In an English children’s book called “Marianne Dreams”, a little girl dreams constantly of a strange, flat Savannah landscape, dotted with threatening rocks. As you approach the impressive grandeur of the Isalo Massif in Southern Madagascar, comparisons seem suddenly obvious. Although the plains are less threatening, less intimidating, they are nonetheless strange. All around is wind and silence, the pale grasses, gusting in the wind and ahead, the eroded sandstone of the Isalo National Park, truly one of Madagascar’s treasures.

Established in 1962, this massive park covers 81,540 hectares, its rocks dating from the Jurassic period. These rocks (known as “ruiniformes”) have been sculpted by wind and water into weird and wonderful shapes - eyes, beaks, faces. It is quite surprising to find a place like Isalo in Madagascar. Most first-time visitors to the country
come expecting - if they expect anything - tropical beaches, rainforests and, of course, lemurs. Lemurs are, perhaps, the biggest selling point - even if you know next to nothing about the fourth largest island in the world, you will have heard of them. And there are, in fact, many in Isalo - another bonus for fans.

To get to the park, most people stop off at Ranohira near the park, the small, peaceful town on the edge of Isalo. From here, you can either take days trips or find a guide to show you around for a week. This involves camping and is undoubtedly the most rewarding - if time consuming- way to see this magical place. Most of the people who visit this region, though, normally have less than a week to explore, but find there is plenty to do nonetheless.

An entertaining part of any experience in Madagascar is the ubiquitous power cut - and there were several in Ranohira, tending to come at highly inconvenient times, for instance,  whilst taking a shower or when you are about to de-bone your supper. The bonus is that when all the lights go out, you can see the stars which appear even brighter over the mountains and hills. There are several little hotels to choose from, all fairly simple, but fine as a base. I was particularly pleased to discover that “Les Joyeux Lémuriens” had actually set free its captive ring-tailed lemur. It’s a pity that all hotels don’t follow their example - perhaps they don’t realize that “Vazaha” (Malagasy for « foreigners ») actually hate seeing these animals made captive - far better to watch them leaping through the trees where they belong. We only had two days to explore, so lost no time in finding a guide and heading for the Piscine Naturelle - the first Isalo’s "essentials ".