TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK
Tarangire National Park covers a large area south east of
Lake Manyara, mainly along the course of the Tarangire
River and the swamp lands and flood plains which feed it
from the east.
The park fills with herds of Zebra, Wildebeest and Kongoni
that stay until October when the short rains allow them to
move to new pastures.
Tarangire has many beautiful campsites along the acacia and
baobab lined rivercourses that crisscross the park. You can
visit the park at any time of the year and still be able
to see most animal species. Game species commonly seen here
include Elephant, Lion, Leopard, Buffalo, Zebra, Wildebeest
and Giraffe amongst others.
LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK
Lake Manyara is famed for its tree climbing lions. Sited
conveniently for travelers aiming for the Serengeti and
Ngorongoro Crater, to the west of Arusha, Lake Manyara
draws visitors far and wide for its spectacular sightings
of elephant, dense concentrations of hippo and water birds.
One of Tanzania's smallest and most beautiful plays host
to storks and pelicans over the month of September but the
lake is also positively teeming with wildlife over the rest
of the year.
SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK
Serengeti National Park is Tanzania’s most renowned
game park and is the largest part of the world famous Serengeti
Maasai Mara Eco System. On the seemingly endless and almost
treeless plains of the Serengeti are literally millions of
hoofed animals.
The wildebeest are well known for the annual migration that
they under-take, a trek with many hazards. Not the least
of these being voracious lions, which form prides with as
many as 30 members.
The abundant source of food supports the large prides and
a variety of other big carnivores found in this magnificent
habitat. The Serengeti is the only park in Tanzania where
you can take a hot-air balloon flight, which is an incredible
experience in itself with Lion, Elephant and Cheetah commonly
seen amongst the large herds of Wildebeest.
NOGORONGORO CRATER
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is comprised of an area
surrounding 20km wide volcanic crater. Within the crater’s
600 metres walls are packed just about every species of wildlife
to be found in East Africa. The views from the crater rim
defy description.
“The Crater” has been compared to Noah’s
Ark and the Garden of Eden. Despite the steep walls, there
is considerable movement of animals in and out, mostly to
the Serengeti the west, since the relatively short distance
to Lake Manyara is intensively farmed.
Yet the Crater remains a favoured spot for wildlife, as
there is permanent water and pasture on the crater floor.
Inside the crater you can often see Black Rhino, large bull
Elephant, Hippo, Lion, Leopard and big herds of Buffalo.
The local pastoralists the Maasai have retained grazing
rights throughout the Conservation Area and offer some stunning
photographic opportunities.
SELOUS GAME RESERVE
The Selous Game Reserve is probably the world’s largest
game reserve and captures the essence of East African wilderness.
The game reserve was established in 1922, for many years
it remained largely the preserve of trophy collectors and
big game hunters. One of the main features of the reserve
is the huge Rufiji River, which is the largest water catchment
area in East Africa.
In the northern end of the reserve, where the Great Ruaha
flows into the Rufiji is Stiegler’s Gorge, the best
known feature of the park. The Selous is one of the few National
parks where you are allowed to explore on foot, a rare opportunity.
Roosevelt’s Sable Antelope, Livingstone’s Eland,
Nyasaland Wilderbeest are some of the lesser-known species
that mingle with superb specimens of Elephant, Crocodile,
Hippopotamus , Lion and Leopard. Like the Ruaha the Selous
provides a privileged glimpse of Africa as she was at the
turn of the century; wild and uninhibited.
RUAHA NATIONAL PARK
The Ruaha National park is a vast, still comparatively unexplored
game and bird sanctuary covering 12950 sq. kms, only a
little smaller than the better-known Serengeti National
Park. Its size and location away from the main safari circuits
have meant that Ruaha has not gained the notoriety of its
more celebrated peers, but amongst the repeat visitors
to Tanzania.
The Ruaha National park lies between two large rivers, the
Njombe and Ruaha. The latter flows for 160 kms along the
entire eastern border, snaking through rugged gorges and
rocky broken country onto Lush plains, where it is flanked
by palm thickets and tall acacia woodland.
During the dry season, from July to November, there is a
concentration of game along the river, with Herds of elephant,
giraffe, buffalo and Impala and numerous greater kudu. From
your private camp, Tanzania photographic safaris will lead
you into the heart of this unexplored wilderness, pulling
away. The veil of anonymity to reveal the national park teeming
with game and bird life. Ruaha is our recommended sanctuary
for those keen to leave the beaten trails and explore a national
park that is as diverse as it is wild.
MAHALE MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK
This is absolutely the best place in the world for tourists
to view wild chimpanzees. The Mahale Mountains lie on Lake
Tanganyika on the far western border of Tanzania. The park
is 1500 square miles, rising up from the lakeshore through
tropical forest to 8500 feet.
It’s home to nine species of primate, including some
700-1000 chimps, forest antelopes, leopard and a great variety
of birds and butterflies. There are no roads or cars for
sixty miles. Such is the pristine nature of this environment
that travel is only possible by boat or on foot.
GOMBE STREAM NATIONAL PARK
The park is on Lake Tanganyika, near the Burundi border.
Gombe was created to protect 1,000's of chimpanzees and
is set in the stunning Mahale mountains. It is reknowned
for fantastic sunsets over Lake Tanganyika and Eastern
Zaire which
makes it an essential stop for the keen photographer. The
habitat combines rain forest, grasslands, alpine bamboo and
Woodland. The best time to visit is between May and October
MOUNT KILIMANJARO
In his immortal “snows of Kilimanjaro”, Ernest
Hemmingway’s stoic protagonist professes an epiphanic
vision of Kilimanjaro Summit. “wide as all the world,
great, high and unbelievably white in the sun”. Adventure
seekers from around the world still resonate with this insight
Do you want to go to the Roof of Africa? Do you realize
how insane that is, how ludicrous it is to even conceive
of climbing to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro? This Tanzanian
peak is almost 6000 meters high, higher than Mount Whitney
in California, Mauna Kea in Hawaii, and Mont Blanc of Europe.
The atmosphere's density is 45% of that at sea level, a dangerous
dearth of breathable air. A fair number of people have actually
climbing this extinct volcano range, and many more don't
make it to the top. Are you sure you want to climb it? Even
the locals believe it's a crazy thing to do.
ZANZIBAR ISLAND
The islands of Zanzibar stir the imagination and conjure
up images of magical Arabian nights, the scent of spices
on the evening air and spirit of ages gone by. The name
Zanzibar has such a romantic and exotic ring to it that
some visitors are easily led to a comparison with “the
ancient Baghdad of Haroun el Rashid”.
From a distance, the whitewashed buildings of the stone
town apparently dancing on the waves of the Indian Ocean
create the feeling of adventure and the excitement of going
back in time. Zanzibar is part of the United Republic of
Tanzania and is made up of a series of many islands, the
main ones being Unguja and Pemba. Ungunja is better known
as Zanzibar Island.
Zanzibar (Unguja) is in the Indian Ocean about 40 kilometers
off the Tanzanian mainland, a few degrees south of the equator.
The island is about 85 Kilometers long and 30 kilometers
wide at the widest point. Most of the population live in
the highly fertile North and West. The East of the Island
is not suitable for farming and is covered in coral, but
the beaches and reefs make it ideal for fishing villages
and tourist resorts.
The people of Zanzibar are predominantly Muslim (about 95%)
with their ancestory originating from Africa, Persia, Oman
and Asia. The local economy is based on agriculture, fishing
and more recently, tourism. The estimated population is 450,000,
of which approximately 40% live in Stone Town. The literacy
rate in Zanzibar is very high when compared to other African
states in the region…more
|
