Monday, March 28, 2011

Kg. London & Lata Kijang Waterfall, Negri Sembilan

There was an Orang Asli (Aborigine) village in the hills of Negri Sembilan very close to the borders of Selangor and Pahang. It was called Kg. London. The villagers told us someone referred to it as London for unknown reasons and the name stuck.

I made a visit there again yesterday after a long hiatus but things have changed. As we approached the village, there was an eerie absence of human and animal presence that would normally be waiting upon hearing the sound of the rotors slapping. On our overhead pass, there was no sign of life in the village at all leading us to suspect that it had been abandoned.



As we landed, there was none of the usual welcoming village folk. In fact there were none at all!

After shutdown we headed to the village and confirmed that the village had indeed been abandoned for some months.






Later we met some bikers who told that a huge flash flood had cut off their water supply and hence may have forced the villagers to move. Not sure whether they have relocated to the main settlement of Kg. Tohor or some other area. We would need to speak to the locals to get more information.

We moved on to the waterfall. The authorities have put up a sign (somewhere near the village entrance I think) that access to the waterfalls has been closed due to bad road & slope conditions brought on by heavy rains some months ago. We walked to the falls and saw the following:

Part of the 1st hut had been damaged, presumably from the debris that was washed down in the flash flood. This had actually looked like a safe location but against the rage of nature, this was not the case.



The 2nd hut was completely smashed! Looked like it was hit by a falling tree.
I did not proceed further down to inspect the 3rd shelter but it looked intact from the picture.



The debris of rocks and trees that had been washed down.



The falls from the river below.



It was kinda sad but looking at the bright side, the local authorities were planning to make some developments to the area. Perhaps this has thwarted their plans and if so, is a good thing. Nature is best left undeveloped.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Fraser's Hill Shoot: 12-13 March 2011

The Shootroopers' arsenal:
5 dSlrs (4 Canon + 1 Nikon), 1 Rangefinder (Olympus Pen), 1 Canon P&S, 3 smartphones (not in pic)
2x Sigma 150-500mm
1x Canon 100-400mm
1x Canon 100mm Macro
1x Nikon 105mm Macro
2x Tamron 17-50mm Standard
1x Lumix 20mm Pancake lens
1x Lumix 45-200mm
1x Canon 70-300mm
3x Canon Speedlite 580 EX-II
1x Nikon SB-800
3x Manfrotto Tripods (Not in photo)




One of the biggest cicada I have seen in recent memory.
To know more about cicada : http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/bugs/cicada/


Its been a while since I have done macro. Still one of my fave subjects:


Dew on a spider's web in the early morning is so beautiful.


Here are the shootroopers in action. And guess what are they eyeing on?


This is the target of those scary-looking bazookas: The Black-throated Sunbird (M).


The prize bird of the trip: Red-headed Trogon(F)!!!
Such magnificent color. Thanks to the sharp and keen eye of Milo who was in pursuit of a drongo.


The back of the Red-headed Trogon(F).



That's all for this post.
TQ!