Caldera Report

I just got back from the Gran Caldera Expedition. It was definitely the most incredible thing I have ever done! I saw so many monkeys! Erythrotis, Pogonias, Red Colobus, and I even saw one Drill! I didn't want to leave, I loved it so much. The 2 day hike in was pretty intense, at first we hiked down this really rocky disheveled "road" from Belebu to Ureca. Belebu:

Then we hiked from Ureca to Moraka Playa, which was a lot of up and down in the forest and it was mixed with a lot of hiking on the beach.

We stayed at Moraka Playa (the beach camp for 4 days). I did primate census there, and got my first good looks at erythrois and pogonias. Pogonias:

Then the first group of us students hiked up to the Caldera. It was definitely the hardest thing I have ever done! There were so many steep up and down inclines. At one point I didn't think I was going to make it, but I did. It was sooo worth it! Hormigas Camp was so beautiful, I loved it! It was like camping in the rainforest. I got a really good look at a group of Red Colobus, one of my best experiences to date.

A couple days later we hiked up to North Camp, which is the highest point in the Caldera. We only stayed there one night and didn't get to do census, but we did do census on the hike back down and that was awesome. I saw a red colobus jump across the trail and the tail of a preuss's guenon. We stayed one more night at Hormigas, and then hiked back down the Caldera. Then we stayed at the beach camp for the remaining nights. On the last full day there, I requested to do this one trail called Etepo, and it turned out to be incredible. I saw a drill! And the lunch checkpoint was so amazing!!!

We got to take Cayuco boats out, so we could see the island from a pretty awesome perspective. I'm back in Malabo now, but I leave for Moka soon. I don't know what my internet situation will be like there, so get in touch now :)