Trek in Terra Incognita, the Vavavato

We take the beautiful road heading west. We cross the typical villages of the Highlands and, gradually, large volcanic cones appear. On the shores of Lake Itasy, we settle in the small town of Ampefy.
After lunch, we take time to discover and immerse ourselves in the very peaceful atmosphere of this little-traveled region.

Traveling along the most beautiful mountain road in Madagascar from Ampefy, we reach the small town of Faratsiho. This village and its surroundings offer us the most beautiful mountain landscapes and the highest altitude on the entire island: we are in the heart of the Ankaratra Massif.

On foot, we begin our approach from this village of Faratsiho. Here, paved roads are non-existent.
Off the beaten path, we carve our way through an area of high relief, near the Bongolava Massif. Villagers are mainly potato farmers. The mountainous landscapes that cut across the horizon, the valleys, the agricultural plains typical of the western Ankaratra are reliable landmarks: we are indeed on the Highlands of Madagascar.
First night camping on the balconies of the Ankaratra, a high-altitude meadow from which a majestic view of the mountains unfolds before us, whose peaks can be engulfed by clouds.
Bivouac at 1,750 meters

We enter the chaos of rocks. Through a succession of granite ridge lines and valleys that can hide relict forests, our journey southward is varied and interesting. The little-frequented trails allow the inhabitants of these high regions to connect their isolated dwellings. Here, and as we will see throughout our walking crossing, lakes are very present. They are used, in a traditional manner, for the conservation of fish during the dry season, evolving in the rice paddies. Rice-fish farming is the main means of subsistence for the people who live here. We find tilapia, carp and Malagasy black bass.

The habitat, too, is very singular and contrasts sharply with that of the Highlands. Houses or small hamlets are distant from one another, families live isolated. Here, no defensive ditches, no protective walls surround these dwellings, as if the citadel were self-sufficient.

We are now hiking at the base of an immense conical mountain. It dominates the surrounding mountains by its power and also by its nature. At the heart of the granites, a volcano pierced through and dominates the region by its dark mass. The Vohitany is our objective for the end of the day. From the summit, the panorama is grandiose and embraces the entire Highlands region, towards the west the Bongolava and, in the distance, the limestone sedimentary cliffs. With a 360° glance, we find starting from the north the Ankaratra and the Imerina region, the Vakinankaratra; at our feet the two branches of these mysterious mountain chains and the region of Mount Ibity; the birth of the Bongolava to the south, the sedimentary plateaus of Bemaraha to the west in the background, then the volcanoes of the Itasy region … magnificent.

Our camp is established on the edge of an altitude lake. Mountain atmosphere guaranteed

In the cool morning air, we set off on foot into the great rocky ridges that dominate the bivouac. The progression is made off-trail to reach beautiful peaks, allowing us to discover the composition of this massif. The highest point of the "mony mainty" stands before us, like a beautiful call to climb it. During this trek, the average altitude of our progression is around 2000 m., it is cool, almost cold, despite everything the southern sun remains scorching.

At midday, we emerge into the central valley in the heart of the mountains. The places are inhabited, small hamlets are scattered here and there. We head towards a beautiful line of mountains by crossing the entire high-altitude valley.

The people here almost never descend into the valleys of the Highlands. Custodians of ancient animistic cults and traditional Malagasy practices, they are known only by a few scholars, astrologers and traditional practitioners. This region is filled with mysteries, and it is precisely for this reason that we became passionate about this land; where only the curious and attentive hiker can venture, and appreciate the places at their true value.

According to those in the know, the settlement would be mainly constituted of a group originating from India established on the Highlands, between Ankaratra and Vakinankaratra, well before the Merina expansion. This expansion would have pushed them into the heights of Vavavato, a mountain very little known to Malagasy people. The women remain in the mountains, the groups live in self-sufficiency.

Interestingly, we sought documentation, studies that might have been carried out about these mountains… Nothing, just a simple mention in a document from the French army dating from 1914…

Since entering the massif, we come across herds of bovines that are equally distinctive... We go from discovery to discovery: these are "vabus"! A hybrid between zebu and cattle, sturdy like a zebu but without a hump. The herds are large, and among the vabus roam enormous pigs going about their business all day long, mixed with these humpless zebras. The herds are watched over by shepherds identifiable by the sound of their flutes, enchanting melodies rising from the rocky chaos.

The western chain of Vavavato granites stretches in the direction of the Betafo region. Summits rise up and offer us every opportunity to reach them. Of course, we're not talking about mountaineering but beautiful hiking treks.

At the end of the day we reach an astonishing region dotted with a multitude of lakes, relatively flat high-altitude prairies, with very prominent rocky outcroppings. Walking through these places, all that's missing are a few yaks and we'd be on the High Plateaus of Spiti in northern India, on the foothills of Tibet.

On a soft prairie, we set up our bivouac for another night at altitude under the starlit sky.

Suddenly, we reach the southern edge of the Mony Mainty. Through a narrow valley dotted with stepped lakes, we rapidly lose altitude and leave the granite behind to reach, without transition, the volcanoes. The scenery changes completely. Nature is being systematically harvested by Humans, the hillsides and valley floors are cultivated, shaped and developed.

The beauty of the rice paddies in the Betafo region is extraordinary. From the wild and preserved nature of the Vavavato, we suddenly move to a controlled nature, a striking transition that gives food for thought. On the outskirts of Betafo, human occupation is significant and villages are dotted across the hills between the volcanoes, the wide valleys are entirely dedicated to rice paddies. We reach the town of Betafo at midday, reluctantly leaving behind the mysteries of the Mony Mainty.

A short tour of the city and visit to local artisans (making miniature bicycles and cars, zebu horn work…) then drive to Ambatolampy.
Rice paddies and villages characteristic of the Highlands shape the landscape.
In Ambatolampy we stop to discover this very lively town on the RN7.
Continue in the afternoon towards Antananarivo.