Flight to Antananarivo, dinner and overnight on board.

The Détours Madagascar team welcomes you upon arrival. Check-in at your hotel.

We take the road towards the city of Ambatolampy, located South of Antananarivo on the Road National 7. Crossing typical landscape of the central Highlands, we drive along a sinuous road lined with a mosaic of crops and terrace rice fields.

We meet with a dynamic rural world, evolving all around us as we drive through. Coming closer to Antsirabe, various fresh products from the fields are displayed along the road. We reach Antsirabe, the thermal city, nestled in the middle of the central Highlands.

Due south on the RN7, we take in a mountainous landscape with a beautiful alternation of fertile agricultural valleys and mountain passes. The road is good and allows a gentle approach to the southern part of the Highlands. We enter Betsileo country, the majority ethnic group in the southern high plateaus. Here, life is paced by rice cultivation and zebu herding. Fianarantsoa comes into view across a cluster of hills that may recall Antananarivo.

In the image of Antananarivo, the city is divided into three parts:

• The upper town, where the Merina governor’s palace once stood, and where today you can admire Protestant temples, a Lutheran college, the brick cathedral in Tuscan style, the Jesuit school of Ambozotany, and Antsenakely Square, where a small market is held.
• The new town, the administrative district, where you’ll also find the zoma (Friday market),
• The lower town, Ampasambazaha, the heart of the city where the Chinese and Indian commercial quarters are located.

Through a patchwork of terraced rice paddies and varied crops showcasing every shade of green, drive to Ambalavao, known for its vineyards.

From Ambalavao, we leave National Road 7. The rough track takes us to the village of Ambalamanandray, at the eastern gateway to Andringitra National Park.

At the gateway to , our local team joins us, consisting of a park guide and porters. For a first warm-up, we begin our hike along a beautiful trail between forests and waterfalls to reach the intermediate plateau of Amdriampotsy, the base camp for Pic Boby.

Early in the morning, we head towards Madagascar’s second-highest peak, Pic Boby or Imarivolanitra. It rises to 2,658 m. This beautiful hike follows a well-maintained trail. We set off very early to enjoy the summit view. If the sky is clear enough, we can see the East Coast.

We now reach a surreal lunar plateau that truly deserves the nickname « extraterrestrial » as the erosional forms are otherworldly. We then cross the Ravenea glauca palm forest, endemic to this region, to our bivouac site at Iantaranomby, on the banks of a beautiful river where we can cool off.

Westward, we continue our descent toward the magnificent Tsaranoro Valley. By late morning, we meet up with our vehicles. We bid farewell to the guide and porters who accompanied us during our trek in Andringitra.

The road to the southwest enters Bara country and crosses Madagascar’s largest plateau, the Horombe. The vast expanses of savannas and grassy steppes are the lands roamed by this large ethnic group of zebu herders of Bantu origin. The village of Ranohira lies on the outskirts of the ruiniform Isalo massif.

We take the track again toward the north of Isalo, accompanied by our porters and the park guide. The track runs along the eastern cliff of the Isalo massif. We reach the village of Andriamanero.

On foot, we reach our bivouac site. At the end of the day, we set up our tents. The northern part of the Isalo plateau is wild and little-known.

We begin our walk towards the plateau of Ambovo that we will follow to arrive at the point of view of Amparambatomanara Cliffs, Tapia forests, savannahs and eroded rocks with strange shapes …
This itinerary is also a live slideshow of plants ""adapted"" to the arid climate. We arrive in the canyon of Ankotrakotraka. Visit of the "Grotte des Portugais" (Portuguese Cave), arranged by navigators who sank on the southwest coast of the island and took refuge here in the 16th century.
Camp installation for the night.

We will explore the Sahanafo Forest to try to spot Sifaka, propithecus lemurs, in their natural habitat. Return to the camp for lunch, then we begin our hike toward the Ambovo Plateau, where we set up our camp for the night.

Early in the morning, we resume walking toward Tameasoa, where our vehicles are waiting for us.

Transfer by car to the village of Beronono, via the Mangoky River, the longest on the west coast. The crossing is by ferry before reaching Beroroha, the district capital of the region. Arrival in the late afternoon in Beronono, setting up camp right on the banks of the Makay River.

We begin the walk along the Makay River. Then continue toward a small forest that leads us to the foot of the Mahatiny Cave. A place where one of the oldest rock paintings still exists, most of the drawings depicting simple geometric figures… Then in the afternoon, we take a small trail that brings us onto a section of ridge, where we will have an overall view of the massif. At the end of the afternoon, return to the banks of the Makay River. Set up the tents.

