Tuesday, October 18: Grand Tsingy Circuit
Today was the big day, where we would finally make Grand Tsingy circuit! It was fitting that our time on the "mainland" would end with one last big hike. This was the one that we'd been waiting for, the hardest hike yet, and we wondered if it would be more than we bargained for.
Because of the very hot weather, we thought that it would be best to get an early start. To start hiking by 8:00, we would need a 6:30 departure from our hotel. That sounds crazy early, but in reality it wasn't bad, because the sun had been rising around 5:00 so we had been getting up early anyway.
Other than the two of us, everyone else had taken it easy yesterday afternoon, so they were mostly ready to head out early. For one of our companions, the hiking had become too much, so she decided to sit this one out.
The pool did look tempting, but this tsingy hike was supposed to be the crown jewel of the trip, so there was no way that we were not going!
The hotel wanted to make us picnic lunches to take along and eat after the hike, but the more we thought about it, the more we thought that it would be a bad idea. In the 90 degree heat, who knows how long the food would last? Plus, if we could get started by 8:00, we could finish by noon and be back for lunch around 1:00. A nice sit-down lunch with wine sounded much better than a sandwich that had cooked in the back seat of the jeep for half the day.
We had a very early and light breakfast and headed out at 6:30, right on target, to try to beat the heat. The road to the Grand Tsingy circuit was just as far as the road to the airport, and it took just about as long to get there. The last few kilometers were slow, as we joined a line of jeeps. We were all going to the same place, so we poked along nose to tail for the last bit. We hoped that it wouldn't be too terribly crowded - at least we didn't see tour buses! Score one for the rough roads.
We arrived, reacquainted ourselves with our guide from yesterday, and put our safety harnesses on. Things were getting serious!
With that out of the way, we grabbed a few liters of water, made a final check of our sunscreen coverage (and bladders), readied our cameras, and were ready to hit the trail.
As we had planned, we started the hike around 8:00. Nice when that works out!
The first third of the hike was through forest, and there were plenty of lemurs to see. There were some with babies, including the Decken’s Sifaka!
This guy did everything he could do so that I couldn't get a good picture. He turned his back to us and hid behind the tree branch, then twisted his neck around to look at us over his shoulder. Pretty comical!
Decken's Sifaka is more common further south, and we weren't sure that we'd see it. It's a big species, and it is most known for how it "dances" instead of walking, when they aren't in the trees. We didn't seem them come down and dance for us, but it was cool to see them nonetheless.
There were some red-fronted brown lemurs as well. Nicely backlit. Better pictures later.
After the forest, we entered the one-way Tsingy circuit. This was a good climb!
Eventually we climbed up on top of the rocks, and continued along the path. Better views here.
Plenty of climbing, ladders, and rock scrambling to be done along the way.
For any particularly challenging ascent or descent, you'd hook one of the clips up to a guiderope. That way, if you slipped, maybe you wouldn't fall all the way down and impale yourself on the rocks.
It was a fair amount of work, and even though it was early, the sun was very hot, and we all worked up quite a sweat.
We didn't rush through it, and we made sure to stop and enjoy the views. Our guide set a good pace.
It was a little crowded in one area where there was a scenic viewpoint, so that was a good place to stop for water while we waited for our turn.
The caribeener that's hooked to my belt clips onto a safety cable that's anchored to a sturdy rock or similar. We didn't test whether it would actually hold our weight if we fell.
All happy and accounted for - at the moment! We still have to cross the big suspension bridge.
Here there was a little wait. The suspension bridge is just over that ridge, and it's one at a time. So we stayed put at the viewpoint until things quieted down.
Chris had the first shot at the bridge. Then I followed. It was a little bit vertiginous! Clip in, hold on, and put one foot in front of the other. And don't forget to breathe.
Made it! Time to catch our breath.
What goes up, must come down. Now there were some tricky descents to negotiate. Chris hooks herself onto the safety rope for this one. It's so steep here that you can't even see the person ahead of you.
A bit of crawling under the rock, into a "cave" with a very low ceiling. Of course, I whacked my head on it. My cap prevented a scalp laceration.
Almost back to the woods.
Another ring-tailed mongoose. He seemed totally unafraid of us. That made me a little nervous. He looked really peeved with us - probably because he expected food.
One last squeeze, and we all made it through intact. Lots to be proud of!
Once the circuit was done, we had to walk back through the forest. This brightly colored bird is a Giant Coua.
The lemurs were still hanging out where we'd left them so we stopped again. This time the lighting was better!
