Into the Heart of Madness - This is Gabon!

[TonyQ]

The Black Bee-eater is wonderful!

[SafariChick]

Yes, that black bee-eater is stunning! Yes, the girl was a university student - she was Gabonese but at university in Paris. She and her friend were indeed the ones who'd been there the day before when the gorillas were scared away so they were back trying for a second time, and unfortunately, they did not succeed in seeing them and then had to fly back to Libreville so they never managed to see them.  We were lucky to have another day to try.

 

I really enjoyed the Loango Lodge.  It was lovely having the parrots hanging around.

 

 

After we returned from our unsuccessful gorilla trip, we all went on a boat ride in the Iguela lagoon to get the lay of the land.   

 

 

We disembarked at the beach and had a walk on it. It was absolutely beautiful, a wide beach with fine white sand and literally no one there. A beach like that where I live in California would be covered with people but there were very few people at the lodge other than us and we were the only human visitors to the beach.

 

 

 

It was very peaceful to walk along the beach and just bask in the sounds of the waves lapping on the shore and observing nature.

 

 

 

Back in the boat as we continued our tour of the lagoon, we encountered some hippos

 

 

 

 

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I usually miss the yawn shot but I managed to get one this time!

 

 

It was almost sunset by the time we saw the hippos - my time record says that last shot of the hippo yawn was at 6:11 p.m. and the next one was at 6:20 p.m.

 

 

and one more photo three minutes later (I'm sure @michael-ibk will have more and better ones!) 

 

 

It was a very lovely afternoon on the water.

Edited October 6, 2019 by SafariChick

[gatoratlarge]

I loved the walk along the beach and coming right up to the Iguela Lagoon mouth as it meets the Atlantic Ocean.  To be the only ones along this wild stretch of ocean was a privilege.  We were well aware of the "surfing hippos" of Loango.  The very unusual photos of the hippos taken in the ocean cavorting in the waves was a part of the mystique of the mega-transect that Michael  Fay and National Geographic reported from Gabon nearly two decades ago.  There is a time of year when it is possible (but unlikely) to see this phenomena and I've forgotten the reason why they speculated a hippo would make it's way into the ocean to begin with---and this wasn't the time of year it can occur anyhow so we were not at all in tune with the possibility.  But we did come across a most unusual sighting!  A set of hippo prints leading straight into the Atlantic, the final stretch washed away by the tides and no return prints!  It left us with only one consideration, that the hippo had walked across the beach, into the Atlantic and swam back through the lagoon mouth!  Don't tell a hippo when and where he should swim and what time of year! It seemed a very "hippo" thing to do!

 

Hippo tracks to the sea--but no return tracks...

virgin beach:

Back in the lagoon, we find our "surfing" hippos:

And a beautiful Gabonese sunset over the lagoon:

The others' pics are much better of the African grey parrots but I just love them and will post a couple shots I took---my video give you an idea of the cacophony of sound they make moving through the forest!  Makes me sad if you see them as pets, they are usually solo in a cage.  They are such social birds it seems quite cruel, if folks only knew what their life in the wild is like...

 

They have such charisma to me-- their facial expression cracks me up:

And then a random shot or two---I thought you needed to see the lengths some of us have gone to bring you this TR @michael-ibk I believe this was a hard won shot of an agama lizard!

 

My room at night -- Loango Lodge:

 

 

 

 

Edited October 7, 2019 by gatoratlarge

[Kitsafari]

@gatoratlarge oh i love that video of the parrots - the whistles and the squawking of the flock. 

 

My father-in-law used to have a caged African grey parrot among his flock of caged birds some 20+ years ago when caged bird trade was at its peak. A cat got among the  birds one day, and its cage fell and he thought the parrot got away. That parrot was so intelligent it could micmic everything - from a phone call ring to imitating his maid's accent and voice.  But I always felt sad for them, caged in a small cell for a bird that needed to be free and soaring in the sky, not calling like humans in a cell. 

[Treepol]

The Black Bee-eater is a very stunning bird, thanks for sharing your wonderful photos. So good to see photos of wild African Grey parrots, such an engaging bird. 

