17th February2010: Fraser's Hill

Our annual Chinese New Year trip to Fraser's Hill got off to a spectacular and potentially dangerous start, about 3 km before reaching the Gap Rest House, from where the road leads up to the hill resort. As we were negotiating the winding road up the valley, the unmistakable shape of a Helmeted Hornbill appeared above us. I immediately slewed off the road - fortuitously there was a verge at that point - and fished my camera out of the back seat.



The bird with a beautiful back end and an ugly front end! Helmeted Hornbills are about the most difficult hornbill to photograph, so I was quite pleased with the few shots it let me take before flying off deeper into the forest.



On the point of take-off. Big isn't he!






















"Beautification" work continues at the Gap, with a crass and totally superfluous suspension bridge now slung across the gully in front of the guest house, which is still - 3 years on - undergoing 'renovations'. The bamboo was flowering, but Black-crested Bulbuls were the only birds brave enough to put up with the noise of the generator.





Who knows?! Some very pale-rumped swiftlets viewed from High Pines. Germain's are the common lowland species; it seems odd if these are also Germain's over montane forest - but then it's probably not so far as the swiftlet flies from the nearest lowland swiftlet hotel.



On our first day we were greeted in the afternoon with the first rain they'd had for over a week!