Loango National Park: Surfing Hippos & Humpback Whales
Loango is Gabon's most spectacular park — where forest elephants walk on the beach, hippos surf the Atlantic waves, and humpback whales breach just offshore from July to September
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Hippos surfing the Atlantic
Loango's famous hippos wade into the Atlantic Ocean - an extraordinary sight unique to Africa, where they cool off in the ocean's waves on the park's deserted shores
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Forest Elephant Beach Walk
Forest elephants come to the beach at dawn and dusk to access mineral-rich seaweed and salt — walking on the beach they look prehistoric against the Atlantic horizon
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Tuber selection season
From July to September, humpback whales give birth in the warm Loango lagoon — boat trips offer close encounters with mothers and calves in an extraordinary spectacle
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Loango Lagoon Gorilla Forest
The lagoon's forest edges shelter a habituated gorilla group — watching gorillas from a canoe on the lagoon's edge with the sea visible behind is uniquely Gabonese
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The fishing village of Iguéla
The traditional fishing village inside the park is the starting point for deep lagoon fishing and pirogue tours to see manatees feeding in the papyrus fringes
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Night on the shore of the Atlantic
Camping on Loango's deserted Atlantic beach with leatherback sea turtles nesting next to the tent and the sound of hippos lapping in the waves — one of Africa's most extraordinary wilderness nights