Before posting the pictures, we have to take time to recognize the amazing imagination, planning and organization of the next three days as we depart from just straight cycling every day. The idea of cruising down the river on our own boats was brilliant, and the work required to make it happen truly remarkable. An extra truck to be loaded with bikes and drive unbelievably bad roads (you'll see in the next post) to get them to us at the end of the cruise. Details like buckets to ensure the safe travel of our helmets so we didn't have to carry them on the boat.
Then three vans to get us from hotel to boats this morning. In perspective, each of those vans would carry at least twenty local people on their travels along the highway - we were six or seven people to the van.
Arrangements made to get the baggage to the boat without us having to carry it ourselves. And when we got to the water, low water levels meant we had to walk half a kilometer through the river to get to the boat - somehow the TDA crew found a way of getting the bags to the boat - see photos.
Five-litre bottles of water for each of us, with our names on them, to ensure we are hydrated with clean water for the next three days.
This crew is amazing - they are trying to make everything absolutely perfect for us, and they are doing even better than that. That goes for Emily, Miles, Brad, and BaBa, the TSA crew and for all of the Malagasy crew that has been arranged through Ortours. Google Ortours if you want an agency that will look after you when you come to Madagascar - Michel there did our pre and post cycling arrangements and so far it has been perfect.
Okay... on to the two days on the boat, with a night in tents on the river bank in between...
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| The walk to the boats... |
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| ...two of those boats are for us. |
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| Brad arriving with the bags |
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| We saw two or three of these guys and thought better of swimming in the river... |
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| ...so we swam here at this waterfall instead. |
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| red-fronted brown Lemur seen near the waterfall |
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| The river is a footpath too |
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| probably the biggest village seen along the river |
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| sun setting behind the other boat |
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| sunset dining... and we still had to come on shore and set up tents |
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| river traffic at sunrise day 2 |
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| the other boat early on day 2 |
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| Black Kite (?) |
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| Baobabs along the river |
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| Heron alighting |
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| the car ferry for access to the north |
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| ...and bags to the hotel by zebu cart at the end |
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