Mahale Mountains

TANZANIA | MAHALE MOUNTAINS

Spreading out from the shores of beautiful Lake Tanganyika, the mountainous terrain of the Mahale Mountain National Park is home to some of Africa’s last surviving wild chimps, and trekking in search of these endearing primates is one of the main attractions of the reserve.

Other highlights include on-foot game safaris that take in the park’s diverse wildlife, hiking up the 2460-metre Mount Nkungwe – the highest of the Mahale mountain range’s six peaks – and fishing and snorkelling in Lake Tanganyika on the park’s western border.

While the park is home to over 900 chimpanzees, it is also home to a variety of other wildlife including: leopards, blue duikers, red colobus monkeys, giant pangolins, lions, elephants, buffaloes, giraffes, hippos, crocodiles, otters and a variety of bird species.

REGION HIGHLIGHTS

Our main quest is always on foot to a wild living group of chimpanzees, whose complex social and political manoeuvrings are played out within a few feet of us. Their behavior is interpreted by their greatest fans, our team of chimpanzee experts who can recognise each individual and the significance of every action.

On winding forest trails, our guides show life beyond the chimpanzees; eight other species of primate alone, insects unseen elsewhere, a pharmacopeia of medicinal plants. Often you get just a flash of what’s in the shadows: the silhouette of a red-tail monkey, the scarlet wing of a turaco, the neon of a beetle’s back.

Cruise on the lake at sunrise and dive off the dhow into its sunset waters, while watching hippos moonwalk through the depths.

This lake is a phenomenal natural habitat for us to explore. But we also pleasure-seek here, unashamedly: kayaking towards the Congo at sunrise, the unsurpassable feeling of diving off the dhow into its sunset waters, and watching hippos moonwalk through the depths.

ACCOMODATION

These are a selection of lodges that we feel combine well for this journey. However we do also have a range of options to consider in each region, and can tailor them to you preference.

Greystoke Mahale

It's no exaggeration to say there is nowhere in the world like Greystoke Mahale. Greystoke Mahale sits on a pristine, white sandy beach overlooking the turquoise water of Lake Tanganyika, with the forested slopes of the 8000 ft Mahale Mountains rising behind. Greystoke affects people in a way that no other place does; perhaps it's because of its remoteness, and because of the mountains rising from the beach at your backs, the wide lake with its many different moods and the feeling that you are the only ones here. With just six wood and thatch bandas set on the edge of the forest line at the base of the mountains your days can start there, eating breakfast whilst waiting to hear news of the chimpanzees and deciding what to do with your day. Evenings end with sundowners on the rocks of the headland, where drinks are served around the lamp-lit bar whilst the mountains, rising behind camp, disappear into the darkness.