Day 10: Madagascan Grand Canyon

I managed to sleep for around 12 hours and although my stomach still felt sensitive in the morning, I was confident that I was over the worst of it and felt grateful that my symptoms hadn’t interfered with me climbing the mountain. Today we would continue the journey south to Isalo national park. Isalo national park is the home to sandstone hills that have been subjected to the elements, eroded by wind and water to form deep gorges and rocky outcrops with bizarre shapes. Wildlife concentrates in the numerous shady gorges and deciduous woodland thrives in the canyon’s higher levels, where lemurs inhabit. Deeper into the gorges only a few shafts of sunlight penetrate to the lower streams where dripping mosses and ferns line the walls. The park is often referred to as the Madagascan Grand Canyon. We were staying in an eco-lodge with traditional thatched roofed bungalows with a view of the sandstone hills in the distance.

After a short drive to the entrance of the National Park we met our local guide Charles, who would be leading us on a hike through the canyons. He explained the composition of the sandstone rock and how the unqiue shapes are a result of millions of years of erosion sculpting the features of the towering rock formations. Charles encouraged us to scramble and climb the rocks to be able to seek a higher vantage point down to the canyon. I enjoyed playing on the rocks, admiring the view into the deep canyon filled with palmed-lined oases and grassland. As we ventured further along the trail Charles pointed out various points of interest. In Madagascar it is important to never point using a single finger and instead use your entire hand or fist, as the belief is that you will be cursed by whatever you point to. We passed a tree with peeling bark and Charles referred to it as “the tourist tree”, explaining it's bark resembles white people’s skin when they spend too long in the sun. We saw a silk worm cocoon, chameleons and a grey-headed lovebird. After being exposed to the late morning sun, I was happy to descend along a series of steep steps down to the base of the canyon where we would find some much welcome shade. The base of the canyon was an entirely new world. Palm trees, glistening pools, exotic flowers with red-bellied lemurs and ring-tailed lemurs cheekily jumping between the branches. I opted to swim in one of the pools to cool off and it was beautifully refreshing. We’d taken a packed lunch from the lodge and I sat on a rock under the shade of a tree digging into the brown bag to see what lunch entailed. The contents of my bag made me laugh; 4 bananas, 1 hard boiled egg, a single tomato and a plain baguette. My appetite was slowly beginning to return so I managed to eat some bread and a banana. As I ate, I heard a rustling sound next to me. I looked up and a red bellied lemur had bounced down from the tree and was sat on a low branch opposite me - about a metre away. He stared up at me as he also nibbled on a banana. I was delighted with my lunch companion and was in awe of him as we ate our bananas together. I re-joined the group who had opted to eat in the sun and ring-tailed lemurs calmly but mischievously circled their table, looking for opportunities of treats.

After lunch, we climbed back out of the canyon and Charles led us to a pile of wish stones. He suggested that we selected a stone from the ground, looked up to the sky to make a wish and then throw the stone onto the pile and the wish would be granted. I followed the ritual. We also passed tombs in the sides of the rock along with yet more chameleons basking in the afternoon sun. After the hike we headed back to the lodge and I rested in the shade, still feeling a little bit drained and empty although I had really enjoyed the canyon and my lunch with the red-bellied lemur. The staff at the lodge performed local dances and songs from their respective tribes, they wore traditional dress and played locally-made instruments. Dinner was cooked outside on a large barbeque, the food was easily the best food in Madagascar so far and I ate vegetables skewers with potato wedges and a platter of fruit. The sun slowly descended below the sandstone formations. The night was tranquil with a crisp and still air; I wrapped up in my jumper clutching a cup of tea as I watched the stars above gradually appear and scatter themselves irregularly on the grey canvas creating a serene tapestry.