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14 / NATURE / Views<br />
NATURE / 15<br />
A Great<br />
Spread<br />
The IHOROMBE<br />
PLATEAU, a sweeping<br />
savannah that’s studded<br />
with palm trees, is a<br />
surreal canvas of<br />
yellow and green that<br />
stretches out to meet<br />
the mountains.<br />
text Annemarie Hoeve<br />
THIS MASSIVE plateau covers<br />
600,000 ha in southern Madagascar and<br />
is one of the least-populated regions of<br />
the island. You can tell. There’s not a<br />
person in sight for miles. Instead, palm<br />
trees tower above the low grass, like<br />
giant spiky lollipops, in every direction.<br />
Madagascar is something of a<br />
hotspot when it comes to palm trees.<br />
Currently, there are over 200 known<br />
species of palms growing there. Like so<br />
many of the flora and fauna found in<br />
Madagascar, they’re endemic to the<br />
island. In fact, only two percent of these<br />
palms grow elsewhere.<br />
Amid this dramatic expanse, the<br />
semi-nomadic Bara people herd their<br />
zebu cattle, watched over by the Isalo<br />
mountains. Dating from the Jurassic<br />
Period, this ancient massif of eroded<br />
rock is a highlight of any trip to the<br />
south: it has great walks, spectacular<br />
views and golden sunsets that remain<br />
aglow in the mind’s eye long after the<br />
last light has faded.<br />
Kenya Airways flies to Ivato International<br />
Airport in Antananarivo, Madagascar, from<br />
Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International<br />
Airport four days per week.<br />
Robert Harding
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