Mahale Mountain National Park | Chimpansee
Lake Tanganyika in the west of Tanzania is the deepest lake and the largest freshwater lake in Africa, and its beaches are encircled by the Mahale Mountain like sentinels. The rainforest here and Gombe Stream National Park, on the northern shore, are great places to visit if you want to see chimpanzees. The shores of Lake Tanganiyika and Lupita Island are exceptional locations at which to relax and conclude your Tanzanian safari.
The mountains are covered with rainforests that - like more northerly Gombe Stream National Park - are home to around a thousand chimpanzees that still live in the wild. Colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys and blue meerkats also live in the forest. Why not let a guide take you on a magical excursion in search of these primates? The chimpanzees you will encounter during your walk are habituated to humans, thanks to a Japanese research project that has been underway since the 1960s. You can also follow the Pilgrim's route of the Tongwe people up to their mountain spirits.
There are almost no roads in Mahale National Park, which means that the park can maintain its status as a very exclusive location.
Gombe Stream National Park, which borders the Congo on the northern shores of Lake Tanganyika, owes much of its fame to Jane Goodall, the primatologist who spent many years living in the forests and studying the behaviour of chimpanzees. The Jane Goodall Institute is also established here. It's interesting to learn that it was anthropologist Louis Leakey - who had previously persuaded Dian Fossey to study gorillas - that sparked Goodall's interest in primates, by employing her as a secretary on a trip to Kenya in the late 1950s. it was also his influence that spurred Goodall on to go and study ethology at Cambridge University.
Gombe Stream is a wilderness, with green forests and beautiful views across Lake Tanganyika. There are expert guides who will lead you through the forests, where in addition to chimpanzees you will also encounter Vervet and Colobus monkeys, baboons, bush pigs and small antelope. There is also a large variety of tropical birds. Day trips to see chimpanzees are not the only activities on offer here - hiking and swimming are also great options.
American journalist Henry Morton Stanley from The New York Herald went in search of David Livingstone three years after he had left from Mikindani and subsequently disappeared from the public eye. In 1871 he met up with him in Ujiji, on the northern shore of Lake Tanganyika. Their encounter is said to have taken place 'under the mango trees', where Stanley addressed him with the unforgettable words 'Doctor Livingstone, I presume?' - words that unfortunately have proved more memorable than all of Livingstone's achievements put together. The food and medical supplies that Stanley had with him helped to restore Livingstone's strength, after his journey tracing the East African slave trade route from finish to start had left him physically drained.
The Mahale Mountains tower two kilometres above Lake Tanganyika and give the impression of guarding its narrow white beaches. Many people choose to conclude their often tiring safaris by relaxing on the soft sandy beaches of Lake Tanganyika and taking a dip in the pure waters that are home to a thousand different varieties of fish. There are also endless opportunities here to go snorkelling or take boat trips in dhows.
Lupita Island is one of a small group of islands that lies to the south of Lake Tanganyika. Here you can relax luxuriously in the comfort of an exclusive resort: an oasis in the depths of Africa. The landscape is fascinating, with hills, dense forests, open grass plains and rocks, all fringed by a beautiful beaches.