[SafariChick]

The next morning, the plan was for a 'game drive' on an island, so we had to take a boat to get to the vehicle. Matthieu was in touch with the gorilla researchers in the morning and they had not found the gorillas before dark the night before. But they said they would text him if they found them in the morning and if they did, we could be picked up from the island in another boat and taken over the the gorilla area.  So we went over to the island and began driving on what might have been the bumpiest drive I've ever been on. It was just crazy how rutted it was. And we didn't see a whole lot.  Some buffalo. I feel like I have photos but I'm not going to bother with them for now because after about an hour or an hour and a half, Dmitri got word that the researchers had found the gorillas - yay! @Kitsafari and I would now be able to try to go see them. We knew that this meant we would miss the whale watching expedition that was scheduled for later this morning. But Kit had decided not to go on that anyway, and while I was sad to miss it, I have gone whale watching before and, living in California, I know I'll have other opportunities. To me it was more important to try to see the gorillas. 

 

So we were whisked away and quickly boated over to the gorilla research place. We'd already had the briefing the day before so  we didn't need it again and could get started quickly. We had two young female researchers accompanying us and a tracker. The tracker knew the general vicinity where the gorillas were but he made a series of whistles to communicate with the other trackers that were with them to find the precise area. I suggested Google maps might be helpful to which the researchers laughingly agreed but pointed out that they had no internet signal in the forest!

 

The walk was easier than the ones I did in Rwanda. Mostly flat and the path was not too difficult. It took about 40 minutes and then we were with the gorillas! We came upon them feeding on the other side of some muddy swamp, so that swampy ground was between us and them, but we had a good view and they weren't too far off.  Yay - gorillas at last!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These were a couple of adult females and a three-year-old and it was wonderful to see them so well. After a few minutes of watching them and taking some photos,  our researcher wanted to see if we could get a bit closer. So she took a few tentative steps forward to test the ground. She decided it was ok to try so I took a step or two and ... promptly my left foot sunk into the mud to about midway up my calf! Unlike @michael-ibk when something similar happened to him, I was wearing hiking shoes not sandals. (I had debated back and forth which to wear but in the end decided to go with the shoes.. Not sure it would have made much difference in this situation). I tried to pull my foot out and realized it was really really stuck. At lest the shoe was. There was no way I could pull my foot out with the shoe on but I realized I could slip my heel out and pull out my foot without the shoe. After discussing it with the researchers, they said just do that and then we'll get your shoe out after! So I did, and the tracker brought me a piece of wood to rest my foot with sock on it while they extracted my shoe, then I stuffed my foot back into the muddy shoe and all was well. 

 

But then the gorillas started to move off away from us. This was frustrating as we hadn't spent very much time with them yet and now we realized we could not follow them straight ahead due to the mud, so we would have to go around and try to find them that way. So then we started walking and this was more uphill. We walked about 25 more minutes until we got with them again. This time, the view wasn't quite as clear, there was a lot of foliage which made it hard to get clear photos, but also it was cool because some of them were in the trees. Lowland gorillas are lighter than mountain gorillas so they spend more time in the trees.

 

One of the youngsters - I think this is my favorite photo from the gorilla trek:

 

 

There was a female watching two youngsters playing and kind of keeping an eye on us. The researchers told us this female was the most wary of humans of all the gorillas in this family and that it was typical she would do this.

 

 

the silverback was keeping himself hidden from us and it was very hard to get a good view or photo

 

 

Not a great photo but I liked the pose

 

 

one of the gorillas climbing down a tree

 

 

view through the leaves

 

 

and a couple of short videos - first one of gorillas feeding:

 

 

and second of a gorilla climbing down a tree:

 

 

all too soon the researchers said our time was up. I think we only spent about 40 or 45 minutes with the gorillas (plus the 25 minutes or so walking trying to find them again after the beginning when they moved) but it was very lovely and intimate with only Kit and I and the two researchers plus the trackers. I really loved getting to see them and so glad it worked out that they were found on the second day.

[Kitsafari]

And here are some of my photos from the evening boat ride around the Iguela lagoon 

 

First, a group of red-capped mangabeys dashing across a log when they spotted us coming into their direction, some of them with babies clinging to their bellies. My shots are not great - I had learned that trying to get clear sharp shots from a moving boat, with the engine vibrating and the waves swaying us, it is almost impossible to get any sharp photos so kudos to the master @michael-ibk for the great shots he took with ease with a handheld camera. 

 

 

 

A part of the lagoon was brownish rusty coloured, a sign that it was healthy waters as organic matters that are washed into the waters creates that colour, indicating no pollutants. 

 

 

 

A couple of very accommodating rosy bee eaters allowed us to get close to them, while a crab  tried to stay hidden but with colours like that, it is hard to hide on muddy flats. 

