MADAGASCAR: Leaping Lemurs, Guest Post by Owen Floody, Part 1

 52 Places to Go: Week 35

Diadamed Sifaka, Madagascar

In June 2016, our friend Owen Floody planned and led a trip to Madagascar.  Owen recently retired from a career of teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken several trips that allow him to pursue his passion. He has been a frequent contributor to The Intrepid Tourist. Here is part 1 of a short reflection on his Madagascar trip and a few of his excellent photographs. 

One of the world's places that might best be seen soon, in case it is not preserved over the long term, is Madagascar.  The history and isolation of this large island off the east coast of southern Africa have blessed it with some wildlife that is unique (especially its lemurs) along with some that is unusual though not unique (e.g., its array of colorful chameleons). Madagascar also presents a wide range of habitats, including several types of rainforest at different altitudes (coastal to montane), dry deciduous forests, grasslands, deserts (“spiny forests”) and large expanses of sharp limestone pinnacles (“tsingy”).

Tsingy

Alas, some if not all of these habitats are at risk, in part due to the widespread use of charcoal for cooking: Most or all of Madagascar’s unprotected forests already are gone, increasing the pressure on the protected areas that remain.  Tourism can help in this regard, by giving local residents a stake in forest preservation.  Evidence for such beneficial effects can be seen, for instance, in the requirement for local (in addition to national) guides and in the development of community-based wildlife reserves.  The net effect is that a visit to Madagascar can have the immediate effect of exposing you to some wonderful scenery and wildlife at the same time that it encourages the preservation of these resources for future visitors.

Bamboo lemur

Madagascar’s roads can make it a challenging place to tour. On my recent trip, we began with an abortive trip from the capital Antananarivo (Tana) to a pair of rainforest parks directly to the east, hoping to see and, even more to the point, hear the dawn chorus of the indri, the largest of the lemurs.  Alas, what we discovered is that the indri hunker down and clam up in the rain.  Still, this excursion permitted us to visit the semi-captive lemurs on Lemur Island, as well as the residents of a local reserve specializing in chameleons and other reptiles.

Chameleon

Once back in Tana, we boarded a flight for Morondava, on the west coast.  From there, we drove north with the goal of visiting Madagascar’s premier tsingy site, the Tsingy de Bemaraha (a World Heritage site).  Along the way, we were enchanted by Baobab Avenue, an amazing concentration of huge baobab trees.  

Baobab Avenue

In addition, we stopped to hike within the dry deciduous forest at Kirindy Reserve, looking both for lemurs and their major predator, the fossa, which despite appearances is a type of civet or mongoose, not a cat.

Fossa

Nevertheless, it was the tsingy that stole the show. Within the park, we took two hikes, through the Petit Tsingy and Grand Tsingy.  Both provided great opportunities to view the tsingy from above (viewpoints), within (as we hiked along gaps in the formations), sometimes even below (as we crawled through short caves or tunnels within the rock).  This variety of perspectives helped to impress upon us the height of the limestone pinnacles.  Combining this with the aerial extent of the formations emphasized at the overlooks, one could not fail to come away from this site in awe of its stark majesty.

Once we tore ourselves away from the tsingy, we retraced our steps, first to Morondava, then on to Tana, where the second major phase of our trip began. 

Note: I devised the trip itinerary, which was ably implemented by Cortez, USA, a California-based tour-operator that specializes in Madagascar.  In the past, Madagascar has been criticized for the quality of its tourism infrastructure.  With respect to the roads, this was and still is justified.  In all other respects (accommodations, food, guides), however, I thought that we were extremely well treated on this trip and so would urge others, especially others with an interest in unusual wildlife, to give Madagascar a try.

 

This article was first published January 16, 2017. 

For Part 2 of Owen's post about his trip to Madagascar, click HERE. 

DISCOVERING SANTORINI'S MAGIC, Guest Post by Catherine Mayone

 52 Places to Go: Week 34

The island of Santorini, Greece. Oia architecture

My niece Cathy and her husband Mike just returned from a wonderful vacation on Santorini and sent me this terrific report. 

In the lead up to my trip to the Island of Santorini, Greece, a friend of mine gave me some tips but refused to give too many details for fear of spoiling the surprises.  So I’ll try not to reveal too much and use only one adjective, “magical”, to describe the experience.  My husband and I spent six days in late May 2018 staying in two different locations and exploring the landscape, architecture, ancient ruins, quaint cliff top towns, vineyards, and just doing nothing but staring out at the azure Aegean Sea.

