Loango National Park, National park in western Gabon
Loango National Park covers 1,550 km2 between the Nkomi and Ndogo Lagoons in western Gabon, combining savanna, forest, mangroves and white-sand beaches. It contains part of the 220 km2 Iguéla Lagoon, the only significant western African lagoon system protected within a national park. The park was created in 2002 by merging the Iguela and Loango reserves.
Wildlife reserves were first set up in this region during the 1950s to protect the area. The official national park status came later, established along with a group of other parks early in the 2000s.
Local people living around the park follow customs that have existed for generations, growing crops for food and daily needs. Women tend gardens with traditional methods passed down through families.
Visitors need to arrange lodging ahead of time at one of the two lodges available and contact the park for current details. Guided tours can be arranged to observe wildlife and explore the different landscapes throughout the area.
Naturalist Mike Fay called Loango "Africa's Last Eden", and Michael "Nick" Nichols of National Geographic photographed hippos surfing in the shore break here; both nicknamed it the land of surfing hippos. Just off the coast lies the world's second-largest concentration and variety of whales and dolphins after South Africa, along more than 100 km of uninhabited coastline.
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