Day Eight - Journey to Betampona

The taxibrousse arrived almost on time this morning, and it was great to meet Jeff. Although he is fairly new to his post with Durrell he has been involved with several field conservation projects in the past and is a seasoned traveller. He has previously lived in Madagascar and speaks some Malagasy so I felt a little less nervous about our forthcoming journey.

The taxibrousse had certainly seen better days and I hoped it was up to the task! The first stage of the journey was from Ivoloina to Anosibe, a distance of approximately 24km. The road was very rough, with huge potholes. The vehicle broke down twice. Each time the driver took it all in his stride, simply climbing underneath with a length of rope and tying together whichever parts had come adrift. We passed through several villages. It is very humbling to see how people survive this extreme level of poverty. Yet they always seem to be wearing a smile, cheerfully returning our waves and shouting ‘Vazàha!’ as we chug past.
After almost two hours we slowed yet again to a halt, this time in a village. It took a few moments for Jeff and I to realise that we had not broken down again but had actually arrived at Anosibe. Porters jostled for the privilege of carrying our backpacks as we counted out a large wedge of notes to pay the driver. In the distance I could hear the most joyful gospel choir singing as the villagers gathered for Sunday worship.
Although the road continues beyond Anosibe this vehicle could not take us any further because the bridge which used to span the river has long since collapsed. We therefore needed to cross in a pirogue and join another vehicle once on the other side. We slithered down the steep sandy bank to the river. There hadn’t been much rain lately so the water level was low and we had to wade out through the shallows to get to the boat. The vessel was a simple canoe which had been carved from a tree trunk and didn’t seem to be very stable so we climbed in gingerly. There were no seats so we had to crouch in the bottom of the boat, keeping the centre of gravity as low as possible. I kept very still as we were paddled across, the pirogue wobbling precariously from side to side. I certainly didn’t want to be the person responsible for tipping us all in! On reaching the opposite bank we climbed out, paid the porters and scrambled up the bank where we hoped there would be another taxibrousse awaiting us. The MFG office had booked the vehicle in advance as a ‘special’ which should have given us exclusive use. However when we reached the road there were already half a dozen people crammed hopefully in the back. The driver assured us this was the correct vehicle so we shrugged and got in - we didn’t mind sharing.
Our new transport made the previous taxibrousse look like a Rolls Royce! In my misspent youth I used to take part in banger racing and I can honestly say that I have driven cars in demolition derbies that were more roadworthy than this incredible minibus. All the corners were rounded off by previous impacts and there were no lights left at all. A crude roll cage had been bolted together from scaffolding poles. The handbrake was a lump of wood wedged under the rear wheel - the driver’s mate grabbed it then leapt in as we moved off. And the fuel tank was an old plastic five-litre oil can stood behind the driver’s seat:  once he had stowed away the handbrake block the driver’s mate had to crouch alongside the can and hold two plastic pipes in the top. Amazing!

The next road was also in poor condition so the 12km journey to Fontsimavo took almost an hour. We were met there by an official from Madgascar National Parks, who examined our permit and helped us secure the services of a couple of porters for the last leg of our trip. This was to be a 4km hike to the research station at Rendrirendry because there is no road.

4km doesn’t sound far, but by now the sun was high in the sky and I knew that the last part of the walk was a long climb up a very steep hill so it was not going to be a picnic. It started well though - through villages and alongside agricultural land with lovely views on every side. The track was crossed regularly by the meandering Fontsimavo River and we had to wade across it each time.  This was deliciously cooling for hot feet!

Before long we reached the start of the ascent to Rendrirendry. The track seemed never-ending and climbed up and up and up. It was extremely hot and there was no shade and, despite the training I had done over the previous weeks, I got slower and slower. Jeff insisted that we stopped to give me a rest a couple of times and I think the porters were probably thankful for the opportunity to take a break and share our water.

After two hours I felt that I might not be able to make it much further but at that moment we rounded a bend and I could see the vivid hues of an enormous bougainvillea tree ahead. We had arrived at Rendrirendry. Hoorah!
And what a location for a research station! Views across the hills stretched as far as the eye could see and extending across the valley was the precious primary forest of Betampona.
Ingrid hurried over to greet us. We last met at the MFG meeting in Zurich the previous year and it was so lovely to see her again. She made us very welcome and arranged for our bags to be taken to our accommodation while she gave us a tour of the camp. Surrounded by secondary forest there are offices, a simple kitchen, outdoor dining area, bucket showers and bungalows built in traditional Malagasy style from bamboo, wood and ravenala leaves. The view from my veranda took my breath away - right across Betampona. There is a cook - everyone eats together - so I handed over my meagre supplies and had a welcome bucket shower before lunch. The showers are built on concrete bases that originally formed part of the temporary cages from which captive-bred black and white ruffed lemurs had been released into the reserve. The project had been featured in a documentary featuring comedian and lemur-enthusiast John Cleese several years ago. I was showering on a piece of conservation history!
Lunch was rice and vegetables, washed down with vanilla tea. Ingrid told us about some of the radio-collaring of lemurs that she had been coordinating over the past couple of months. We also met PhD student Lana, who is living at Rendrirendry while she carries out her research on the indri and sifaka population in Betampona. An international herpetology team carrying out a reptile survey were also present - they had just spent the first of three sessions camped in the forest and were back at Rendrirendry for a couple of days to catalogue their findings and service their equipment before returning to the reserve for the next stage of their survey.
Some of the MFG team had brought up with them some toys and books for the local village children and during the afternoon these were presented. The children had great fun blowing bubbles and they were very excited by the colourful books. Later that evening it was lovely to see several children sitting on the step of their hut gathered around their mother and sharing a book together.

After supper of rice and vegetables (this was to become a recurring theme) everyone turned in for an early night. Ingrid told us that unfortunately there was a rat problem at Rendrirendry so it looks like sleep may be disturbed by gnawing and scuffling as at Ivoloina. However I was pretty exhausted after today’s trek so I don’t think it will be too much of a problem. Tomorrow we are going into the forest to track lemurs!