franticly ringing our doorbell .  I eventually worked out what was wrong when the snake made a dash for freedom by zooming off towards the undergrowth from its hiding place behind the plant pots.   I guess it was between 1 and 1.5m long and its markings were clear and bright.   The dark stripes down its sides were in high contrast to its lighter shade skin.  Although not venomous the snake is known to be quick to strike out in defense.   The photo below is not the actual snake but lifted from the internet.

Helicopter action on the beach

We had some excitement on the beach today. A Government Flying Service helicopter appeared hovering over the beach and then lowered down three crew members who then uplifted our neighbour to hospital. The old fellah was in a bad way and looked quite unwell. Although apparently this si not his first helicopter journey and according to some, it will not be his last!

And even more

And more

More from Henry

Henry's holiday in Hong Kong 2012

Henry's pictures

Sweet corn all planted

More bugs and lizards at Man Kok Tsui

Lantern Bug

Lantern Bug

Lantern Bug

Paris Peacock Butterfly

Gecko Chinensis

Gecko Chinensis

Spring is definitely in the air.   A magnificent buzzard was patrolling the hillsides, occasionally calling and then dropping down like a stone.   Not sure if it was displaying / trying to impress a mate but it was great to watch.  Alas no photos though.

The butterflies were definitely out in force.  These two certainly had things on their mind as they got down to business in the bushes.  The photo does not really do their colours justice.   Brilliant greens.

Meanwhile down in the fruit trees we discovered the branches to be literally crawling with these horny critters. Apparently folklore dictates anyone bitten by one of these will die unless they have sex within 24 hours.   Will report back tomorrow.   In fact they do not bite and the strange shape is their mouth that they use to suck spa from lychee and longan trees.

Then my instant tattoo appeared.   The gecko was lucky to live as I first thought I had a cockroach on my leg or some other less attractive beasty and just managed to stop myself swatting it.

Changeable Lizard

Changeable Lizard on guard at the vegetable patch

Nature spotted recently

Over Christmas we made a trip to Cheung Chau.   As we were sat on the seafront, minding our own business and watching the fishing crews sort out their nets we saw five or six kites wheeling around and diving down to pick up scraps floating in the harbour.  Nothing new there except for the arrival of a very sleek falcon that  seemed to be joining in the fun too.   It was too far away to identify it properly.   It was obviously smaller than the kites by about 25% or so and had the classic falcon wings but with a rather long and squarely shaped tail.

(June 25th - Now after much trawling of bird books and silhouette images, I am pleased to say the bird was or was probably an Eastern Marsh Harrier.   Another first for me too.)

Out at Man Kok Tsui on New Years Day we watched a large and powerful bird of prey cruising the updrafts from the hill sides.  Square winged with fingered feathers and a wide rounded tail.  Alas, again it was just a silhouette and we had no way of sizing it against other birds but it was certainly large and soured perfectly.

Over on the Mui Wo side we were treated to a great daytime view of a Muntjak deer that had wandered out onto the raod from the hillside at Nam Shan.   Somehow, despite the rattling diesel engine of our taxi the deer seemed completely unflustered and after blocking the taxi's path for a few seconds it decided to turn back and calmly sauntered off into the trees.

A splendid example of a red billed blue magpie was seen sunning itself in the treetops in the Tung Chung Road pass between Lantau Peak and Sunset Peak on Sunday morning and later that same day I spotted a Jay hunting in the treeline at the Western side of the airport (near to the business aviation buildings).
  
 

Looks kinda cute

Our little project!

What on earth is going on?

Sadly our neighbours have decided to make a fish farm at Man Kok Tsui.  The land us is designated as for agricultural purposes only, fish farming not being agriculture noone is quite sure what is going to happen.  Suffice to say there are diggers everywhere and pallets of cement and bricks have been delivered and line up along the beach.  An area of about 500 square meters has been completely flattened, all the trees removed and a huge hole is being dug down into the sand. 

Its a real mess and a real shame, however there is light at the end of the tunnel as yesterday two reporters were on hand taking photos and asking questions.  They told me that they will check the land use carefully before approaching the government to ask what is going on.   If the works are found to be illegal then the work will be stopped and someone will have to put it all back to how it was.   I only hope that the do this quickly.