 

 

 

a sandbar was filled with African skimmers, Terns and whimbrels

 

 

we passed a fishing boats where Matthieu and his friends were fishing, before making landfall on the long unspoilt beaches of Loango national park where the ocean crashed into the beaches and terns flew in the strong wind, where hippo walked on the beaches leaving footprints in the sand, and where Dmitri danced to the music that another boat was playing.

 

 

then it was on to the hippos in the river. we were alone on the beach, and we were alone on the rivers except for one or two fishing boats that would just glide silently by - just quiet and solitude. 

 

 

 

 

The pelicans flew above us against the setting sun, answering an inner call to return to their safe resting places. The serene feel on the boat on a placid lagoon seemed a far cry from the harried and chaotic thrills and spills of the many previous days. 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 7, 2019 by Kitsafari

[Kitsafari]

I've never been on a trek to see mountain gorillas. I had read so much about the arduous and physically straining treks that could go on for two hours or more to track the greater apes that I had worried that I would not make it up nor down, so I had never planned a trek, even though I would have loved to look into their beautiful intelligent eyes. So of course when the opportunity came up to see lowland gorillas on nothing more than hillsides, I grabbed it. and the trek proved eazy-peazy - much easier than the Mandrill trek in fact. 

and it was a very cool experience. I was though a little disappointed that the thick jungle hid much of them from us, but that's nature, and I was just relieved that they had stayed put in the middle of the jungle for a while, enough for to observe their behaviour. 

I was just so impressed with the red-topped female who placed herself between the two three-year old juveniles and us, as she didn't have the trust in humans as the other adult female or the silverback did. well, the silverback did do his darnest to hide from us,and he certainly succeeded. 

Then to watch the two juveniles play as the adults rested - it was fun!

 

 

Silverback peeking at us

 

 

 

Silverback giving us a pretty stern look

 

 

a short clip of the gorillas

 

 

Edited October 7, 2019 by Kitsafari

[TonyQ]

Excellent additions with the hippos and parrots.

I am so pleased that @Kitsafari and @SafariChick got to see the Gorillas, and excellent viewing. The photos from both of you are lovely and really show the character and intelligence of them

[Alexander33]

So glad you got to see the gorillas, @SafariChick and @Kitsafari , and I’m relieved you were able to retrieve your boot, @SafariChick!

 

That lagoon looks very peaceful, indeed, just the kind of place I’d want to spend a morning or two. 
 

Edited October 7, 2019 by Alexander33

[Galago]

Hurrah! I felt myself relaxing as I read this. The Black Bee-eater is a total stunner and I love the shot of the young gorilla chilling in the tree, balancing with a leg stuck out. The Grey Parrot is lovely and the sounds really add to it. Yes, to keep these critters in captivity is a double cruelty. And the beach is stunning! 

[gatoratlarge]

I think @michael-ibk might have a busy week so I'll try to advance the ball as we're nearing the end of this crazy, fantastical ride, and I'll let him fill any gaps I left out on this particular day,  It would turn out to be a really good one for everyone.  Shortly after we had crossed the Iguela Lagoon,   and loaded up on a land rover to search for the Potamochoerus porcus (red river hogs) we received word the gorillas had been spotted so another boat was sent and @Kitsafari and @SafariChick were off to see the gorillas, the wonderful gorillas of Loango!

 

We did a loop around the open savannas to search for hogs or forest buffaloes.  The savanna track was bumpy as all hell so I envied @Kitsafari and @SafariChick as their ride was cut short!  We did get to see some forest buffaloes in beautiful morning light--this one had two heads!  :

 

We made our way to the Atlantic side of the peninsula we were on and saw the beach...oil platforms sit offshore and you could see the fire burning off the excess gases in the distance, but something caught my eye in between the beach and the distant platforms---the water would turn white from a huge splash---humpbacks leaping and crashing back into the sea!!  I raised my binocs and saw the telltale 25 ton bodies launching from the sea, long fins a'flailing!  I counted more than 25 jumps!  Now all I wanted to do was get back to the lodge and wait for the boat to show up and take us out into the Atlantic to get a closer look!

 

But getting through the small open mouth of the lagoon into the Atlantic is tricky...you must wait till high tide and the sand is always shifting!  We had been told high tide was around 11A but when we got back to the lodge, we found our whale watching trip a bit in limbo...the boat is actually the head ranger for the coastal marine's vessel (a burly South African) he and his cohort had been down on the Gabonese border with Congo trying to catch poachers or illegal fishing activity.  They had just gotten back the day before and there were some maintenance issues to take care of -- an oil change had to be done "in water" which took a couple hours, so our time was slipping away...we packed lunch for the boat and I was getting anxious...I had been looking forward to this since signing up for the trip!