Mom and baby finally gave us a pose out in the open. I can't believe how long their legs are. They look gangly and clumsy but they are really graceful to watch.
Playing shy.
And the red-fronted brown lemurs were posing in a better position too.
Hopefully we didn't get too dehydrated, because no matter how much water we drank, we were still thirsty. As we headed back through the forest, we met several large groups just starting the hike, and we felt sorry for them. It would not have been as fun in full afternoon sun and heat!
Back to the lodge for lunch, which was so much nicer than a picnic lunch at the Tsingy. We tried their pizzas, and they were delicious. Just the thing we were looking for!
After lunch it was definitely time for relaxing.
We spent a leisurely afternoon at the hotel, enjoying the refreshing pool, resting up, and rehydrating. I made sure to have a THB to celebrate, and Chris got some wine.
The scenery was beautiful, but there were some huge wasps flying around. They would dip down now and then to drink water, either from the pool, or from little puddles of water that were splashed on the pool deck. So we had to keep one eye out for them. They were pretty big, and I didn't want to get stung by one!
At one point we were lounging on deck chairs, playing on the WiFi, and I heard a metallic clang. I looked up and saw a black collared lizard running away from us, with one of the wasps in its mouth! I didn't see exactly how the lizard had actually caught that wasp, but I assume the wasp was looking for a drink at one of the watering holes, and the lizard snuck up and grabbed him!
Wow! We'd never seen anything like that. The hero lizard posed for us on the rock wall by the pool, enjoying the afternoon sunshine, and chowing down on his dinner. The other wasps didn't come back...
So the rest of the afternoon was peaceful, and we were treated to a nice sunset. There was some haze in the air so the colors of the sky were very muted, but the sun itself was a beautiful red orb that put on a nice show.
There was nothing else on the agenda until dinner.
I don't remember what exactly we ate, but from the pictures it looks like more dishes with zebu meat.
The food here was very good, though, so I couldn't complain!
When we retired to our cabin for bed, there was a huge bug in the bathroom. It was so impressive that I took its picture before unceremoniously squashing it with my hiking boot. I should have set it outside for our friends the lizards.
Another night of so-so sleep because of the heat, but still, we were quite happy with the accommodations. Tomorrow, we have to head back to the dirt strip at Amborodia, where we meet our charter plane. We will leave the "mainland" part of Madagascar for two days of relaxation on Ile Ste-Marie.
Today was the big day, where we would finally make Grand Tsingy circuit! It was fitting that our time on the "mainland" would end with one last big hike. This was the one that we'd been waiting for, the hardest hike yet, and we wondered if it would be more than we bargained for.
 |
| On the Road, still before 7AM |
Other than the two of us, everyone else had taken it easy yesterday afternoon, so they were mostly ready to head out early. For one of our companions, the hiking had become too much, so she decided to sit this one out.
The pool did look tempting, but this tsingy hike was supposed to be the crown jewel of the trip, so there was no way that we were not going!
The hotel wanted to make us picnic lunches to take along and eat after the hike, but the more we thought about it, the more we thought that it would be a bad idea. In the 90 degree heat, who knows how long the food would last? Plus, if we could get started by 8:00, we could finish by noon and be back for lunch around 1:00. A nice sit-down lunch with wine sounded much better than a sandwich that had cooked in the back seat of the jeep for half the day.
We had a very early and light breakfast and headed out at 6:30, right on target, to try to beat the heat. The road to the Grand Tsingy circuit was just as far as the road to the airport, and it took just about as long to get there. The last few kilometers were slow, as we joined a line of jeeps. We were all going to the same place, so we poked along nose to tail for the last bit. We hoped that it wouldn't be too terribly crowded - at least we didn't see tour buses! Score one for the rough roads.
 |
| Ready to Conquer the Tsingy! |
We arrived, reacquainted ourselves with our guide from yesterday, and put our safety harnesses on. Things were getting serious!
With that out of the way, we grabbed a few liters of water, made a final check of our sunscreen coverage (and bladders), readied our cameras, and were ready to hit the trail.
As we had planned, we started the hike around 8:00. Nice when that works out!
 |
| Decken's Sifaka |
The first third of the hike was through forest, and there were plenty of lemurs to see. There were some with babies, including the Decken’s Sifaka!
This guy did everything he could do so that I couldn't get a good picture. He turned his back to us and hid behind the tree branch, then twisted his neck around to look at us over his shoulder. Pretty comical!
