Madagascar: A gemologist’s journey (Isalo National Park Morning)

Posted on January 26, 2015 by mrahm

On the way from Amboarohy corundum deposit to Illakaka sapphire deposit we pass Isalo National Park, Madagascar’s most visited national park…and probably the most beautiful.

This unique park has incredibly diverse landscapes including grassy plains, mountains, deep canyons and tropical oases with picturesque waterfalls dropping into inviting teal-blue pools of cool water. Our eight hour hike took us through all of these in one day!

Isalo National Park
We begin our day-long hike in terrain that is reminiscent of the Badlands of South Dakota. It’s hot, but the views are spectacular, making it all worthwhile.

Isalo National Park
We pass Frankenstein Rock, an old tomb and a hornet’s nest before descending upon…
Piscine Naturelle: A gorgeous tropical oasis complete with ring-tail lemurs. This area was so beautiful and the water so inviting. It’s one of the favorite tourist locations in the park.

Isalo National Park
We follow the small oasis until it ends and we’re back in the hot arid landscape. We walk some distance under the direct sun before stopping under a nice shade tree for a break. Shade trees are rare in this area.

Our guide takes a moment to show off a tiny scorpion, and the wings of a grasshopper, which mimic a poisonous plant. Then we’re off again!
Isalo National Park

As we ascend a small mountain, we can see our starting point behind us in the distance, and flat grassy plains in front of us.
Isalo National Park
Hiking just a little further takes us peering over deep canyons like the desert southwest. Ken stops to take a selfie over the cliff.

After a busy morning hiking, we stop for an amazing BBQ lunch of ice cold beer, salad, zebu kabobs and rice, while a group of four lemurs entertains us.

Isalo National Park

Tomorrow we continue our beautiful hike in Isalo National Park.

Author: Michelle M. Rahm is a GIA-trained Graduate Gemologist and is President of Colorado’s Mile High Chapter of the GIA Alumni Association. She has been selling gemstones and jewelry online since 1997. Visit her websites JewelryImpressions.com and OurCustomWeddingRings.com

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Madagascar: A gemologist’s journey (Amboarohy corundum quarry)

Posted on January 21, 2015 by mrahm

Amboarohy is a famous locality for sapphire and ruby in well-formed crystals occurring in biotite metamorphic schists. The mine is located at the top of the mountain near the town of Zazafotsy. It’s a several-mile hike up to the top.

Amboarohy Corundum deposit
Amboarohy corundum quarry
The view from the top is amazing. I’m the first one to reach the mine, thanks to living in Colorado, so I start digging for something valuable. But, while I’m in the pit with several others, something scary happens…


I was a little freaked out when I could hear the popping and crackling of the fire and I looked up and saw the large flames. Thankfully the pit I was in was large enough so the fire could not suck out all the oxygen. One of my fellow travelers was in a small but deep hole when the fire came through. He quickly scrambled out of the hole for fear he might be suffocated.

Fires burn all over Madagascar. Locals burn the brown grass to make way for new grass for their zebu. But they don’t supervise the fires, so they just burn wild all over the country. This is causing further deforestation and loss of lemur habitats in Madagascar.

So was the hike worth the effort?

Those who decided to dig in the dump pile found some amazing pieces. This beautiful specimen shows blue and pink sapphire in the same crystal. Something that is commonly found from this particular corundum deposit. This is the same piece from three different angles. Not bad for a free specimen!

Amboarohy sapphire tailings
Those of us who chose to dig in the pit got skunked. But at the end of the day, we all had the opportunity to buy ruby crystals in schist from a local miner. The price was 20.000 ariary, or about $8.50 each. These are the ones I bought.

All in all, I appreciated the good exercise of our hike. I enjoyed seeing a new type of deposit and my rubies on schist were priced right, so it was good. And although scary, it was interesting experiencing the fire as well.

In my next post, I’ll introduce my favorite park we visited on our trip: Isalo National Park.

Author: Michelle M. Rahm is a GIA-trained Graduate Gemologist and is President of Colorado’s Mile High Chapter of the GIA Alumni Association. She has been selling gemstones and jewelry online since 1997. Visit her websites JewelryImpressions.com and OurCustomWeddingRings.com

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Madagascar: A gemologist’s journey (Anja Community Reserve)

Posted on January 19, 2015 by mrahm

Our morning on this day was spent in Ranomafana National Park. We left mid day to reach Anja Community Reserve before evening. This is a beautiful park located outside of Ambalavao. Anja Community Reserve is a gorgeous 74-acre wonderland. Designated a protected reserve in 1999, this fascinating park has breath-taking views and beautiful plant life.

