The day started with breakfast overlooking the Mozambique Channel:
Whilst the big events are the focus of travelling – the small moments are often just as enjoyable 🙂
First stop was the Avenue of Baobabs (“baobab” is pronounced with two syllables) – we’re visiting twice more, so just some photos to give a sense of these majestic trees:
Kirindy Reserve is actually privately owned. It’s original purpose was the sustainable “harvesting” of trees, but wildlife here is abundant and that’s the main draw for tourists.
Everyone else was in a shiny new 4×4. Ours was a banger – the bonnet had to be opened to start the thing, the windows were controlled by opening the driver door and fiddling with something electrical on the inside, the passenger door didn’t close unless you slammed it from the outside. And just forget about the dashboard. Luxury it was not.
But Alain took it all in his stride, as well as the flat tyre and the attempt to rescue another vehicle stuck in a large puddle:
The route took us through a dry, arid landscape – and, interestingly, the locals have noticeably darker skin here:
And tribal villages that were more primitive than previously, with smaller houses and no electricity:
At Kirindy Lodge (where electricity is only available between 10am and 2pm and then 6 – 10pm) we shared our room with two lizards:
And later that day, two lizards mated outside our bungalow. It felt slightly too voyeuristic for comfort:
We were soon treated to one of the main reason for our visit: fossa. Seemingly 75% cat (walking, posture, body) and 25% dog (face and lying position), they’re the main predator of lemurs:
Now *that* is what you call a night walk. Not only did it involve no bait whatsoever, it increased my wildlife tally by one grey mouse lemur:
One nocturnal sportive lemur:
One western fat-tailed dwarf lemur:
One fork-marked lemur:
A hibernating oustalet’s chameleon:
A lizard:
A gecko:
A massive spider:
And a cat-eyed snake:
A very satisfying day indeed.