Madagascar07

A dream fulfilled! In autumn 2007, courtesy of some time off from our employer, we were finally able to visit the fabled island of Madagascar, in peak wildlife season, just at the end of the dry season.

We decided early on not to do this trip independently, as we had read some horror stories about birding crews missing out on a lot of endemics, and having all kinds of administrative and logistical problems. We considered all the big and many smaller outfits, and eventually settled on Rockjumper, a small South African company, whose itinerary was clearly the fullest on offer, and who had a good reputation with various of our worldwide contacts.

The logistics were completely smooth, largely as a result of the superb ground agent work of Fano Mezana (and his trainee, Solo Herivelona). Our leaders, Glen Valentine and Rainer Summers, were as enthusiastic as advertised, and we had a great time birding with them.

All the hotels were comfortable and more than adequate: some were simply superb, others a bit more 'characterful', but we were well looked after. The food was good throughout: another Malagasy myth exploded!

Transport on land was in spacious midi-buses. The roads were either good and empty, or appalling. The Berenty stretch will stick in our minds (and spines) for many years.

We took a total of six internal flights - again, Fano's superb organisation made the whole thing utterly slick and unproblematic. Boat trips: fun, but sometimes nerve-wracking....!