Sunset in Oia

Santorini, also known as Thira, was formed in the 16^th century BC when a large volcanic eruption created its current landscape.   At 28 square miles, it offers the perfect size for exploring by land and sea.  We opted to rent a car for the entire period -- at 17 euros / day it was more cost effective than taxis and provided us the freedom to wander as we pleased.  We found our tiny Fiat convertible easy for navigating the small alley ways and a blast to drive, and didn’t have issues finding free parking.  In the height of the summer season I imagine driving and parking would not be as fun; the public bus system is very affordable and comfortable in coach style buses.  ATVs, scooters, or a daily car rental are also options.

View from our Oia "cave house"

We split up our stay between the towns of Oia (pronounced “eeya”) and Imerovigli.  In Oia, our twp bedroom AirBnB cave house with a sweeping patio provided a unique experience.  In Imerovigli, our stay at the Hotel Afroessa provided a spectacular view of the sunset and the friendly welcome and hospitality of a superb staff.

Hike from Oia to Fira

It was easy to spend our first few days exploring the ancient town of Oia with a hike down to the fishing port Amoudi Bay and browsing the artsy shops, the best on the island.  We also hiked the 11K trail from Oia over the ridge, with sea views in all directions, through Imerovigli, and into the capital city of Fira, which is the port of call for the cruise ships with sidewalks full of day-trippers.

On day 4, we opted for a self-guided driving tour of the Island since we had to check out of the AirBnB and into our hotel.  We quickly learned GPS systems have a hard time in Santorini as we kept trying different roads to find our hotel. Since you rarely just pull up to a hotel and drop off your bags, porters are adept at flinging multiple suitcases over their shoulders while you’re struggling to keep up as they seem to glide up and down all of the steep, no railing, natural stone stairs.

Ancient Thera

Our first driving destination was Ancient Thera, the highest point on the island, that was home to settlements from the 9^th century BC until 726 AD, where you can see the expansive remains including the evidence of the Greek theater, Roman Baths, city center, and many private dwellings.  Since it was hard for us to get there, it’s amazing that populations long ago made it their home.  To access ancient Thera today, you can either hike up from Perissa, or hike or drive up the very windy, narrow road from Kamari.  Since we didn’t have a lot of time and the site closes at 3pm, we opted for the drive up, which is not for the faint-hearted!

Gaia winery in Kamari

We were ready for some nourishment and relaxation so our next stop was a vineyard.  Santorini is home to 1,100 hectares of vines and is well known for its white grape varieties Assyrtiko, Athiri, and Aidani.  Winemakers have invented an ungrafted vine growing process, which keeps the grapes growing in a circular tube and low to the ground to avoid the wind and heat exposure that has killed crops.  The GPS once again failed us so we gave up on our selected vineyard and stumbled upon another one – even better – Gaia Winery in Kamari by the sea on the shore of a black beach.  A waiter later marveled that we went there since tourists often opt for the bigger, fancier wineries like Boutari Winery, Santo Winery, and Estate Argyros.  It was easy to pass a couple of hours sipping wine, nibbling on the cheese platter, and learning about each bottle of wine which our hostess explained in detail, that feature unique flavors from the volcanic soil and salt from the sea.

By now, we turned the GPS off and my navigating went something like “this looks right” and “how wrong can we be since we can see the sea”.  Last stop was Megalochori for a brief walk through the ancient town, a café break, and a visit to its local bakery.

On day 5, we wanted to see the island from the water and went on an 18 person catamaran tour by Spiridakos around the southern shores of the Island.  They did an excellent job with a BBQ and Greek style sit down lunch and swim stops at the volcanic “hot springs” (warm but not hot), white beach and red beach.  The water at the beaches is crystal clear and, while brisk in shoulder season, we enjoyed a swim.  You won’t find a lot of fish for snorkeling or eating in the Aegean waters.  We were told much of the fishing industry was destroyed by the dynamite fishing technique that brought fish to the surface; the fish are only starting to re-populate.