Anja Community Reserve

Anja Community Reserve also hosts more than 300 ring tailed lemurs who aren’t camera-shy. As well as a variety of other animals. It’s a beautiful park. Watching the ring tailed lemurs here was absolutely amazing. In the lemur video on my previous post, the footage of the lemurs jumping between trees is from here in Anja.
Anja Community Reserve

We spent about three hours hiking around Anja Reserve, which included climbing up a steep rock face and using a rope to climb down. It was a bit scary but fun!

Like Ranomafana National Park, one must hire a guide to visit Anja Community Reserve. The price for entrance and guide was a little less than Ranomafana, but not much. There is a restaurant near the park entrance that has delicious food and decent prices, so we enjoyed lunch here on both of my trips.

Our next stop is Amboarohy corundum on schist deposit…time for more digging for rubies and sapphires!

Author: Michelle M. Rahm is a GIA-trained Graduate Gemologist and is President of Colorado’s Mile High Chapter of the GIA Alumni Association. She has been selling gemstones and jewelry online since 1997. Visit her websites JewelryImpressions.com and OurCustomWeddingRings.com

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Madagascar: A gemologist’s journey (Daytime in Ranomafana)

Posted on January 16, 2015 by mrahm

I remember this morning awakening for the first time surrounded by mosquito netting and listening to the call of lemurs in the forest. It was amazing! This area is known for mosquitoes, especially in the evening. I was told by guides on the first trip to be sure to wear mosquito repellent during the 3-4 hour day hike in the park. But upon my return in October, the guide strongly discouraged wearing mosquito repellent. He said it damages the small plant and animal species in the park. And he insisted there was not a mosquito problem during the day. He was right…I didn’t wear any on my second trip and didn’t get a single bite….during the day. At night, it’s completely opposite. The mosquitoes are everywhere in that area at night. Dress in long clothing.

Ranomafana Park
The park is very beautiful with dense forest and lots of walking paths. It can be strenuous at times and sometimes we are taken into the brush to get a good look at lemurs. The scenery is beautiful. We see several species of lemurs in their natural habitat as well as a ring-tailed mongoose, some geckos and other small animals.

One must always hire a guide when entering the park. The current rate is 40.000 ariary, which is about $16…for up to four people for 2-3 hours I believe. The price for a Malagasy to enter the park is 1.000 ariary, for a foreigner, it is 25.000 ariary! Love it!

We were fortunate enough to see the greater bamboo lemur, which is the star of the Imax movie, Madagascar: Island of Lemurs. We also saw several others. They are beautiful and amazing creatures.

Lemurs of Ranomafana Park
There are about 105 species of lemurs, all are endemic to Madagascar (found nowhere else in the world) and many are endangered.

Of course, I have some lemur video to share with you. A Madagascar presentation wouldn’t be complete without lemur footage. This 5-minute clip shows various different lemurs in different areas around Madagascar.

This might be a good time to share with you other wildlife of Madagascar. I was surprised to learn there are no real predatory animals in Madagascar…at least predators of humans that is. And there are also no penguins, elephants, giraffes, lions etc. The only predatory animal to humans is the crocodile, if you happen to be in one of the rivers where they are found.

Wildlife in Madagascar includes geckos, big spiders, snakes, ring-tailed mongoose crocodiles, birds, lemurs & more. These spiders are huge and they are everywhere. But they are beautiful and harmless to humans. So I just enjoyed looking at them.

Animals of Madagascar

After Ranomafana, we leave to see another gorgeous lemur habitat: Anja Community Reserve!

Author: Michelle M. Rahm is a GIA-trained Graduate Gemologist and is President of Colorado’s Mile High Chapter of the GIA Alumni Association. She has been selling gemstones and jewelry online since 1997. Visit her websites JewelryImpressions.com and OurCustomWeddingRings.com

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Madagascar: A gemologist’s journey (Evening in Ranomafana)

Posted on January 14, 2015 by mrahm

Continuing on from Ambatovaky we head to Ranomafana, where we spent a day without gem mining activities to enjoy the park. Ranomafana National Park, located outside Ranomafana the town, is a gorgeous tropical rain forest comprising over 161 square miles. Ranomafana Park is home to several of Madagascar’s rare lemur species among other rare species of flora and fauna. It is also the backdrop of the new Imax movie Madagascar: Island of Lemurs.

