The long path to South Midongy

Exploration is basically not defined as a child’s play. From the town of Vangaindrano, which is still no big deal to reach in the south eastern part of Madagascar, it takes no less than 7 hours to join the area of South Midongy, located some 60 miles further. The travel does relatively not yet proves problematic over the first twenty seven miles. The road still has a decent layer of tar on up to the village of Ranomena. The major part of the countdown does start there. Even during the dry season, no other vehicle but four wheel drives happen to be crafted for the task. It takes them 6 hours to make the last thirty seven miles to South Midongy. From Ranomena quite literally begins a death march in paradise. The ride’s strains actually take little from the near unspoilt landscape’s beauty. The primitive access to the region has long been preserving the local National Park from massive human activity. The wilderness of the lost continent Lemuria still stand on 30% of the whole area. The Midongy National Park is a space for searchers, scientists, conservation project officials, their occasional visitors and no one else. Long before the park, the small town of South Midongy itself located deep in a natural basin offers a second to none spot over the surrounding battlements of mountains covered with emerald green vegetation.