Day One: Arrival in Libreville
Upon your arrival at the airport, the guide from Afrikan Wildlife Safaris will welcome you and then transfer you to the hotel for dinner and overnight. Dinner and overnight at Libreville hotel.
Day Two, Three and Four: Lopé National Park
After breakfast, you have a long drive to head for Lopé National Park, where we will spend three nights. We will have two full days to explore Lopé National Park. This is one of the biggest national parks in Gabon, offering a mix of rivers, bush savanna, open plains, and forest. In the open areas we will try for species such as Senegal Lapwing, Blue-breasted Bee-eater, Compact Weaver, and Red-headed Quelea, while arguably our biggest target will be the localized Dja River Scrub Warbler. In the forest and at the forest edges we will seek out Long-tailed Hawk, Red-chested Owlet, Lyre-tailed Honeyguide, and the superb White-crested Hornbill, among other more common species, while the rivers will see a suite of species likely, including White-crowned Lapwing, African Skimmer, and Rock Pratincole. Bat Hawks are also regular over the rivers in the evenings. We will also be sure to keep an eye to the sky for the sought-after Bates’s Swift.
Amongst the many birds present here, we will watch out for Red-billed Dwarf Hornbill, Speckled Tinkerbird, African Shrike-flycatcher, Red-bellied Paradise Flycatcher, Brown-throated Wattle-eye, Western Black-headed Batis, Red-eyed Puffback, Fiery-breasted Bushshrike, Lowland Akalat, Yellow-lored Bristlebill, Chattering and Croaking Cisticolas, Lemon-bellied Crombec, Fraser’s Forest Flycatcher, Grey Tit-Flycatcher, Vieillot’s Black and Dark-backed Weavers, Splendid Starling, Superb and Reichenbach’s Sunbirds and Quailfinch. Dinner and overnight in Lopé National Park
Day Five: Lopé National Park to Lekoni
After breakfast, we will depart the Lopé National Park for Lekoni, a small ‘town’ in the south-eastern parts of Gabon. This is a long drive, we will be departing in the morning, and only arriving very late in the afternoon, with limited time for birding along the route. Dinner and overnight at Franceville hotel.
Days Six and Seven: Birding Lekoni and surroundings
For the two days, we will be birding Lekoni and its surroundings comprising of the Batéké Plateau where you can arguably spot the most prized bird of the grassland zone is the sought-after Congo Moor Chat, which is relatively common. You can also look out for other species such as Finsch’s Francolin, Black-rumped Buttonquail, White-bellied Bustard,Flappet Lark and the unique local form of Rufous-naped Lark, Black-collared Bulbul, Fawn-breasted Waxbill, and Short-tailed Pipit. You can also check out for other species, such as Black-headed Bee-eater, Black-backed Barbet, Black Scimitarbill, Gorgeous Bushshrike, Red-capped Crombec, Yellow-bellied Hyliota, Tinkling Cisticola, Green-capped and Salvadori’s Eremomelas, White-winged Black Tit, Souza’s Shrike, Western Violet-backed Sunbird, Wood Pipit, Cabanis’s Bunting, and the rare and localized Black-chinned Weaver. In the forested areas, serach for African Broadbill, Black Bee-eater, Blue-throated Roller, Angolan Batis, Bocage’s Bushshrike and Snowy-crowned Robin-Chat, amongst others. Dinner and overnight at Lekoni guesthouse (basic)
Day Eight: Lekoni to Makokou
This morning we will depart Lekoni area and head to the impressive forests of the greater Makokou area (which includes the vast Ipassa Strict Nature Reserve/Ivindo National Park, and surrounds).This is another very long drive, with limited birding available along the way – though well worthwhile as we access some of the most pristine tracts of Congolese lowland forest available. The sought-after Red-throated Cliff Swallow breeds under some of the culverts on the route and will be one of our main targets. Diner and overnight at Makokou hotel.
