Mentioning how well the vegetable garden was coming along in the last blog was definitely tempting fate. Woke up a couple of mornings later to find that most of the beds had been completely eaten and the rest thoroughly stomped on. During the night a big male Sambar had found his way onto the property […]
Dressed for action by 11:30am, light weight trousers, tee shirt, wide brimmed hat, walking stick (should be light, strong and just reach the bottom of your rib cage), trainers with a very good grip, pocket full of peanuts and an orange. Head out the main gate and turn left, setting a brisk walking pace. […]
This was supposed to be about the Gaddi Shepherds, who arrived back to Basunti three days ago, after an absence of nearly two years. I was hoping to get some photographs of them in traditional dress, leading the mixed flock of goats and sheep across the meadows. Went down this morning to find the […]
Decided to harvest the two beds of Chillies in the garden, as the evenings are starting to get quite cool and it is a good time to cut the plants back before mulching them in for the winter. Had a really good crop this year, with over six Kilos of Red Chillies and about […]
Just another sunny November day at Basunti – Poinsettia and Bougainvillea coming into full bloom and Black Redstart, Great Tit, Oriental White-eye and Himalayan Bulbul taking a bath.
Andy Fish and Andy arrived after a very successful fishing trip in the Barot and Tirthan valleys, Himachal Pradesh. A tally of over eighty wild Brown and Rainbow Trout, caught in five days, made for two very happy fishermen. As the water levels have started to drop in the lake, they decided to try […]
The day starts for me at 5:30 with a large mug of tea, which I drink on the Gate House veranda.it starts to get light at about 5:40 and I wait, with mug in hand, for the morning show.
The Basunti Babblers are a troupe of eleven adult birds. They are a bit […]
The monsoon seems to be coming to a close, as we have had no rain for the last five days and every morning starts with bright blue skies and stays hot and sunny. The pool at this time really comes into its own, nothing like an evening swim with a chilled glass of white, while […]
Monsoon rains normally start at Basunti in mid to late June with fairly light rains, developing into heavy downpours in July and possibly early August. By the end of August, the rains would subside, followed by the classic, glorious Indian summer months of Sept/Oct/Nov; Bright, clear sunny days, with cool nights, truly idyllic weather that […]
It is bone dry Himachal Pradesh and most of the day at Basunti is now spent in the garden. The Monsoon is late this year and everything is desperate for water. The Indian Bean Tree though loves the heat and is presently in full bloom.
This is the time the Mango starts ripening and […]
