The Taxi-Brousse ride was fine. A very comfortable, by African Standards that is, 10-hour ride to Finarantsoa (Finar for short) which is about 400 kms south of Tana but still in the highlands. From here we tried to find a car to take us south down the east coast.
Most people said it couldn't be done. Madagascar is relatively un-developed in terms of infastructure - there are only a few paved roads and those that are gravel/dirt get washed away in the rains. When we asked the tourist office in Tana (Anatananarivo, capital of Mada) they told that it was best to fly to Fort Dauphin in the extreme south and that the south eastern coastal road was impassable. This view was confirmed by two bus companies.
But when we got to Finar we found a car plus driver and guide who had been down the east not two weeks previously and were confident. So why not we thought, whats the worst that can happen? So we set-off on a 10 day road trip....
After 60 minutes of countless hairpin bends at speed we were starting to doubt our convictions as childhood travel sickness came back to haunt us. Luckily our first driver was soon replaced by an all together more convincing chaffeur who took over at a more leisurely pace. The tarmac soon ran out and the bumps started as we left the big towns behind and journeyed south through countless small villages where the children would run out and wave/hide/cry as the strange vazahs drove through their village. The don't see many white folk round those parts.
It took three days to reach Fort Dauphin which included 10 small ferries, 6 of which were motorised and the remainder operated by winches. On the way we camped the night at a small private reserve near Sainte Luce where the rainforest meets the sea. It rained the whole time but nonetheless was beautiful and very dramatic.
After Fort Dauphin we headed to Cape Sainte Marie, the most southerly point in Madagascar and one of the highlights of our trip. Dramatic sand dunes, Sheer cliffs and amazing rock formations, words don't really do it justice so here are some photos.
After an amazing day on the Cape we drove a short way to the seaside town of Lavanono.
Next we headed up the south west coast.
looks properly amazing mate! no mention of the malaria though... and I thought the 5 or so hour taxi drive we did in Uganda was bad enough - 10 hours!?!
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