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As featured in the USA Today as one of "6 global adventures [that] span the extraordinary!"

A Follow the Leader Trip with Allen Bechky - New for 2008!

Journey to the untouched rainforests of Gabon, where dense tree canopies and narrow river channels make for unforgettable adventuring! The trip will be led by Allen Bechky, MTS’s director of Africa Operations for over 20 years, and the man who literally wrote the books on adventuring in Africa. Along with a resident primatologist and pygmy guides you’ll board pirogues and push upriver deep into the rainforest, a pristine region teeming with primates, birds, and a stunning floral biodiversity. After emerging from the forest you’ll venture overland through vast savannas and evergreen forests until reaching La Lopé-Okanda Reserve, home to 15 species of primates, including chimps, lowland gorillas, and elusive nocturnal bushbabies. Gabon’s unique ecosystem makes for unusual game viewing—buffalo in the forest and elephants and gorillas on the beach! This is not your ordinary safari, but a true exploration into the hidden heart of Africa’s virgin rainforest!

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS

• Push deep into the virgin rainforest aboard motorized dugout canoes
• Travel with pygmy guides and learn their traditional ways with local plants and animals
• Track chimps and gorillas in untrammeled wilderness rarely visited by Westerners

"Gabon is celebrated for a system of reserves that protect Africa’s vanishing rainforest habitats. Its forests harbor some of Africa’s most fascinating animals, but it’s not an “animal a minute” type of place. We have to search out the wildlife—but that’s all part of the fun! I look forward to watching for forest elephant and gorillas to appear on the Langoue baie (clearing), and the possibility of getting a glimpse of a water chevrotain or a talopoin. I consider it a privilege to visit Gabon’s parks. I’ve been exploring the African wilds for 35 years—and I still haven’t had enough! Join me for a really unusual wildlife safari." - Allen Bechky

Day 1 - Arrive in Libreville, Gabon.

Day 2 - Fly to Omboué. Board a boat for the short ride to Evengue Island. Spend the day visiting the gorilla sanctuary and exploring by kayak or on foot.

Day 3 - Surrounded by monkeys and crocs, journey up the “black water” Mpivie River into the heart of the rainforest.

Days 4-5 - Explore the Tassi Savanna and the beaches of Louri, where elephants and buffaloes relax in the sand. Boat journey to Akaka Forest Camp, where butterflies are thick and elephants roam through camp.

Day 6 - Spend the day in Operation Loango, a unique public/private conservation project with impressive results.

Day 7 - A day of relaxation on the beaches of Point St. Catherine, a pristine coastline with miles of mangroves and secluded beaches.

Days 8-11 - Journey by train, 4-wheel-drive vehicle, and finally on foot to Ivindo National Park and Langoué Camp, a research station of the Wildlife Conservation Society. Tree platforms provide excellent viewing of gorillas, elephants, and the rest of the stunning biodiversity here.

Days 12-14 - Tour Lopé National Park and see the ancient Kongo Boumba rock engravings, and maybe even catch a glimpse of one the 600 mandrills—the world’s largest monkey!—living nearby. While here you’ll hike into the jungle to track gorillas, chimps, and the elusive mandrills.

Days 15 - Return to Libreville by overnight train.

Days 16-17 - Explore this posh capital city where French architecture stands alongside central African craft markets. Depart Libreville on Day 17.

Photo Credits
Both images: ©MTS Photo File