After a great visit to Ranomafana National Park and Mount Vatovavy, it was time to leave the rain forest for good. The rest of my trip would take me from the east to the west across the high plateau and to the spiny forest. My next major stop would be to climb Pic Boby in…
Ever since I became hooked on palm trees, one genus instantly became my favorite. That genus was Dypsis and it is located almost exclusively in Madagascar. During my early periods of palm research I would read articles or online posts about about a single mountain in Madagascar that was loaded with amazing palms. Many of these palms…
Having spent the the entire trip down RN7 away from the rainforest, it was time to drop off the high plateau for a few days. Destination? Ranomafana National Park, a place loaded in biodiversity and a must-see location for anyone visiting Madagascar. Ranomafana National Park is made up of 161 square miles of tropical rainforest that is literally located just…
Antoetra is a small village about 40km southeast of Ambositra. It is not a very touristy place due to its remoteness and lack of interest when it comes to wildlife. However, it does get the occasional hiker or person wanting to homestay. My friend Jason (visiting for a week) and I happened upon Antoetra by accident. While in Ambositra and setting…
After saying goodbye to all who attended the International Palm Society’s annual board meeting, it was time to get on a plane and fly back to Antananarivo and start my journey south. Ten days in the rainforest and it was time for a drastic change of scenery. My destination? Mount Ibity—just outside the second largest…
The first part of my month-long trip through Madagascar was spent around Andasibe. I’ve blogged about those four days over the last few weeks here. The second stop of the ten key areas I would visit was to Sainte Marie Island (now known as Nosy Boraha) for the annual Board of Director’s meeting for a non-profit organization I serve on….
My four-day visit to Andasibe was coming to a close. Before the three-hour drive back to Antananarivo to meet up with friends and make a flight to Sainte Marie Isand, I had one more opportunity to trek through the rainforest. This time it would be at the seldom toured Vohimana Reserve—only 12 km east of Andasibe Village down RN2. The Vohimana…
After an amazing visit in the Mantadia National Park the day prior, I awoke early to the sounds of the Common Brown Lemur (Eulemur fulvus) walking outside my bungalow at the Hotel Mikado. What a great way to start my Maromizaha Reserve adventure. I had arrived at the Hotel Mikado at night, so I didn’t see this Dypsis ‘Black Stem’ out…