Tsinjoriake Protected Area. Table Mountain, Sarodrano peninsula and Saint Augustin Bay. A nature sanctuary
The site is classified as “natural monument and protected harmonious landscapes” and understandably justify its name. The place is breathtaking and will take you on a journey between earth and sky. You might climb mounts and enjoy a 360° vantage point as well as roam underground to uncover hidden corridors. Adventures awaits you!
DID YOU KNOW? Hundreds of pink flamingos live in the area all year long. They are found near the mangrove swamp that boards the mouth of the Onilahy River, and it is quite an unique picture to see in Madagascar.
Visiting the area will ensure an ecoresponsible trip and will teach you the good habits to have in order to travel while respecting the surrounding nature that will also contribute to the area’s sustainable management.
Tsinjoriake, a beautiful site of Madagascar, is located at the entrance of Toliara. It is covers a vast territory ranging from Table Mountain to the edge of the Onilahy River. Countless circuits have open to hikers. Routes leading to Table Mountain, the circuits of the caves, the landscape are breathtaking. Beaches and coves remain wild. We invite enthusiasts to join the peninsula Sarodrano, surrounded by primary forest.
7 of the 10 bird species endemic to the south of Madagascar can be found here. 4 main circuits will show the flora and fauna specific to the area. In the program, visiting caves and a panoramic 360 ° view of the coast, meeting with local people, snorkeling and walking through the mangroves, swimming and lazing on the sand dunes, trekking through the lush vegetation.
This visiting you can make on foot (camping trip), by quad, by a 4x4 car. Or take the sea trip Sarodrano peninsula and Saint Augustin Bay.
Firstly, the Table Mountain circuit. This circuits invites you to a sportive hike. You will have the opportunity to admire the magnificent scenery of the hinterland and the coastline in an overview 360. This circuit also introduces you to a variety of medicinal plants in the heart of a thorny vegetation. Our guide will have tell you the medicinal uses of many plants, most are aphrodisiacs. In a scrubby forest you can meet Red-shouldered, Vanga Verreaux’s Coua, Lafresnaye's Vanga, Green-capped Coua, Sub-desert Messite and other endemics. You can thus admire the region’s typical dry forest as well as the steep cliff that boards the southwest coast. You will have the opportunity to climb Table mountain which has an exceptional vantage point on the area and its surroundings 5900 hectares. Table Mountain is a very flat mountain that consists mainly of sandstone so the wind shears off flat layers, hence the name. It is the best vantage point to watchand photograph the surroundings of the sun over the Mozambique Channel, which is absolutely stunning.
The caves circuit, between earth and sky. This circuit will give you the opportunity to discover the area’s underground network. The circuit is divided in 3 courses during which you will learn more about the Sarodrano and Binabe’s caves as well as the animistic rites typical of the region. The Sarodrano cave is one basin filled with clear, blue fresh water, under a rocky overhang. The path there leads up through spiny forest where wild ring-tailed lemurs and southern endemic birds can be seen. The various routes will conduct you through forests, beaches and underground caves, surely an interesting experience!
The Tsinjoriake – Sarodrano peninsula circuit. This circuit is probably the most interesting, during which you will discover the luxuriant vegetation where an endemic fauna took shelter. Ornithology enthusiasts will be delighted due to certain bird species being endemic of this region. Then, your trip will lead you to Sarodrano where the peninsula, with a shape of an arrowhead, offers an endless white sand beach. It is a relaxing moment alongside the local Vezo-fishermen. The scenery is guaranteed, you be enjoy visiting, the swim and picnic.
The Saint Augustin – Barn Hill circuit. Saint-Augustin it is the small village of located in a bay inlaid between two huge rocky walls that plunge vertically into the waves. Here, in the perfect circle formed by the surrounding cliffs, the Onilahy River, one of the most majestic of Madagascar, flow into the sea. The circuit is made of 2 routes. The first one will lead you to Saint Augustin’s village and its surrounding typical mangrove while the second one will lead you to Saint Augustin bay’s high grounds. This circuit invites you to learn more about the local people’s everyday life as well as the fauna and flora. Ultimately, the best moment will be standing on the bay’s high grounds admiring breathtaking landscapes, in particular you have the chance to witness a setting sun.
Watch more photos about Tsinjoriake Protected Area. Table Mountain, Sarodrano peninsula and Saint Augustin Bay here.