Exploring Masoala

Breakfast at Masoala Forest Lodge is served on the Sea Deck.

We were talking this morning about how differently luxurious this experience is from, say, an all-inclusive resort in Cancun or Hawaii. It is not at all fancy. The showers are a little finicky. There is no marble, no infinity pool, and dress is extremely casual.

On the other hand, it is gorgeous, and completely isolated--no roads, no cars, no sounds but the waves and the wildlife. The staff are dedicated to personal attention and do their best to be sure every guest is enjoying their stay. Each party has a dedicated guide. Laundry is included. There is no choice of food at lunch, or dinner (although they are happy to accommodate dietary restrictions and even dislikes) but the food is delicious and most of it is local, fresh, and what we would call organic.

At breakfast there is a wide choice of crepes with sweet fillings, yogurt with amazing local honey and your choice of fresh fruit, and eggs any style you like with a choice of onions, tomatoes, and/or cheese. And did I mention that everything we've had has been delicious?

Jason enjoying a crepe with peanut butter, bananas, and honey.

After breakfast we climbed in one of the smaller boats with Felix, our guide, for a short trip down the coast to one of their primary hiking areas and set off into the rainforest.

Not gonna lie, this was a challenging hike for me. There was a lot of up and down, mostly over roots and rocks. The temperature was only around 80, but the humidity was intense, and we were all running with sweat. When I looked up, the heat from my face fogged up my glasses. But we were intrepid and persevered!

We didn't see a ton of animals. The highlight was a red-ruffed lemur that only lives in Masoala. We got a good view of this handsome fellow sunning himself at the top of the canopy.

We also saw this huge red millipede.

And Felix pointed out a number of rare birds.

But mostly we just marveled at the forest--the trees and vines and flowers, streams and rocks and waterfalls.

Wild begonias

Loved how this vine had grown in a complete loop.

After three hours, Felix led us back down to the beach to wait for the boat.

I found this beautiful swamp-lily growing amid the rocks.

After all the heat and humidity, it was glorious to feel the sea breeze and spray in our faces as we sped back to the lodge.

We arrived just in time for lunch--fish & chips today, a really meaty king mackerel that was so good I only got a photo of half of it.

After lunch Alice swung in the hammock on our deck while Jason and I had a quick dip in the ocean and showered off.

Then it was time for the massage I had cleverly booked yesterday. The massage tent is out past the sun deck.

It was a wonderful massage and the therapist used oil with vanilla in it, so I came out smelling like a cookie. I stumbled sleepily down the beach to our tent and had a long and very satisfying nap.

I emerged just as the light was fading and enjoyed a rum sundowner by the fire before dinner of octopus stewed in coconut milk.

None of us were up for another evening hike, so we dragged chairs down onto the beach and enjoyed the spectacular night sky full of stars.