 

So about 12:30P Bynum and his colleague Tiembo(?) arrived to thread the needle running through the gauntlet out into the open Atlantic...he assessed the lagoon mouth and we jetted through without issue but our time searching for whales would be shortened...we sat straddling a padded seat clutching the padded seatback in front of us...sometimes the boat would drop and we'd lose all contact with our seat!  It wasn't long before we spotted whales but would they still be jumping?  Is there a time of day it's more prevalent?  Had we missed our window?  Had I seen the best of it through binocs from the beach?  Actually the activity had died down a bit  but about 15 minutes in, we saw our first jump!  Then another, and another!  Most were a distance from the boat but at least one was quite close---trying to get a photo was a lost cause for me although I was running a gopro strapped to my head!  

 

Here's the best I got---please pardon the "double rainbow"-like gasps from me  I was quite excited!! LOL I think there are five jumps on this video and some tail slapping---also, please excuse the watermark on the video as I combined them together and merged the vids on a free app online but it would cost me $72 to remove the watermark--so no dice! Turn up the HD to 1080p to see it clearest:

 

 

 

In case you've never seen or heard the double rainbow guy -- for your visual and listening pleasure  :

 

 

    I know how he feels is all I can say  

 

Near the lagoon mouth:

 

mangroves ring much of the lagoon:

Later a pod of Atlantic dolphins and a couple of curious humpbacks stalled us on the way back through the lagoon mouth...the dolphins made a beeline for the boat and the whales just bobbed around following us a bit, the sound of the exhaling is incredible...we celebrated our day back at the lodge with a couple well deserved cold Regabs:

The boat crew:

 

That afternoon/evening we went back across the lagoon to try for red river hogs one last time -- wet season is much better for spotting hogs in the savanna as the grass was dry and, other than passing across to another patch of forest, it was hard to see what the hogs would eat...but we did spot a sitatunga and a yellow back duiker which they assured us was more rare to see than the hogs...well, you always need a compelling reason to return and the red river hogs, a giant pangolin and a water chevrotain could be it!

 

I still wanted to try to see the dwarf crocodile, another species I'd never seen before so our guide Dimetre (sp) shot across the dark lagoon in our boat and began shining a flash light into the mangroves.  Before I knew it, he had slipped off his shoes and slid over the side into the lagoon!  He returned to the boat holding a dwarf crocodile!!!  He held it for a while with a firm grip and them let it swim off after we'd all taken a look.  It is an especially beautiful crocodilian!

Edited October 11, 2019 by gatoratlarge

[shazdwn]

Fantastic - I was convinced that @Kitsafari and @SafariChick had missed the gorillas, sooo glad I was wrong.  

 

@gatoratlarge thanks for the whale video, and the double rainbow guy, I'd never seen that before.  Nothing wrong with loving nature's spectacles out loud 

[michael-ibk]

It was really a huge relief that Kit and Jane found the Gorillas the second time around. It was quite of a shock when us guys heard that the first trek had failed, and it would have felt pretty awful us having such a good sighting and them never seeing them. Phew!

 

Not much to add about Loango, the others have already covered pretty much everything, so I´ll just add some pictures trying not to be overly redundant. Like Akaka, this was a place I really, really enjoyed. Comfortable rooms, good food, nice staff, beautiful surroundings, a manager trying to do right - couldn´t find too much fault there and would be more than happy to go back some time, especially in the Green Season.

 

Snippets from the Lodge:

 

 

The omnipresent Red-Headed Agama

 

 

 

Red-Capped Mangabey. A lucky sighting, followed the noise during lunch break.

 

 

Ah, the Grey Parrots - I absolutely love these birds and their busy croaking, I´m really happy Joe had the good sense to take a video of that.

 

 

Long-Legged Pipit, a very confiding bird here.

 

 

Carmelite Sunbird

 

 

Common Sandpiper on the mooring area.

 

 

Green-Headed Sunbird

 

 

Swamp Palm Bulbul

 

 

 

My favourite bird sighting around the lodge - a Great Blue Turaco too busy feeding to notice me.

 

 

 

Edited October 10, 2019 by michael-ibk

[mtanenbaum]

Thanks so much for sharing this amazing report! I have to say I am not an intrepid enough traveler to try this particular itinerary, but great to read about it and see your fantastic photos!

