RAH,

I've been there done that. I learned several things about the excavators in my area.

1.) They do a lot of farm related digging as in drainage and perhaps it's easier to get this work done during a drought?

2.) Many in my area do a lot of different types of work as in construction and get tied up in that.

3.) Ponds can be a PITA for them with problems so some shy away from them. Many don't have a clue what a core trench is and get in to trouble for that reason when it comes to ponds.

If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.