Boldly going; Michael Alexander recalls an amazing week spent in the

It is the ultimate Wild Week. Sailing for 100 miles over seven days in a small dugout canoe with two local fishermen through the changeable waters of southwest Madagascar.

Living like the local people (most of whom had never seen a white face): on the water by day and on the beach at night, eating freshly caught fish. Enduring dangerous hazards such as shark attacks, bubonic plague, cholera, dysentery, malaria, diseases hitherto unclassified by science, shipwreck, drowning, getting hit on the head by the boom, poisoning, heat exhaustion and kidnapping.

Sound appealing? It did to the 10 Scottish adventure-seekers who left for Madagascar before Christmas. Arduous and enlightening, it was a journey into Africa which will forever remain with those of us lucky enough to sample life in one of the few truly untouched corners of the world.

Madagascar, also known as the Malagasy Republic, lies just over 300 miles off the east coast of Africa, south of the equator. It is separated from Africa by the Mozambique Channel and is crossed by the Tropic of Capricorn near the southern town of Toliara. Not well known, Madagascar conjures up images of a small remote island with picturesque beaches.

It certainly possesses some of the most picturesque beaches in the world - 400 miles of white sand in fact - but small it ain't. Madagascar is the world's fourth largest island (after Greenland, New Guinea and Borneo - Australia is defined as a continent), and almost three times the size of Great Britain.

Yet 75% of Madagascar's 13 million inhabitants live below the poverty line, 85% of children are undernourished, and 15% of all children die before their first birthday. Madagascar is no paradise. In fact, it is in the World Bank's top 10 poorest countries in the world.

Feedback Madagascar, a small independent charity operating from Argyll, have been working on development projects in Madagascar for almost 10 years now, trying to help local people overcome this desperate poverty. In an effort to raise awareness and funds, Feedback organised an expedition this autumn for those prepared to experience life as a Malagasy fisherman for a week, with all the challenges and discomforts that daily life entails.

So having pestered friends, family and companies for sponsorship, and endured the pain of umpteen injections, the adventurers stepped on a plane to Antananarivo, capital city of Madagascar.

With no time to waste, the adventurers didn't hang around the colonial capital for too long, although long enough to experience the less than subtle nightlife, a bit of an eye-opener for some of the younger members of the team.

Loaded with provisions and plenty of enthusiasm, the team set off from the central highlands to the remote west coast, eager to get in the canoes and put all the gruelling fitness preparation into practice on the high seas of the Mozambique Channel. Two days later (by which stage we had finally and irrevocably left behind our European conceptions of what constitutes a "road"), we arrived on the coast ready for action.

But safety first, and Feedback had gone to extraordinary lengths to ensure that the expedition was well looked after and every eventuality covered. Firstly, there was Dr Jim Bond (from Colinton), an ecologist, botanist and reluctant medical practitioner, whose sole priority was the health and safety of the team.

The biggest threat to life and limb, however, came not from any savage beastie or elemental force of nature, but from within. Unfortunately Bernard, a mad French Paris-Dakar enthusiast with little concern for his own life, didn't seem to dwell on the safety- implications of his actions as far as the people he was meant to be looking after went either.

Not too handy when his job was to pilot the safety boat, rescuing those who fell overboard and pulling the canoes when the adventurers became too exhausted to paddle.

Luckily, his influence was counterbalanced by that of there was Sean, the Cornish owner of Madagascar-based tour operator Ecotours, who patiently followed the flotilla of canoes up the coastline in a jeep with essential supplies such as sleeping mats (and warm beer).

So armed with a paddle each, two bottles of water, and a true sense of adventure, the team launched their canoes (with a little help from the locals) into the ocean. And so started the real action.

This trip had never before been attempted by anyone other than the local Vezo fishermen, a tough and independent tribe, but very hospitable and friendly to outsiders. The traditional out-rigger canoes (the same that brought the Malagasy people to the island 2000 years ago) were built by the fisherman using local wood from eight different species of tree and, with unpredictable winds and hazardous reefs, needed skillful manoeuvring and expert handling. Each canoe was accompanied by two fishermen, who provided onboard education. Our learning curve was, by necessity, very steep.

For seven days we lived the life of traditional Malagasy fishermen. By day paddling, sailing, and fishing on the unchartered waters and by night eating, dancing, chatting and sleeping on beaches and in villages never before visited by Westerners.

The warmth of the villagers' hospitality and the energy of their children hid the true reality of harsh subsistence living in these remote and challenging settlements. The spectacular scenery, brilliant natural colours and bright sunshine was overwhelming, as was the effort required for us to reach these remote outposts.

But what really hit home was the incredible friendliness and generosity of those welcoming us as each day we visited another village dotted up the coastline.

After seven exhilarating and exhausting days on the sea, the team successfully reached the port of Morambe, the final destination.

The expedition had not been without incident: a sunk safety boat, a sick doctor, a stuck-in-the-mud jeep, a broken mast, and a lot of blisters and bites all contributed to the feeling that we had completed a genuine adventure and, more importantly, learned much from the people of Madagascar.

Team members returned to Scotland with their own personal memories and impressions, many captured on film, but without exception everyone appreciated what a unique and wonderful experience this adventure in Madagascar had been.

For more information visit Feedback Madagascar's website at www.feedbackmadagascar.org.

Copyright 2001
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.