Skaros rock in Imerovigli

We had been staring at Skaros rock from our Imerovigli hotel balcony and so it was beckoning a brief hike on day 6.  You can do it as part of your hike between Fira and Oia, but we were glad we saved it for another day so we could comfortably explore it and the chapel that sits on a perch on the back side of the rock.  There are more than 600 chapels and churches on Santorini, the products of fishermen who used to vow to build a church if they returned home safely from a long sea voyage.

Santorini has everything you could want in an Island vacation.  As gorgeous as photographs are, you must experience the sights, sounds, air, water, tastes and people yourself to reveal its surprises and magic.

We highly recommend our cave house AirBnB in Oia or Hotel Afroessa in Imerovigli.

 

This article was first published  6/25/18.

FAROE ISLANDS: Land of Fjords and Green Cliffs, Guest Post by Tom Scheaffer

 52 Places to Go: Week 33

Faroe Islands Peace Run

In 2017 my brother Tom Scheaffer went on a two week trip to Iceland and the Faroe Islands. Tom’s trip was part of the Sri Chimnoy Oneness-Home Peace Run, a worldwide promotion of peace to “help remind millions of people every day in so many countries that our common goal is peace.”  Tom traveled with eleven friends to six of the islands using ferries or undersea tunnels. They ran with the peace torch and visited 20 schools and saw more than 2000 children. 
The Faroe Islands consist of 18 major islands about 407 miles off the coast of Northern Europe, about halfway between Iceland and Norway. The islands are an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark.
Here is Tom's report.

I am in Faroe Islands and it is spectacular. It is a land of fiords and green cliffs.We have had great weather so far with no rain and lots of sun. The landscape is incredibly green with waterfalls cascading down the mountains and into the sea.

Tom in the Faroe Islands

Schools are very modern and look like art museums.  A teacher told me that 5% must go to art when they build a new school.

School library

They have a high standard of living here in the Faroe Islands, and we were told it is even higher than in Denmark, with which it still has political and economic ties.

Tom with students

The people speak Faroese which is a Nordic language. The Vikings had a large impact on the Faroe Islands and there are many Viking legends. Written Faroese is most similar to Icelandic and to their common ancestor, Old Norse, though the spoken language is closer to Norwegian dialects of Western Norway. Although Faroese is the official language on the islands, Danish is taught in schools. Many people also speak English.

Salmon farming is a huge industry here because of the clean cold water of the North Atlantic, which is ideal for raising salmon. You can see the salmon corrals and the fish jumping. Torshavn is the largest city with a population of about 20,000, but many people live in smaller villages on the edge of the sea. Sheep abound on the hillsides, and it is more likely you will encounter a sheep on the road than another car!

Today was the last day we visited schools. Afterward we went to a most beautiful waterfall and ran along the ocean cliffs. 

 

This is a land of incredible beauty and there is a real sense of peace because one is surrounded by nature wherever you go. In the summer, puffins and other sea birds come to the cliffs to nest. The maritime climate is cool, but not too cold because of the Gulf Stream which tempers the climate. The Faroe Islands are still unspoiled and worth the effort to travel to if you love nature.

This article was first published 10/9/17.

All text and photos copyright Caroline Arnold at The Intrepid Tourist.

HERON ISLAND, a Jewel in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef

 52 Places to Go: Week 32

Heron Island lies fifty miles east of the city of Gladstone in Queensland.  Part of the island is the Heron Island Resort; the other houses a scientific research institute.

If you could choose to be stranded on a desert island, what would you look for?  A source of shelter?  A ready supply of food? The white-capped noddy tern, a sea-going bird that lives on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, needs just such an island for nesting, and Heron Island fills the bill.  Hundreds of noddy terns breed on Heron Island, located almost exactly on the Tropic of Capricorn off the Queensland coast.

Brittle Star

In August 1983 (winter in the southern hemisphere) our family visited Heron Island and saw noddy terns, herons, and a host of other fascinating wildlife.  It is one of our most memorable vacations.  During our stay we walked the island and watched the birds, explored the reef at low tide, snorkeled at high tide, observed sea turtles and deep water fish from a glass bottomed boat, and enjoyed the amenities of the resort.  Art’s hundreds of photos from this trip inspired my book A Walk on the Great Barrier Reef.

