Things to see and do Parks & Southern Mountains

For more information contact the Dar es Salaam Tourism Office, Tel (022) 212 0373/213 1555 - Fax: (022) 211 6420 - www.tanzaniatouristboard.com - [email protected] (see «Dar's Practice»). Created in 1964. 12 950 km 2, west of Iringa. Altitude: between 750 m and 1 900 m. This third largest park in Tanzania, 13 times greater than the Maasaï Mara in Kenya, for example, erected as a hunting reserve from 1910, was attached to the Réserve reserve, which was the same size as it. It holds its name (in hehe language, the region's ethnicity) of the river, which forms on 160 km its entire limit, and which flows into the Rufiji. Unfortunately, three large rice plantations take much of the water on the plains of Usangu, north-east of Mbeya where the river has its sources. The Ruaha is certainly the most beautiful park in the country, and therefore the most beautiful and wild in the world. It is also, with the Selous, the most important elephant sanctuaries. Far from everything, it is still very little visited: less than 1 000 visitors per year… All this helps make this park a place reserved for elite tourism, at least from a financial perspective.

Wildlife is absolutely exceptional: in addition to the classic lions, leopards, cheetahs, elephants (more than 6 000, while there were only 3 000 in 1985, and 16 000 in the region's ecosystem), hippos, crocodiles, giraffes, buffalo (35 000), guibs harnachés and other élans, it is almost easy to see large and small koudous, black hippotragues, rouannes antelopes, oryx, yellow baboons, lycaons and many others, without forgetting 370 bird species (more than 460 according to some), 38 fish species and 1 650 different plants… The vegetation, dotted with kopjes, is very varied from one place to another in the park: miombo (dry and fairly dense wood of Brachystegia), baobabs, palm trees and savanna trees in the plains, acacias along rivers, fig sauvages, Commiphora… For an interesting visit, start by walk (west side) the Ruaha River, then the Mwagusi and Mdonya Sandrivers; a loop is even possible, along between these two sandrivers the north-west escarpment (which is about metres high) on the side of the Mwayembe wetlands. A stay of about one week is recommended. The best season for the visit is from late June to early December. It rains from December to April. In general, it is warmer than the northern highlands. Attention to tsé flies, very present in places, but to which one owes the park's wild wealth, the flocks and the absence of the human installation…

For more information contact the Dar es Salaam Tourism Office, tel +22 212 0373/213 1555 - Fax: +22 211 6420 - www.tanzaniatouristboard.com - [email protected] - (see «Dar» entry). This park of 1 900 km ² (6 ^th country by size), the most recently created (1992) - although already partly forested since the 1950 s - has a beautiful altitude amplitude: from 300 m to 2 576 m. It is located west of the northern part of Selous, only 10 km from the southwest of Mikumi park. It extends from the forest of Mwanihana, west of Morogoro, to the west Kilombero forest, east of Iringa, and bordered to the north by the Grande Ruaha River that runs along the road from Dar to Mbeya (Tanzanian Zambian Highway). The park is inhabited among others by lions, leopards, black hippotragues, elk, harnachés harnachés, céphalophes, elephants, buffalo, red colobes of an endemic type, souï-grouse, endemic also… In all, six species of monkeys (two endemic), including mangabeys, black and yellow, purple monkeys, reptiles (chameleon, serpents…). This park is also one of the ten largest in Africa for the preservation of ornithological fauna. It also includes many plant species (2 000), of which 20% to 30% are unknown elsewhere. Its forests play a very important role in the country's economy: construction, utensils, oils and honey, medicinal products… Compared to other parks, the establishment has been marked by a strong collaboration between the surrounding villagers and those responsible for conservation. This region has been preserved from all human occupation due to the enchevêtrement of its steep mountains, culminating in Luhombero. Some waterfalls are impressive, including those of Sanje, 170 m high. The park does not include roads or tracks. The explorers must therefore walk from the park headquarters on routes taking 15 minutes to a few days in tents. The park, which will delight the trekkeurs, can be visited in addition to the Mikumi or Ruaha (there are fewer than 400 visitors per year), in 2 or 3 days. In the programme: trekking, walking safari and bird watching. Better period: July to October and December to February.

Entrance to Nyerere National Park, which is very recent since it was created in 2019, is quite expensive: it's the same price as for Serengeti National Park. The advantage is that there's a low-season price that covers half the year, which can be interesting if you come outside the rainy season. For those on a tighter budget, it's worth staying outside the park, as concession taxes (per night and per person) are high for this park. For boat trips, a park fee also applies.