After visiting the paper factory at Ambalavao, we drove further north on poorly maintained roads up into the “Cloud Forrest” region of Ranomafana.

After a fortnight of fine weather, we got a taste of how cold and wet Madagascar can actually get. It was absolutely torrential from about 5am this morning; metal roofs didn’t seem like such a bad idea until now. It was quite chilly as well, so we finally got to make use of that extra blanket that always seemed a little pointless before.

As we would probably starve before the rain subsided, we dodged the raindrops and made our way out to get breakfast at around 8:30. We took a small tour of the paper factory inside the bounds of the hotel, getting a good demonstration of how the locals hand-make paper-based products.

The weather still hadn’t subsided by the time we hit the road, and after what seemed like hours bouncing up and down on poorly maintained roads we finally made it to our next port of call. It’s called the Cloud Forrest region because of the high altitude, the surrounding jungle covered in clouds.

We’re staying here for two nights, with tomorrow being our main day of activity.