Gabon Information - Ivindo

Ivindo National Park

No trip to Gabon is complete without visiting Ivindo and the fabulous Langoue Bai. This vast swampy clearing in the primeval rainforest has been the feeding and drinking place for Forest Elephants, Forest Buffalo, Sitatunga, Western Lowland Gorillas, and other primates since time began... and it feels like it. The Bai itself is surrounded by towering forest and steep-sided hills, and behind the constant chattering of the birds and insects is the distant rumbling of waterfalls and eery call of the elephants from deep within the trees. This is a place that very few people have ever visited, and which was in fact only discovered two or three years ago. Here you are invited to live alongside researchers in their camp and observe the animals from platforms set up around the edge of the Bai. You may sometimes spend the night on the platform itself and there can be few more wonderful experiences than sitting at the Bai as the sun is setting watching the elephants bathing and the Sitatunga foraging, knowing that at first light this magical landscape will reveal more secrets. This truly is a unique experience to be found nowhere else on earth and despite the overnight train journey and forest trek to reach it, this is considered by most to be the highlight of their trip to Gabon. To fully appreciate this area we recommend three or four nights here.