Days Nine and Ten: Birding Makokou area
Here we have two full days of birding to explore the exciting species that exist here. Our time will be divided between the Ipassa-Makokou Strict Nature Reserve, Ivindo National Park, and some general roadside birding along old forestry tracks in the surrounding area. Most of our birding will be done on foot as we explore and venture down some of the paths cut into the forest while investigating calling birds and bouts of activity. Naturally, forest birding can be difficult, and this area is certainly no exception; however, with patience and a bit of luck we should enjoy a number of the area’s many specials. The canopy and upper levels of the forest play host to some of the larger and arguably more vocal species, and we will search for the massive Great Blue Turaco, Yellow-billed, Guinea Turacos, White-thighed, Black-casqued, Red-billed Dwarf, Black Dwarf and White-crested, while Piping and African Pied, Chocolate-backed Kingfishers, Barbets, Hairy-breasted, Grey-throated, Yellow-billed and Yellow-spotted, tinkerbirds such as Yellow-throated and Red-rumped, Afep and Western Bronze-naped Pigeons, Cuckoos, Yellow-throated, along with Dusky Long-tailed and Olive Long-tailed, African Emerald, Black and Red-chested, Woodpecker such as Yellow-crested, Brown-eared, Buff-spotted, Gabon and Green-backed, Red-eyed Puffback, Western Oriole, Purple-throated Cuckooshrike, Green Hylia, tiny Rufous-crowned Eremomela, Fraser’s Rufous Thrush, Dusky Tit, Fraser’s and Little Green Sunbirds, and all of the world’s Nigritas– Grey-headed, Pale-fronted, Chestnut-breasted and White-breasted.
We need to be ultra quite to come across the poorly known Spot-breasted Ibis, Plumed Guineafowl, the rare Black-collared Lovebird, the sought-after African Piculet, and the stunning Rufous-bellied Helmetshrike, along with the likes of Fernando Po Batis, Black-necked Wattle-eye, Yellow-capped Weaver, and both Rachel’s and Red-crowned Malimbes.
Species that prefer the mid-strata and vine tangles coming down from the canopy include the sought-after Bare-cheeked Trogon, secretive Rufous-sided Broadbill, African Dwarf and Blue-breasted Kingfishers, Blue Malkoha, Fraser’s Forest, Yellow-footed and Chestnut-capped Flycatchers, Bates’s Paradise Flycatcher, Gabon Batis, Yellow-bellied and White-spotted Wattle-eyes, Western and Yellow-throated Nicators, Yellow-browed Camaroptera, Grey Longbill, the sought-after Gosling’s Apalis, Maxwell’s Black Weaver, and Crested, Blue-billed, Red-bellied and Cassin’s Malimbes.
More different species occurring within the forest, including sought species such as Sjöstedt’s, Ansorge’s, Yellow-whiskered, Falkenstein’s, Honeyguide, Golden, Spotted, Eastern Bearded and White-bearded Greenbuls, while other possible species include Swamp Palm Bulbul and Little, Slender-billed, Little Grey, Plain, Simple, Icterine, Xavier’s and Red-tailed Greenbuls along with Red-tailed Bristlebill.
Tangles, thickets, and bushy growth in the lower strata down to the ground play host to shy species such as Black Guineafowl, White-spotted Flufftail, Blue-headed Wood Dove, the beautiful Forest Robin, Brown-chested and Fire-crested Alethes, Brown Illadopsis, Lowland Sooty Boubou, Olive-green Camaroptera, Banded Prinia, and both Red-tailed and White-tailed Ant Thrushes. Some of the more open areas of the forest, clearings in the forest, and forest edge zones will be searched for further species such as Scaly Francolin, Grey and Red-fronted Parrots, Gabon Coucal, the tiny Tit Hylia, Mackinnon’s Shrike, Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher, White-chinned Prinia, Dusky-blue Flycatcher, and the secretive Woodhouse’s Antpecker.
Keeping an eye out for raptors is likely to produce species such as Cassin’s Hawk-Eagle, Congo Serpent Eagle, Long-tailed Hawk, Red-thighed Sparrowhawk and Red-chested Goshawk. These are also great areas to scan the skies for aerial feeders, and we will be on the lookout for Mottled, Cassin’s and Sabine’s Spinetails and the scarce Forest Swallow along with Square-tailed Saw-wing. Flowering trees in these zones as well as in the forest proper play host to large numbers of Sunbirds, featuring Tiny, Carmelite, Grey-chinned, Collared, Blue-throated Brown, Olive-bellied and Superb.