After breakfast, we begin with a short walk through the reeds, then continue along a long stretch of ridge, where we’ll have magnificent viewpoints over two lakes. Here, parrots are omnipresent, their calls echoing through these long corridors. Birds of prey such as buzzards, kites, and African harrier-hawks soar above the mountains. In the afternoon, a short technical descent brings us to Lake Anosilahy. Then we head up a small river that leads us to the bivouac site.

We begin directly in the water to explore a superb deep gorge, with surprising vegetation growing inside. Then we cross a plateau to reach another canyon that leads us alongside Lake Sariaka.

We reach the village of Beronono, the final stop on the southern part of the massif; a half-day trek awaits us. In the afternoon, we could cool off by the Makay River. Lively evening with our porters and guide.

At daybreak, we break camp and say goodbye to our porters and the villagers. Departure for a long day on a fairly challenging 4x4 track running parallel to the massif; we cross small dry forests, a few villages, and at times even almost abandoned trails. In the afternoon, before reaching camp, we pass through the small town of Mandronarivo, where cold drinks await us. Arrival at the bivouac site, tent setup, spectacle of a splendid sunset.

From there, our itinerant trek in the northern Makay Massif begins. Along a white-sand riverbed, we pass between tall, mottled sandstone cliffs. This major fault allows us to reach the Andranomite Cave. It has always served as a shelter for those crossing the Makay Massif from east to west.

We now plunge into the heart of the massif, where a network of dry canyons cuts into the wildest part of the Makay. The Makay’s highest point dominates our route. Numerous varieties of palms and ferns line the banks of the gorge; water is now present. We set up our bivouac on the riverbanks between the great dark cliffs.

From the bivouac, we leave the riverbed and follow a slope that leads to the ridgeline 400 meters higher. A straightforward technical section will add a bit of spice to our progress; a safety rope helps us across this short rocky passage. We now follow a splendid balcony trail overlooking the eastern plain that borders the plateau. The atmosphere is superb and the horizons far-reaching. A few latan palms on a broad pass mark a new watershed—new gorges. In these wooded gorges, we’ll have a strong chance of finding lemurs. Two species coexist, the Fulvus rufus and the Prophitecus verraux.

This long day takes us to the west of the ruiniform sandstone barrier. The deep gorge of the Sakamaly River cuts deeply into the massif. A truly aquatic day, this fault shelters a beautiful forest with majestic trees. Families of lemurs populate the treetops, visible from time to time. Crocodiles are present as well; we will see their tracks. Even so, we need to watch out for certain plants found in the Makay Massif, including bararata, spiky reeds. The takilotra are a kind of itch-inducing plant, and the karibo are bramble species often hidden in the grasses.

Early in the day, after a couple of hours of hiking through the savanna, we reach a very rugged area—a tangle of faults and ridgelines like vast labyrinths, the sakasaka. A winding route gives us access to the major fault of Sakapaly, which spills out on the eastern side of the massif. The 360° panoramas are magnificent. Canyons, faults, summits, and peneplains follow one another. We set up the bivouac in a broad, wooded valley on immaculate white sand.

Our caravan makes its way among the cliffs, an easy route; we gain the plateau. The goal now is to reach a narrow fault, covered with pandanus, palms, and ferns, which opens the way toward the large watershed of Manampanda. Our progress takes place entirely with our feet in the water, in a lush plant environment. Lemurs are very present, slipping away into the canopy. At our feet, caught among the boulders of the riverbed, petrified wood bears witness to the remains of a fossil forest. These silicified traces are very useful for the study of geology, paleobotany, and the paleoenvironment. It goes without saying that this unique heritage must be protected. Our tributary joins the Manampanda River, and the flow of water suddenly becomes much greater. We set up our bivouac on a beautiful sandy beach by the river.

The Manampandana River guides our progress for a good hour, then we leave it to reach the plateau. After gaining the ridgeline, we head toward the Bara villages on the northern edge of the Makay Massif. We reach the village of Tsiazorambo in the afternoon. Our vehicles are there, waiting for us. This marks the end of our unique journey through this magnificent Makay Massif. The evening is dedicated to camaraderie and the joy of having shared a great adventure together—you, the porters, the tracker, the guide, and the Détours Madagascar logistics team.

After breakfast, we fold up the tents and bid farewell to the porters and trackers. We get back into our 4x4s to take the northern exit track, aiming to reach the town of Malaimbandy before joining National Road 34, which takes us to Miandrivazo.

In the afternoon, we continue to Antsirabe, the capital of the Vakinankaratra region, the final stop for the day.