24 August 2025 We head north today to the summer palace of the previous Merina royalty. Drove out on a new section of motorway just opened in the last few days: it just felt wrong with no potholes! Only 8km long - but the political party made big show of opening. Merina Kings and Queens ruled over a large portion of Madagascar from 1540 until 1897 when Madagascar became a French colony. In 1794 King Andrianampoinimerina came into power and wanted to expand the Merina territory right out to … [Read more...]
Day 11: Ifaty – Antananarivo
23 August 2025 We have a late start today so have time for a lie in and leisurely breakfast, time to sort some photos too. When we head out, we see people washing clothes in the field. It seems to be the day for applying beauty masks as we see quite a few of them. There are also lots of loads of charcoal and firewood being taken on bikes and on carts, and stacks of reeds. We learn that the mangroves used to be cut to make charcoal but there is now a reforestation programme. As we head … [Read more...]
Day 10: Ifaty
22 August 2025 We had an amazing early morning 5.45am start today to go to the Reniala Reserve (also known as the Spiny Forest or Baobab Forest). We got there just as the sun was starting to rise and were able to capture wonderful silhouettes of the bizarre plants. Octopus plant - spiny succulent plant endemic to Madagascar's spiny forests. The spines protect the small, succulent leaves; they are well adapted to the arid conditions and during the dry season they shed their leaves to prevent … [Read more...]
Day 9: Isalo – Toliara – Ifaty
21 August 2025 After breakfast we again take the Route Nationale 7 and head towards the port city of Toliara on the southwest coast. On the way we pass through Ilakaka, a small market town of Sapphire diggers. It was a once-booming town that sprang up after large alluvial sapphire deposits were discovered there in the 1990s. Between a 1/3 and 1/2 the world's sapphire production poured out of its soils. But now, the area has fallen on hard times and big stones are few and far between. All … [Read more...]
Day 8: Isalo National Park
20 August 2025 Today we have a hike through Isalo National Park with its stunning landscapes formed during the Jurassic period. The unique flora and fauna here have evolved over time to thrive in this rugged environment. With park ranger Josepha we hike to the top of sandstone formations then down to an oasis; from there we trek along the valley and then down into a wooded canyon. Although it is still quite cool when we reach the starting point, we soon warm up as we climb for the first 20 … [Read more...]
Day 7: Ranomafana – Ambalavao – Isalo
19 August 2025 Today, we leave the lush highlands and head into the dry, semi-desert landscapes of southern Madagascar. Unfortunately as we were packing this morning we discovered that our bags had been rifled through and both of us had had money taken - it must have been while we were out on the night walk as that was the only time we had left our day bags (because it was raining and we didn’t need them). It is testament to how safe we had felt until then that it didn't occur to us to … [Read more...]
Day 6: Ranomafana National Park
18 August 2025 We're up early this morning to explore Ranomafana National Park where our guide (park ranger Serafin), assisted by a lemur spotter, take us on a hike through the lush rainforest. The rainforest is living up to its name today so unfortunately despite a huge range of amazing plants, flowers, fungi and more, my camera only came out for special occasions. The variety of flora and fauna here is truly awe-inspiring: we see so many different species of ferns and orchids just in a … [Read more...]
Day 5: Antsirabe – Ambositra – Ranomafana
17 August 2025 As we noted yesterday, every town seems to have its own craft speciality. Madagascar has lots of unique handicrafts, and in this region often with an eco-friendly twist on recycling. Although today is another long travel day, it is broken up with different visits to see how locals creatively transform materials into art. First up we visit a workshop where the speciality is creating miniature vehicles from recycled materials. An artisan shows us how he makes a bicycle from … [Read more...]
Day 4: Andasibe National Park – Antsirabe
16 August 2025 We leave the rainforest and Andasibe behind this morning, travelling back through Antananarivo. Antananarivo is protected by Angave mountains from east. In east there are several cyclones a year, and they have wooden houses built on stilts to cope with floods. We really notice the difference as we head back over the mountains, it is so much drier. There is also much deforestation and erosion, providing fertile valleys where soil has washed down. On the way, there is a great … [Read more...]
Day 3: Analamazaotra Reserve
15 August 2025 Today we explore the Analamazaotra Special Reserve, once part of the larger Andasibe-Mantadia National Park. This protected forest is home to 108 different species of bird, 14 species of lemur and 84 types of amphibians. We are up early for breakfast and then depart to head back to the National Park to meet guide John again for a 3-4 hour hike to seek lemurs. Along the way he shows us a range of different birds and we see a mouse lemur curled up having a snooze (a better … [Read more...]