Réserve Le Palmarium
Le Palmarium a blend of resort hotel and nature reserve sits on a 50 ha land on the shore of lac Ampitabe along the Pangalanes canal some four and half hours drive and motor boat transfer from Andasibe or two and half hours boat transfer on the Pangalanes canal from the harbour town of Toamasina; the site is exclusively accessible by the canal des Pangalanes a series of artificially inter-connected lakes parallel to the Indian Ocean from which it is separated by a series of sand dunes. The canal des Pangalanes was dug for trading goods from over 600 km southwards of the harbour of Toamasina the ocean decisively too rough and dangerous for sailing.
To attain Le Palmarium reserve and hotel, a motor boat ride is imperative the voyage could start either at Manambato or Toamasina respectively for whom drives down from Andasibe or arrived Toamasina by air or other means as of Sainte Marie or any nearby places. Indifferently from North or West, the boat ride is full of excitement as you will travel passed by villages characterized by restricted sand beaches opening to the canal des Pangalanes primarily used by locals to access dugout pirogues which they use to transport goods of all types of which construction materials, food, etc… The openings to the canal des Pangalanes usually swarmed by waving and calling children are also used for laundry, cleansing cooking utensils, bathing areas as well as to collect water for daily use. You will also encounter during the transfer other motor boats, some with cargo, others used as means of public transportation the canal of Pangalanes constituting a well developed and adopted network system. All the way through Le Palmarium hotel and reserve, the shores of the canal des Pangalanes is covered by luxurious vegetation of aquatic or semi-aquatic plants, amongs which Cyperaceae, Pandanaceae, etc… During the blooming seasons, orchids, clearly amongst the few which were not subjected to pillage, ornament trees and branches. Enjoy your journey as it transcend magic and wonders.
Highlights
Le Palmarium is a lowland moist evergreen forest subjected to logging before its settlement as reserve. As a consequence of logging, the reserve became a mosaic of remnants of the natural forest recognizable with the abundance of epiphytes, secondary forest, thickets and grassland dominated by Ravenala madagascariensis. Typhonodorum lindleyanum, Cyperaceae, multiple species of Pandanus, Ravenala madagascariensis and Nepenthes madagascariensis prevail in wet zones and marsh forest bordering lac Ampitabe. Tropical luxuriant vegetation combined with the abundance of wildlife make Le Palmarium the photographers' wonder especially for lemurs which got used to human presence as to literally pose for picture as show Indri indri while Aye-Aye peacefully go through feeding indifferent to the fuss they are infusing into their spectators. White and yellow sand beaches shoring warm waters are also idyllic for relaxation and escape setting apart Le Palmarium on the eastern coast of Madagascar.