Gombe is the least of Tanzania’s national parks, situated southwest of Kigoma on the banks of Lake Tanganyika. In one payment, it spans an area of only 20sq km comprising of forest-fringed hills and also the soft sand shores of the lake.
Chimpanzees in Gombe Stream National Park – Tanzania
Its unique spectrum of flora and fauna has built it into one of the most visited Tanzania safari destinations. The terrain is simply impressive thanks to steep slopes as well as a river valley that shapes cliffs of the far eastern tip of the great rift valley. You will find some deep tropical forests on the slopes together with alpine bamboo as well as grasslands.
The park can be described as a famous house to Kasakela Camp, a chimpanzee sanctuary. This camp is in fact famous through the operations of Jane Goodall exactly who in 1960 started research into the conduct of the chimpanzees in this park. The female Chimp known as Fifi is actually the only surviving member of the first family of the research.
Primates are the most popular animals that you will enjoy seeing in Gombe Stream National Park. They comprise olive baboons, the rare red-tailed monkeys, vervet monkeys, and lastly the chimpanzees. Other games found in the park include bush pigs, leopards, snakes, and even rare hippos seen about the lake shores.
This particular park is also blessed with nearly 200 varieties of birds just like the fish eagle and peter’s twinspots which comes to welcome all the visitors to the park. You’ll as well find a few unique butterfly species to brighten the park.
Getting there
Kigoma is accessed from Dar as well as Arusha through scheduled flights. There is also a slow rail service towards Mwanza and Dar es Sallam. From Mbeya by rough dirt roads.
Through Kigoma, regional taxis are three hours to arrive at Gombe, or motorboats could be rented, sailing for likely 1 hour.
Things to do
Chimpanzee tracking aided by deafening sounds all over the forest canopy, you can’t fail to encounter one or even two chimps on the forest walk. Nevertheless, the park is nothing like the zoo, more care and attention ought to be adopted whenever making day trips within the park. The tracking experience normally takes 2 days.
Swimming along with diving in the underwater paradise by the great lake is worth the time. It is the greatest way to end a tough and tedious day trip in the multi-colored cichlid fish corals.
Fishing upon the lake is quite common. In the evening, countless lantern-lit boats set off for another catch. The favorite species of fish are the tiger fish and also tilapia.
Visit the area of Henry Stanley’s famous “Dr. Livingstone I presume” found at Ujiji, precisely where Dr. Livingstone stayed while he fought to get rid of the slave trade around western Tanganyika. See the legendary dhow builders on the job at Kigoma port.
When to go
The chimps are actually readily seen during the rainy season of February up to June and later from November towards mid-December. Superior picture options from the dry season through July until October as well as late December.
Accommodation
1 latest luxurious tented lodge, and a self-catering hostel as well as a guest house. There are camping locations around the lakeshore