[michael-ibk]

We only did two short game drives, one afternoon and one morning. It´s not the most productive thing to do in Loango in August, the savanna (if you can call it that) is bone dry and scorched, all animals keep to the forest patches where they still can find food. This is also the reason why there´s not much going on around the beach, not much food there either. Very different in the Green Season Matthieu told me, Elephants, Hippos, Buffalos and the Hogs are much easier to see then because they frequent all these now deserted areas.

 

 

 

Hadeda Ibis

 

 

Definitely our best sighting out here, a nice herd of Forest Buffalos in warm morning light. They really are very attractive animals, and it makes absolutely no sense to me that this is supposed to be the same species as their Savanna counterpart - they really do look very different.

 

 

 

Our afternoon drive was not exactly thrilling, in part due to the abmysally dull light.

 

 

Our most interesting animal, a Yellow-Backed Duiker. A very distant shot but still (just about) recognizable. Apparently super-rare to see, Matthieu said the ratio is about seven or eight Leopards (which are not seen much) for one Yellow-Backed. It is the largest of all Duikers, weighing up to 80 kg, and indeed we first wondered which Antelope this could be because Duiker did not even cross our mind.

 

 

While the land-based activities were not exactly super-thrilling stuff I absolutely loved all our boat outings. Relaxing, beautiful surroundings, nice birds - perfect stuff for me.

 

 

Rosy Bee-Eater, one of my favourites from the trip. I saw this one perching on the other side of the lagoon and urged Dimitry to approach. To my surprise it stayed put - nice fellow!

 

 

Atlantic Mudskipper, a pretty fascinating fish. Mudskippers are known for their unusual looks and the interesting abilities that they possess for being a fish that can survive both in and out of water. When leaving the water and moving into a more dry environment on land they are still able to breathe using water that is trapped inside their rather large gill chambers. They are also able to absorb oxygen from the lining of their mouth and throat allowing them to stay out of water for long periods of time. In fact, it has been discovered that they spend up to three quarters of their life on land.

 

 

Where the lagoon meets the Atlantic.

 

 

 

Red-Capped Mangabeys were reasonably common but never liked to pose for us.

 

 

Walking on the never-ending white beaches was particularly pleasant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah, this was a good place to hang out - we were happy!

 

 

The Hippos here were not as shy as in the Ogoué river or in Akaka. A good sign I guess.

 

 

 

 

Piping Hornbill, not an uncommon bird, but surprisingly hard to get.

 

 

Whimbrel

 

 

Western Reef Egret, very similar to the familiar Little Egret, but note the yellow legs (not only feet).

 

 

See the difference?

 

 

Our African Dwarf Crocodile. Really not the kind of sighting I had expected! I had thought Dimitri would use the flashlight, and expected we´d see mostly eyes. That he jumped in and caught definitely ranks among my most unexpected safari experiences. In hindsight I think we should have told him not to bother the animal but I hope it got away a bit confused about what the hell just had happened to it and nothing worse. Gabon is home to a very special variation of this Croc: There is a small population living in the Abanda caves of orange-coloured, almost blind animals feeding on bats.

 

 

Square-Tailed Nightjar. Accidentally flushed this bird while walking around.

 

 

And a really good sighting of a Finfoot. This bird is normally a skulker, keeping to the shadows of the overhanging vegetation but this individual was more cooperative.

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

And a short series of Skimmers and some other Terns. I really love these birds, their graceful flight, their unusual bill, their unique way of skimmingly feeding. Great to see a good colony like this.

 

 

 

Where is Waldo?

 

 

 

 

 

Royal Tern - quite a fitting name.

 

 

Common Tern

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TonyQ]

Beautiful skimmers and the Royal Tern.

The Finfoot and the Turaco also deserve special mention. Great sightings and excellent photos.

[michael-ibk]

But there can be little doubt what the undisputed Loango highlight was - the Whales! In true Gabon style they had us worried a bit if we´d ever get out to see them after a supposed 10 am. departure had become after noon.

 

 

But it worked out, and what an absolutely awesome experience it was.

 

 

It´s quite a different experience being out on the open ocean, much higher waves, and I was happy that I took Joe´s offer to take a pill against seasickness. It was fine while we were speeding out away from the coast but definitely started to feel a bit funny when we held our position, swaying in the waves. Strangely, eating a tuna sandwich helped.

 

 

It was mostly a catch the fluke experience photowise. We saw many jumps but it´s really tricky getting one of these. After all, you have no idea when and where in a 360 ° circle around the boat one might crash the surface.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was great to also see some Dolphins cavorting around us for a little while. I´m afraid I have no idea about marine mammals, anybody knows which species this is? I have labelled them as Bottlenose Dolphins but have already forgotten why I came to that conclusion.