Decken's Sifaka is more common further south, and we weren't sure that we'd see it. It's a big species, and it is most known for how it "dances" instead of walking, when they aren't in the trees. We didn't seem them come down and dance for us, but it was cool to see them nonetheless.
There were some red-fronted brown lemurs as well. Nicely backlit. Better pictures later.
After the forest, we entered the one-way Tsingy circuit. This was a good climb!
 |
| Grand Tsingy Circuit |
Eventually we climbed up on top of the rocks, and continued along the path. Better views here.
Plenty of climbing, ladders, and rock scrambling to be done along the way.
For any particularly challenging ascent or descent, you'd hook one of the clips up to a guiderope. That way, if you slipped, maybe you wouldn't fall all the way down and impale yourself on the rocks.
It was a fair amount of work, and even though it was early, the sun was very hot, and we all worked up quite a sweat.
We didn't rush through it, and we made sure to stop and enjoy the views. Our guide set a good pace.
It was a little crowded in one area where there was a scenic viewpoint, so that was a good place to stop for water while we waited for our turn.
The caribeener that's hooked to my belt clips onto a safety cable that's anchored to a sturdy rock or similar. We didn't test whether it would actually hold our weight if we fell.
All happy and accounted for - at the moment! We still have to cross the big suspension bridge.
Chris had the first shot at the bridge. Then I followed. It was a little bit vertiginous! Clip in, hold on, and put one foot in front of the other. And don't forget to breathe.
 |
| The Queen's Chair, after the Suspension Bridge |
Made it! Time to catch our breath.
What goes up, must come down. Now there were some tricky descents to negotiate. Chris hooks herself onto the safety rope for this one. It's so steep here that you can't even see the person ahead of you.
A bit of crawling under the rock, into a "cave" with a very low ceiling. Of course, I whacked my head on it. My cap prevented a scalp laceration.
Almost back to the woods.
Another ring-tailed mongoose. He seemed totally unafraid of us. That made me a little nervous. He looked really peeved with us - probably because he expected food.
One last squeeze, and we all made it through intact. Lots to be proud of!
Once the circuit was done, we had to walk back through the forest. This brightly colored bird is a Giant Coua.
The lemurs were still hanging out where we'd left them so we stopped again. This time the lighting was better!
 |
| All legs and feet |
Mom and baby finally gave us a pose out in the open. I can't believe how long their legs are. They look gangly and clumsy but they are really graceful to watch.
Playing shy.
And the red-fronted brown lemurs were posing in a better position too.
 |
| Another mom and baby |
Hopefully we didn't get too dehydrated, because no matter how much water we drank, we were still thirsty. As we headed back through the forest, we met several large groups just starting the hike, and we felt sorry for them. It would not have been as fun in full afternoon sun and heat!
Back to the lodge for lunch, which was so much nicer than a picnic lunch at the Tsingy. We tried their pizzas, and they were delicious. Just the thing we were looking for!After lunch it was definitely time for relaxing.
We spent a leisurely afternoon at the hotel, enjoying the refreshing pool, resting up, and rehydrating. I made sure to have a THB to celebrate, and Chris got some wine.
 |
| Our Hero the Lizard! |
At one point we were lounging on deck chairs, playing on the WiFi, and I heard a metallic clang. I looked up and saw a black collared lizard running away from us, with one of the wasps in its mouth! I didn't see exactly how the lizard had actually caught that wasp, but I assume the wasp was looking for a drink at one of the watering holes, and the lizard snuck up and grabbed him!
Wow! We'd never seen anything like that. The hero lizard posed for us on the rock wall by the pool, enjoying the afternoon sunshine, and chowing down on his dinner. The other wasps didn't come back...
So the rest of the afternoon was peaceful, and we were treated to a nice sunset. There was some haze in the air so the colors of the sky were very muted, but the sun itself was a beautiful red orb that put on a nice show.
There was nothing else on the agenda until dinner.
 |
| More Zebu |
I don't remember what exactly we ate, but from the pictures it looks like more dishes with zebu meat.
The food here was very good, though, so I couldn't complain!
When we retired to our cabin for bed, there was a huge bug in the bathroom. It was so impressive that I took its picture before unceremoniously squashing it with my hiking boot. I should have set it outside for our friends the lizards.
Another night of so-so sleep because of the heat, but still, we were quite happy with the accommodations. Tomorrow, we have to head back to the dirt strip at Amborodia, where we meet our charter plane. We will leave the "mainland" part of Madagascar for two days of relaxation on Ile Ste-Marie.
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