Noddy Tern

Unlike most of the other small coral islands of the Great Barrier Reef, which are rocky and barren, Heron Island is covered with lush vegetation, including pandanus palms and pinsonia trees, which make ideal nest sites protected from the weather and predators. Huge flocks of noddy terns make virtual apartment houses out of the trees. Each pair of birds claims one horizontal branch where they build their nest with seaweed and leaves.

The Great Barrier Reef stretches for 1250 miles along the northeast coast of Australia.  It is an undersea wilderness of coral, colorful fish, and thousands of unusual sea creatures–some of which are poisonous, and all fascinating. At low tide, the top of the reef is revealed. To protect the reef and its wildlife, the Australian government declared it a national park in 1979.

Like other reef islands, Heron Island is surrounded by a large “reef flat” which extends nearly a quarter of a mile into the sea.  Fish and sea animals that live on and around the surrounding reef provide food for both migrating and nesting birds.Where the reef flat drops off, the water is about thirty feet deep, and there, from a boat or with diving gear, you can see large formations of coral and groups of colored fish.  But at low tide the water on the flat itself is only a few inches deep and in many places the coral rises above the water.  Wearing canvas shoes as protection against sharp pieces of coral, and carrying a stick for balance, we went out each day to discover the wonders of the reef for ourselves.

Giant clam embedded in brain coral

Despite its plant-like forms, coral is actually clusters of tiny animals that live inside hard calcium skeletons.  Live coral varies in color from purple, green and yellow to bright red.  When coral dies, it loses its color, revealing its brilliant white skeleton.
The ideal temperature for coral growth is 75-85 degrees Fahrenheit.  As the oceans grow warmer with climate change, many corals are dying and reefs are being destroyed.

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the most wondrous places on earth.  Our visit to Heron Island was a chance to spend a few days immersed in its beauty and richness.

For more information about visiting Heron Island, click HERE. 

Learn more about Heron Island and the Great Barrier Reef in my book A Walk on the Great Barrier Reef, available as an e-book on Amazon.

All text and photos copyright Caroline Arnold

Kitty Hawk, North Carolina: The Birthplace of Aviation

 

52 Places to Go: Week 31

Wilbur Wright, Kitty Hawk, NC

On December 17, 1903, in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first powered flight in a heavier-than-air machine. In the summer of 2008, as part of a family vacation on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, I visited Wright Brothers National Memorial at Kitty Hawk and  saw the museum that displays their airplanes, their workshop, and climbed to the top of the small hill where their historic flights were launched.

Orville Wright, Kitty Hawk, NC

Before building airplanes, the Wright brothers made and sold bicycles in Dayton, Ohio.  Their experience making bicycles helped them develop the skills they needed to build and fly airplanes.


In 1899, Wilbur and Orville began making airplanes in their bicycle shop.  Other people were also working the invention of flying machines, but no one had successfully flown one. Wilbur and Orville realized that flying a plane was similar in some ways to riding a bicycle.  It required constant small adjustments to keep it in balance.  This idea, combined with the Wright brothers skill at assembling machines, contributed to their success at creating the first airplane.

Museum at Wright Brothers National Memorial

During our visit to the museum, we listened to a presentation by one of the park service volunteers, who demonstrated how the various parts of the plane could be controlled by the pilot and keep the plane airborne.  Everyone–including all four generations of our family-- enjoyed the visit and learned things we didn’t know before.

Did you know?  On October 24, 1911, at Kitty Hawk, NC, Orville Wright established a new world soaring record in a 50 mile-per-hour wind of nine minutes and forty-five seconds.  This remained a world’s record for 10 years.

View of the Wright brothers' flight path from top of hill

Details: You can get directions and plan your trip to Kitty Hawk and the Wright Brothers National Memorial at http://www.nps.gov/wrbr/forkids/index.htm
The Wright Brothers National Memorial is operated by the U.S. National Park Service. My National Parks Pass provided free entry for everyone in our car. Check the website for current fees.

History of the Outer Banks:  click here for some nice images, history of the Kitty Hawk area and links to more information.

During the rest of our week on the Outer Banks we enjoyed swimming at the beach and in the pool of our rented house, bike riding, eating fresh local crabs, watching fiery summer thunderstorms from the safety of our porch, and basically, just relaxing.  It was the perfect place for a summer vacation!

 This article first appeared 6/18/2012.

All Text and Photos Copyright by Caroline Arnold