Ranomafana Park

We arrived in Ranomafana at nightfall, just in time to take an evening walk, a short night time tour to see the nocturnal animals. We saw mouse lemurs hopping back and forth between branches, spiders, lizards, frogs among other creatures. The guides were very interesting and knowledgeable. It was really a neat thing to do. Ranomafana is one of the most visited parks in Madagascar.

Nocturnal Creatures of Ranomafana Park
We closed the evening with an amazing feast in the town of Ranomafana and entertainment with a local band and children doing Malagasy tribal dance. Unfortunately it was so dark in the room, they were difficult to see. But I really got a kick out of these kids with their floppy hairstyles. They were so fun to watch.

Next, we take a daytime tour of Ranomafana to see all the beauty the park has to offer.

Author: Michelle M. Rahm is a GIA-trained Graduate Gemologist and is President of Colorado’s Mile High Chapter of the GIA Alumni Association. She has been selling gemstones and jewelry online since 1997. Visit her websites JewelryImpressions.com and OurCustomWeddingRings.com

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Madagascar: A gemologist’s journey (Placer gold locality)

Posted on January 12, 2015 by mrahm

About an hour outside of Ambositra in the country is a gold placer mining locality. In this placer gold locality miners use very primitive methods. It is said they find on average only .30 gram per day among all of them, but it is enough to make their efforts worthwhile.

I really enjoyed this location. The woman panning gold with her child was working hard using a wooden pan that had a large crack in it. I watched and wondered how effective that pan could really be with such a large crack in it. Enjoy the video below, be sure to allow enough time for it to load.


Further down the road on our journey to Ranomafana National park, We stopped and visited a metalsmithing village, Ambatovaky Village. I was amazed at the precise timing the men had pounding the shovel spade into shape. While the men were busy making tools, women ground corn and children begged or played a simple game.

In my next post, we arrive at Ranomafana Park!

Author: Michelle M. Rahm is a GIA-trained Graduate Gemologist and is President of Colorado’s Mile High Chapter of the GIA Alumni Association. She has been selling gemstones and jewelry online since 1997. Visit her websites JewelryImpressions.com and OurCustomWeddingRings.com

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Madagascar: A gemolgist’s journey (Ambositra)

Posted on January 8, 2015 by mrahm

My goodness, time has gotten away from me. I left for a mission to Madagascar on October 20th and returned just in time for the busy holiday season. Unfortunately I mis-calculated how much time I would have on the Internet during my stay, so I didn’t have the time to post while I was gone. I wish you all a blessed 2015 full of peace and prosperity!

Our next stop after the Ihasofotsy mineral market is Ambositra, pronounced by the locals as Ambustch. For those who desire a little nicer place to stay, there is really only one choice in Ambositra. The pricetag, about $24 – $32 per night depending on the room.

Ambositra

The Artisan Hotel and guest house is very nice. I stayed here on both trips to Madagascar. The accommodations are nice, the food is delicious and there is a good Internet connection. Upon our arrival, a group of local singers and dancers performed for us. Enjoy the video below…

In the morning, we had a bit of time to visit the town of Ambositra. The contrast is stark between the grounds of the Artisan Hotel and just outside its gates. Here is a typical meat market. I’m amazed the people can actually eat this meat without getting sick. It is often very dirty and covered in flies. The Malagasy people must have amazing immune systems!
Ambositra Meat Market

Ambositra is the wood carving capital of Madagascar. We stop in one shop and are fortunate to see wood carvers at work in the back room. I bought some beautiful wooden masks and salt/pepper shakers carved here in Ambositra.
Ambositra home depot
I couldn’t resist the urge to take a photo of the local home depot! We should have stopped here for some wood planks before going over the bridge on the way to Itremo.

In my next post, we will stop along the way to Ranomafana at a placer gold locality!

Author: Michelle M. Rahm is a GIA-trained Graduate Gemologist and is President of Colorado’s Mile High Chapter of the GIA Alumni Association. She has been selling gemstones and jewelry online since 1997. Visit her websites JewelryImpressions.com and OurCustomWeddingRings.com

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