Falierana

We got an early start to fetch Ali and head to the primary forest in Mantadia.

Inconveniently, the ticket office opens at 7AM (ish) so our early start was foiled. But we grabbed our guide (whose name I did not write down and have forgotten) and headed up the 18km (11 mile) rough double-track road to one of the last chunks of virgin rain forest in Madagascar. (90% deforestation. Awful)

Along the way we stopped to enjoy some Indri Indri calls (which are amazing) then watched some really rambunctious bamboo lemurs hopping through the bamboo.

As we got near our trailhead, we took a quick detour to find a pygmy kingfisher (bird). It is small, reddish, beautiful, endemic to Madagascar, in danger of extinction, and generally considered a prize amongst birders. Having the right guide helps... We found the bird in mere minutes.

Having spiffy binocs also helped. I'm very happy to have them.

We tromped through rugged forest terrain for a few hours, spotting birds and bugs and lemurs like crazy. Today's cast of characters includes the Indri Indri (vid of their call, attached), the Bamboo Lemur, the Red Bellied lemur, and the Black & White Lemur. I've mostly stopped taking photos as they really aren't good on a phone (at a distance), and professional photos are easy to find online.

We wrapped the day by taking a swim in an idyllic waterfall pool after seeing some more beautiful birds (including the Paradise Flycatcher).

I dozed lightly as we bumped along the sunny road, spotted a chameleon or two, and generally enjoyed the natural beauty of the landscape.

Tomorrow I'm off to the coast.Read more