 

 

 

We were shaking a lot in the waves so unfortunately I got no better Dolphin pictures.

 

 

But I was lucky enough to get one Whale breaching - not a whole body completely out jump but happy enough with it. There´s something completely surreal about seeing a 25 ton animal defying gravity like that, ignoring the huge burden of its own weight and flipping out of the water like a little fish. There was a lot of "Wooooooooooows" and "Whoooooooooooooooahhhhhhhhhhhs" on the boat indeed - a fantastic experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

39 minutes ago, mtanenbaum said:

Thanks so much for sharing this amazing report! I have to say I am not an intrepid enough traveler to try this particular itinerary, but great to read about it and see your fantastic photos! 

 

Many thanks @mtanenbaum! I would like to point out that - minor Gabonese quirks aside -  I feel that the only really necessarily intrepid part is getting to and out of Ivindo. Lope is very accessible, the train is comfortable enough in first class. And Loango is not too difficult either if you come from Libreville, which is what most visitors do. Catch a short flight to Port Gentil, then about four hours of driving on mostly good roads, really no hassle at all. That´s what we did on the way back to Libreville, and we were quite surprised how smooth it all was.

Edited October 10, 2019 by michael-ibk

[Galago]

Lovely shots @michael-ibk  In one of the photos it looks like a Bottlenose, but I'm no expert and Gabon has lots of cetacean species.  And humpbacks breaching! Love the barnacles on the ends of the tail! I'm curious anout the Carmelite Sunbird and how it got its name. Nothing in Whose Bird? about it. The female plumage is quite similar to the habits worn by Carmelite nuns.... but I'm clutching at straws here - and Wikipedia. Anyone know about this?

[pedro maia]

Great pictures as usual Michael, and the jumping whale sequence is stunning.

[inyathi]

@michael-ibk Great to see the humpback whales that’s clear bonus of going to Loango in the dry season. I don’t know a lot about all of the different dolphin species, but the Stuart’s Mammals of Southern Africa app that I’ve just bought includes dolphins and now covers Angola which is not too far south of Gabon, so I had a look at it and went through the dolphins, so I would say that you are right they are common/Atlantic bottlenose dolphins  (Tursiops truncates).

 

Yellow-backed duiker wow! That certainly is a rare sight, I’ve never seen one anywhere.

 

The road from Port Gentil down to Loango must be a fairly recent development, after the flights into Loango were stopped. people were being brought down to Omboue from Port Gentil in a hydrofoil boat belonging to the Hotel Olako in Omboue, this was a three-and-a-half-hour boat trip, then you would transfer to another boat and travel on again to Evengue Island. I understand that the Chinese (as always) are working on the road, so that in time it should be very good road and make travel to Loango quite easy.   

 

@Galago  I don’t know why the Carmelite sunbird is so called, but I would assume that the reason you have suggested is the right one, that their plumage is of similar colour to the habits of Carmelite nuns, or at least the man who named the bird thought so.

[Kitsafari]

1 hour ago, inyathi said:

 

The road from Port Gentil down to Loango must be a fairly recent development, after the flights into Loango were stopped. people were being brought down to Omboue from Port Gentil in a hydrofoil boat belonging to the Hotel Olako in Omboue, this was a three-and-a-half-hour boat trip, then you would transfer to another boat and travel on again to Evengue Island. I understand that the Chinese (as always) are working on the road, so that in time it should be very good road and make travel to Loango quite easy.   

 

 

 

@inyathi  the Chinese are indeed building a new road, including bridges across a number of rivers we had crossed. We did travel quite smoothly on certain stretches of tarred road that were completed and the bridges look almost finished. Once the  entire stretch of highway and flyovers are completed, i suspect the road journey will be significantly shortened from the current four hours. 

 

I found this article published in June and using Google translation to English, it says delivery of the Port Gentil-Omboue to the Gabonese government should be made next September, three years behind schedule. This is one part of the eventual road system that will link Port GEntil to Libreville, suggesting that a road journey to Omboue and thence to Loango will be possible in the future. 

 

http://www.faapa.info/gabon-la-route-port-gentil-omboue-sera-livree-en-septembre-prochain/

 

 

[Alexander33]

Great shots of the Great Blue Turaco, Michael. Actually, they’re all good, but, wow, the photos of the Humpbacks.....Amazing stuff. After all the travails you all went through, it seems as though things finally came together here at the end.