Gombe National Park
Gombe National Park is renowned as a thin strip of ancient forest set in a mountainous cut with steep valleys clinging to the shores of Lake Tanganyika. Its major highlight attraction is the chimpanzees that live protected within its boundaries.
Visitors who visit this area are able to do chimpanzee trekking, hiking, and a guided walk in the forest or along the lakeshore.
The park is dotted by many steep-sided ridges and valleys. These are the rewarding sites to see chimpanzee individuals.
Well, the scenery of Gombe is rewarding, with most of the 16 major valleys containing swift streams, which flow throughout the year.
Gombe National Park is one of the best places to meet the stars of the world-famous chimpanzee community. Jane Goodall’s pioneering chimpanzee research began in 1960.
The Gombe Chimps are one of the most sought species in the park and are continuously studied.
Sharing more than 98 percent of our genes, it’s a look of recognition from our closest animal relatives.
It is noted that, the majority of the mammals in this National Park are primates, most of them are forest species. In addition, chimpanzees are the colorful red-tail and blue monkeys.
Generally, Gombe National Park is home to diverse ecosystems, including grasslands, woodlands, steep valleys and tropical rainforests. They are inhabited by several primate species chimpanzees as the most spotted primates. other species to see include olive baboons ,red colobus ,red -tailed monkeys ,blue monkeys and vervet monkeys among others. Red- tailed monkeys and blue monkey also inhabits the area. It is truly a birding area with over 200 different bird species to observe. Animals to see in the park include bush pigs, hippopotamuses, various snakes ,small antelopes and leopards. It has become famous for being the site of Jane Goodall’s groundbreaking research on chimpanzees and other primates. She started her studies in 1960 on primates, which have greatly contributed to our understanding of primates behavior and communication.
This national park was established in 1968 thus it is marked as of one the smallest national parks in Tanzania ,covering an area of about 35square kilometers of protected land along the hills of the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika. Its terrain is covered by steep valleys and the vegetation ranges from grassland to woodland to tropical rainforest. The park is most famous as the location where Jane Goodall pioneered her behavioral research on the chimpanzee populations.
Gombe National Park is positioned in the Kigoma district of the Kigoma regions, formerly known as Gombe Stream National Park. It is managed by the governing body named as ‘’Tanzania National Parks Authority’’.
Activities to do in Gombe National Park
Chimpanzee tracking
Chimpanzee tracking is the main activity done within the park. During your chimp tracking experience ,you will have a chance to spot other primates like red tailed monkeys ,olive baboon ,vervet monkeys ,blue monkeys among others. On find them, you will be given a limited time to spend with them and get to learn about their habits and behaviors.
Game viewing ; Game viewing in the park is remarkable as you will be able to explore number of wildlife species such as bush pigs ,bush bucks ,reed and bucks among others. During your game viewing ,you will get amazed of the beautiful landscape with nature plant species.
Visit Lake Tanganyika
On safari to Gombe National Park ,you can choose to visit the African great lake known as the longest deepest lake in Africa and stands as the second deepest lake in the world.
Guided nature walks offer a chance of seeing numerous reptilian and amphibian species. You will also take a walk to a Goodall foundation old feeding station where Dr Goodall carried out a search on behavior of chimpanzees. It’s the same place where Henry Stanley met Dr Livingstone in 1871.
Snorkeling and Diving
This park is a good place for relaxation as you unwind at the beach along Lake Tanganyika and a rewarding place for snorkeling and diving.
Kayaking
During your safari in Gombe National Park, you can engage in Kayaking as a better way to explore parts of Lake Tanganyika.
Bird watching ;
Gombe National Park is a great location to go birding and the most spotted species are migratory and residential birds such as palm nut vulture, trumpeter hornbills, Red-capped robin-chat, Ross’s turaco, Pied kingfisher, Double-toothed barbet, Crowned eagle, Black saw wing, African broadbill many more.
Filming
Gombe is an excellent place for filming, where we see number of Tanzanian Tv crews and journalists are interested in this rare species ‘’chimpanzee.
Cultural encounter
Engaging in cultural encounter, you will visit Mwamgongo village that lies adjacent to the park. You will be able to learn about amazing traditional dances and local art and craft. Get to learn how to do pottery ,grass hats and baskets using traditional techniques and local materials.
Best time to visit
Gombe National Park is visited throughout the year on a Tanzania Safari. Though the best season of the year starts from June to October and December to February.
Where to stay;
The park boasts classic accommodation facilities varying from campsites to Luxurious accommodation, prices depend on tourists’ budget. Some of the lodges include: Mbali Mbali Gombe, Kigoma Hilltop Hotel, and Lake Tanganyika Hotel.
Getting to Gombe National Park
Gombe National Park can be reached either by boat from Kigoma town, but depending on your traveling route -itinerary.
Alternatively, you can access the park by flight through booking your international flight to Kilimanjaro International Airport ‘’JRO’’ in Arusha town or Julius Nyerere International Airport ‘’DAR ” in Dar es Salaam.
