Category Archives: 2026:Madagascar

Kirindy – From Dusk till (After) Dawn

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After a short break at the hotel, we made our way to the Kirindy Forest Reserve for a night walk, hoping to catch a glimpse of some of its nocturnal residents.

Walking through the forest after dark certainly has its own appeal. With torches illuminating only small patches of the surroundings, every movement in the undergrowth attracts attention. We did manage a few animal sightings along the way, although they were somewhat outnumbered by another species: Homo sapiens.

The following morning we were back in the forest, this time in daylight. And this turned out to be the more rewarding of the two walks. We got closer to the animals and had some nice sightings, including plenty of sifakas, other lemur species and iguanas.

The morning light also made it considerably easier to appreciate the animals and their surroundings – and (obviously) to take photographs.

All in all, the morning walk was the better experience for me. Despite the crowds and the occasional photographic arms race, Kirindy had delivered some interesting wildlife encounters and offered another glimpse into Madagascar’s extraordinary animal kingdom – though not a single vampire and only imaginary penguins.

The rest of the morning and the early afternoon were ours – taking a break, reading a book or having a quick jump into the pool – before heading out for a baobab-heavy afternoon and evening.

Back on the “Road” – Heading to Kirindy

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Two days among the Tsingys were behind us, and we were heading south again. Today’s destination was the Kirindy Forest Reserve, roughly 150 km away. Not a particularly long distance on paper, but we already knew what that meant in western Madagascar.

We retraced our route from Monday in reverse: dusty tracks, bumpy roads and two river crossings by ferry. We made it to Kirindy and the hotel close to the forest reserve in the late afternoon.

A day without any major adventures (so far) – at least by the standards of the past few days. But then, we were now in a completely different environment, and the next part of the program promised some interesting encounters with Madagascar’s wildlife. In fact, we were about to head straight out into the forest for a first look after dark.

Exploring “Town” – Day & Night Edition

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There was still time after our return from our hike in the Small Tsingys. I decided to join some fellow travelers for a walk into Bekopaka village for a bit of an exploration. Calling it a town would probably be stretching things a little, but it certainly offered a glimpse of everyday life in this remote corner of Madagascar.

We wandered past the local school, churches, small shops and restaurants, watching the village go about its business. Nothing particularly spectacular, but sometimes these little detours offer a more interesting insight into a place than another organized sightseeing stop. Naturally, there was also time for a drink (in my case a whole 1.5l bottle of water) along the way before heading back to the hotel.

Here something special was waiting: a terrace facing the setting sun overlooking the surrounding jungle – and a show with the sky slowly changing colors above the seemingly endless greenery. One of those moments when you simply sit back and enjoy the view.

Our pre-dinner excursion followed – and turned out a bit underwhelming. We were heading out for a short walk in the vicinity of the village, hoping to spot some of the local nocturnal wildlife. Madagascar has plenty of interesting creatures that only come out after dark, so expectations were reasonably high.

Unfortunately, the experience turned out to be something of a camera-lens competition. Whenever a maki or chameleon was spotted, an ever-growing collection of camera lenses appeared around it, all desperately trying to get the perfect shot in the dark. At times, it was difficult to see what all that photography equipment was pointed at.

Three horses and a nice vegetarian lasagna later, things looked bright again – putting me into the right mood for the adventure to come tomorrow.

The “Road” to Bekopaka

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Today was all about getting to Bekopaka, our starting point for exploring the Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park. A jeep trip of roughly 210 km was ahead of us – with most of the route consisting of unpaved tracks. Two ferry river crossings added to the adventure.

About an hour into the drive we had a first quick stop at the Avenue of the Baobabs – a short stop for a daytime opportunity to take photos of these impressive trees. The famous sunset experience had to wait for later in the trip.

Around midday we reached the Tsiribihina River for our first ferry experience – vehicles are driven onto fairly basic floating platforms, which then make their way across the river. On the other shore the town of Belo-Tsiribihina was waiting with a surprisingly good lunch at the Mad Zebu restaurant. Odd name for a restaurant (would you go for a Mad Cow restaurant in the UK?) – the food, though, was almost at fine-dining level. A vegetarian dish featuring a poached egg on vegetables was certainly not what I expected halfway through a long day on dusty tracks in western Madagascar. A welcome interruption to the journey!

After lunch it was back to the road – and by the time we reached the second crossing, dusk was already setting in. We reached our hotel just after dark and after a full day on the road.