It was a relief to be in camp and to know we were safe and had access to hot water and toilets. There was even a swimming pool….it was coated with slimey algae on the bottom but it was still a swimming pool. After a morning shower I was drying whilst looking at the pool with the cool water reflecting the amazing mountain around us and so couldn’t help getting in for a few lengths….it was so refreshing although I did need another quick shower.

 

After breakfast it was time to say our thanks and goodbyes to many of the porters who had been with us on the trek and had saved our lives 2 days before. Some of our group gave speeches and the porters in turn wanted to say a few words in return, thanking us for staying together during the fire.  The speeches ended with singing and dancing. It was a very emotional but uplifting start to the day.

 

 

We were getting used to early mornings and with the swim, breakfast and speeches we had already been up a few hours but it was still only around 7am. There were a few options on the table for the day. Most of the group opted to take a further trek up to Chameleon rock….which was a huge mountain overlooking the camp that looked like a chameleon…complete with rocks in the shape of chameleon’s distinctive eyes. (Did you know that chameleons eyes can rotate their eyes so they can see from many angles and even use their two eyes to look in opposite directions!)

Anyway, we didn’t do that. Nik was still not feeling great and there was another option on the cards that was much more tempting…..lemurs!

Those of you who followed our fundraising over the last year would have seen that lemurs played a big part. We raffled 3 separate toy ring tailed lemurs and Nik’s Mum made King Julien style headdresses. We even took one of the toy lemurs to Scotland in the summer as part of our walking training….just to get used to being around them. Lemurs had become so much a part of life that even our cat Violet was making friends.

 

Basically, seeing lemurs especially the ring tails was one of the things we had been most looking forward to and this was a chance to see them in the wild.

The main group headed off up the mountain and a smaller group of 5 of us went with our guide into the forest around camp. We were on full lemur alert looking at any movement in the trees hoping to catch even the briefest glance or snatch a blurry photo….

…..and then suddenly there they were. Dozens of them. Families, babies…and one very accommodating model Julien striking a pose in front of the mountain.

 

It was more than we could have hoped for. They were running around us seemingly totally unfazed by humans.

 

We headed into the forest. Around us were geckos, chameleons, brightly coloured and noisily singing birds, giant grasshoppers and kites soaring overhead.

 

We saw weird ants’ nests, huge spider nests and giant orchids. We clambered through caves and onto stone ledges given us amazing views of the rock massif above and valley below.

 

We even watched our guide make a rope in minutes in front of us from the leaf of an Aloe plant.

 

After all of the adrenaline of the last couple of days this was a different kind of excitement and very much needed. An amazing morning.

Our walk ended with a visit to the nearby village. There was a wooden shack of a bar, a zebu car park(!), the village shared toilet block and Malagasy children in football tops…including one that looked suspiciously like a Sheffield Wednesday kit! We bought some jumbo sized bottles of Coke from a small wooden store and headed back up hill to camp past a football pitch that was going to be used for the weekly match between local villages.

 

We had a lazy lunch by the pool and a chilled afternoon. There were other people staying at the lodges at the campsite and we got talking to a Dutch couple who had climbed Pic Bobby a couple of days earlier. When we shared our story and showed them the pictures of the fire they were shocked. It was emotional to see reactions of people who knew the base camp and understood how close we had come.

Whilst we were relaxing by the pool we saw a couple of young Malagasy men bring out a huge telescope. We were intrigued and then a little worried, They seemed to be looking through the lens and then looking at each other with serious expressions. They didn’t seem pleased. We thought that maybe there was another fire and so went over to find out more. We need not have worried. They were just watching the local football match and their team was losing! The game went on for hours and seemed to be around 20-a- side.

As the evening drew in the dying sunlight hit the top of Chameleon rock and illuminated the top turning the Chameleon a vibrant gold colour.

That night we had a fantastic meal and final night in Andringitra. The cooks had prepared a full spit roasted lamb. Nik was finally able to eat (although still too poorly for cold beers). The locals had also arranged some music and were playing local and western songs….it took us a while to get the running joke after they played ‘I Will Survive’ and ‘Staying Alive’…..they didn’t go quite as far as ‘Disco Inferno’.

The night ended with Will, our group medic and resident Doc Rock accompanied by our resident photographer and Fire hero Al playing the guitar and a rousing sing a long. We belted out everything from Oasis to Cat Stevens. Singing our hearts out in a campsite under the stars with great new friends was a memory we willl never forget.

Still no ‘Disco Inferno’ though!