The grassy verges to the roads and tracks in the area host a variety of colorful seedeaters, amongst them Black-bellied Seedcracker, Western Bluebill, Black-headed and Orange-cheeked Waxbills and Black-and-white Mannikin. While here, we will also try our luck for some of the prized nocturnal birds occurring here, which might include the localized Sjöstedt’s Barred Owlet, Akun and Fraser’s Eagle-Owls, as well as both Bates’s and Brown Nightjars. Dinner and overnight at Makokou hotel.
Day Eleven: Libreville
After a great few days exploring the impressive forests of the Ipassa/Ivindo area around Makokou, we will head back to Libreville where we can easily connect to Loango National Park. This is another very long journey that will see us getting into Libreville in the early evening. Dinner and overnight at Libreville hotel
Day Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen and Fifteen: Loango National Park
After breakfast, we will fly to Port-Gentil and then to the magical Loango National Park, where we spend four nights. We will spend our time between two camps located deep within the park, giving us the best opportunities to access the excellent coastal savannas, thick riparian swamp forests and vibrant lagoons that make up this wilderness. We have several key birding targets, with arguably the most important going to the highly localized African River Martin. These rare birds arrive during the dry season to breed here – and this is the specific reason why we time our tour during this period. We will visit known colonies and spend some quality time with these strange birds. The beautiful Rosy Bee-eater also frequents these more open areas, and we can often see these two special birds alongside each other. The rarely seen Vermiculated Fishing Owl is another of our major targets for the park, and we may also be able to compare it to its equally impressive cousin, Pel’s Fishing Owl. The scarce White-bellied Kingfisher, and Loango Weaver are also to be found in the swampy wetland areas, and if we’re extremely lucky, White-crested Tiger Heron as well. If we haven’t come across them already, the forested areas here are also home to another scarce and sought-after duo – Bare-cheeked Trogon and Rufous-sided Broadbill. We will also try for the localized Violet-tailed Sunbird during our searches. Other possible species to be found include White-backed Night Heron, African Finfoot, West African Crested and Damara Terns, White-crowned Lapwing, Forbes’s Plover, African Crake, Long-tailed Hawk, Yellow-billed Turaco, Senegal Coucal, Shining-blue Kingfisher, Blue-breasted and Black-headed Bee-eaters, Yellow-throated Tinkerbird, Black-casqued Hornbill, Yellow-billed Oxpecker (often on mammals), Snowy-crowned Robin-Chat, Grey-rumped Swallow, and Long-legged Pipit. While some of the more common and widespread species of the area include Great Egret, Woolly-necked Stork, Palm-nut Vulture, African Skimmer, Little Tern, Grey and Rock Pratincoles, White-fronted Plover, Water Thick-knee, Grey Parrot, Giant and Pied Kingfishers, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Rufous-vented Paradise Flycatcher, Swamp Boubou, and African Pied Wagtail.
Aside from the many birds we’ll be seeing, the park is arguably more famous for its other wildlife. Herds of African Forest Elephant roam freely, as do numbers of African Forest Buffalo (the smallest subspecies of African Buffalo). We will keep a special eye out for the spectacular Red River Hog and, on the waterways, Slender-snouted Crocodile. If we’re very lucky, even Leopard makes the occasional appearance. Dinner and overnight in Loango National Park at Akaka & Tassi Camps.
Day Sixteen: Transfer back to Libreville
We have a final morning to spend within the stunning Loango National Park, searching for any species we may not yet have seen, or enjoying our final moments with some of the iconic park species like African River Martin and Rosy Bee-eater. Around midday, we head to Port-Gentil to take an evening flight back to Libreville. Dinner and overnight at Libreville hotel
Day Seventeen: Fly Out
After your breakfast, the guide will drive you to the airport to catch your flight back home.