I did a two week trip to Gabon, Central Africa over Easter. It's not a well travelled part of the world but I can now safely say people are missing out. It's 'better' known as the land of the surfing Hippo and for elephant and buffalo walking along the beach.
If you like Safaris this is the place to go, especially if you've done the more traditional safaris in East and Southern Africa. There are no 4x4 drives here, feet only, which gives a totally different perspective of the animals you see. We spent two weeks walking through forest and along beaches, with the occasional time in a boat, listening for animals and tracking them through the bush.
Crouching 5m away from a group of elephant, with just the wind direction for protection is such a great experience, as is the memorable experience of being charged and having to run...
You really have to work for your animals here, unlike east Africa and being in a vehicle, animals will run when they see, smell or hear a human, however with trained guides there are still plenty of chances to see wildlife. We didn't however see any Gorillas, which we had hoped to see. We did see plenty of elephant, buffalo, antelope, hippo, monkeys and a fleeting glimpse of a chimp as well as the usual smaller creatures.
The big selling point for me was the fact its one of the few places in the world where you can see big African mammals on the beach, just after seeing them in the forest, a totally different experience from the usual savannah and scrub I've seen them in before.
Just getting to the parks is an adventure in itself, flights are unreliable so road transport is the only way, except most of the roads are dirt and sand. There were long trips between locations but that also gave us some stunning photo opportunities too. Best of all, Gabon is one of the safest countries in Africa, which means even though you will almost certainly be the only tourists you see, you won't have to worry about safety, or really even theft, unlike other central African countries like the DRC and Congo next door.
It's stupid expensive if you go on an organised tour with a western company but it can be done far more reasonably if you contact an NGO in country.
Anyway, enough waffle. First some wildlife. I came back with over 3000 photos but I've tried to distil it right down, we saw a heck of a lot more than this...
First off, a few birds
1
Birds by Amp34, on Flickr
2
Vulture by Amp34, on Flickr
3
Weaver bird by Amp34, on Flickr
4
Woodland Kingfisher by Amp34, on Flickr
There were loads of kingfishers around (I think there are 4 different types). I managed to get a few good photos of a couple but I actually like this one, even if it's not a great photo. It flew off before I could recompose without the giant piece of wood in the way... Woodland Kingfisher
5
Single Bee Eater by Amp34, on Flickr
We stayed in a small community run guesthouse in the small village of Sette Cama, just on the southern border of Loanga National Park. On one side is the sea and hundreds of km of beach and the other a huge Lagoon. It took me two days to get these Bee Eaters, luckily they had a favourite perch.
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Bee Eaters with a Catch by Amp34, on Flickr
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Wading by Amp34, on Flickr
Around the lagoon were a number of smaller rivers, bounded by Mangroves on both sides. Occasionally there were small marsh areas that attracted lots of wildlife
8
Pelican Flying by Amp34, on Flickr
9
Pelican on a Log by Amp34, on Flickr
There was a group of about 20 pelicans living at the end of a spit where the lagoon emptied into the Atlantic.
If you like Safaris this is the place to go, especially if you've done the more traditional safaris in East and Southern Africa. There are no 4x4 drives here, feet only, which gives a totally different perspective of the animals you see. We spent two weeks walking through forest and along beaches, with the occasional time in a boat, listening for animals and tracking them through the bush.
Crouching 5m away from a group of elephant, with just the wind direction for protection is such a great experience, as is the memorable experience of being charged and having to run...
You really have to work for your animals here, unlike east Africa and being in a vehicle, animals will run when they see, smell or hear a human, however with trained guides there are still plenty of chances to see wildlife. We didn't however see any Gorillas, which we had hoped to see. We did see plenty of elephant, buffalo, antelope, hippo, monkeys and a fleeting glimpse of a chimp as well as the usual smaller creatures.
The big selling point for me was the fact its one of the few places in the world where you can see big African mammals on the beach, just after seeing them in the forest, a totally different experience from the usual savannah and scrub I've seen them in before.
Just getting to the parks is an adventure in itself, flights are unreliable so road transport is the only way, except most of the roads are dirt and sand. There were long trips between locations but that also gave us some stunning photo opportunities too. Best of all, Gabon is one of the safest countries in Africa, which means even though you will almost certainly be the only tourists you see, you won't have to worry about safety, or really even theft, unlike other central African countries like the DRC and Congo next door.
It's stupid expensive if you go on an organised tour with a western company but it can be done far more reasonably if you contact an NGO in country.
Anyway, enough waffle. First some wildlife. I came back with over 3000 photos but I've tried to distil it right down, we saw a heck of a lot more than this...
First off, a few birds
1
Birds by Amp34, on Flickr2
Vulture by Amp34, on Flickr3
Weaver bird by Amp34, on Flickr4
Woodland Kingfisher by Amp34, on FlickrThere were loads of kingfishers around (I think there are 4 different types). I managed to get a few good photos of a couple but I actually like this one, even if it's not a great photo. It flew off before I could recompose without the giant piece of wood in the way... Woodland Kingfisher
5
Single Bee Eater by Amp34, on FlickrWe stayed in a small community run guesthouse in the small village of Sette Cama, just on the southern border of Loanga National Park. On one side is the sea and hundreds of km of beach and the other a huge Lagoon. It took me two days to get these Bee Eaters, luckily they had a favourite perch.
6
Bee Eaters with a Catch by Amp34, on Flickr7
Wading by Amp34, on FlickrAround the lagoon were a number of smaller rivers, bounded by Mangroves on both sides. Occasionally there were small marsh areas that attracted lots of wildlife
8
Pelican Flying by Amp34, on Flickr9
Pelican on a Log by Amp34, on FlickrThere was a group of about 20 pelicans living at the end of a spit where the lagoon emptied into the Atlantic.
Any particular ones you like best? Always interested to see what others like.