Gombe National Park
Gombe Stream National Park is 16km North of Kigoma town. It is the smallest National Park in Tanzania, extending over some 52 Sq/km of hilly terrain climbing from the Lake- shore, at an altitude of 773m to 1,500m above sea level at the top of the rift escarpment. At no point measuring more than 3.5km from East to West. The narrow National Park is transected by a series of 13 streams, which carve deep valleys into the rift escarpment before flowing into the Lake.
The Parks population of roughly 100 Chimpanzees is divided into three communities. The habituated Kasekela community studied by Jane Goodall is the largest of the three, numbering to about half of the total population. They dominate the central territory of the Park. Other common primates found at the Park include Olive Baboons and different species of Monkeys such as Vervet, Blue, Red Tailed and Red Colobus. More than 200 species of birds have been recorded at the Park; Fish Eagles and Palm nut Vultures are easily seen at the Lakeshore.
All game viewing at the Park is done on foot or sometimes by boat on the Lakeshore. Gombe is open and receives tourists throughout the year, but the best times to visit are during the dry season, May to October and during the short rains of January and February
Activities
Chimpanzee Tracking is the main attraction and is always given a priority. The tracking usually starts early in the morning. The Guides normally start at the area where the Chimpanzees nested the previous night and then track from there onwards. As you walk in the thick forest while tracking the Chimpanzees, you pass through beautiful sceneries and hear thrilling sounds of the birds, insects, monkeys and other inhabitants of the forest.
Tracking Chimpanzees at Gombe can take from half an hour to about three hours depending on where the Chimpanzees are. The Chimpanzees are located close by when there is an abundance of fruits nearby, but when there is scarcity of fruits, the Chimpanzees move further away in search of fruits. Sometimes if you are lucky you can see the Chimpanzees right at the Camp!
Climbing to Kakombe & Mkenke Waterfalls
These are two spectacular waterfalls at the Parks. Kakombe is near to the Hostel and takes about 30 minutes. It takes about 1 hour climb to get to Mkenke. Sometimes you have to walk through these falls while tracking the Chimpanzees.
Normally you go into the forest for Chimpanzee tracking in the morning and come back for Lunch. In the afternoon you have the option of either going into the forest for Chimpanzee tracking again or do other activities such as walking on the beach, swimming, fishing and snorkeling. You can also visit local fishing villages close to the Park and get first hand experience of a typical African fishing village.
Getting There
We offer you different choices when it comes to the kind of transport you would prefer during the course of your tour. Our fleet includes choices for all; the up market and the budget traveler. Below we give you a glimpse of a few of the means of transportation that we normally use for our tours:
Boats
Taslim
Fiberglass Speedboat. Takes about three hours to Mahale and 30 minutes to Gombe. Seating capacity of up to 20 Pax A toilet, pantry, generator etc.
Karumba
Fiberglass Speedboat. Takes about 35 minutes to Gombe. Seating capacity of up to 8 Pax. Used for Gombe.
Ngege 1 & 2
Fiberglass Speedboat. Takes about 45 minutes to Gombe. Seating capacity of up to 5 pax .Used for Gombe.
Nyika
Locally made wooden boat. Takes up to 10 hours to Mahale and an hour and a half to Gombe Seating capacity of up to 20 pax. A toilet, pantry, generator etc.
Sinsiba
Locally made wooden boat Based in Mahale. Used to ferry pax between Nkungwe tented camp, Mgambo (Lagosa) village and Mahale airstrip Seating capacity of up to 16 pax.
Baruti
Boston Whaler made Fishing boat. Based at Nkungwe Tented Camp.
All our boats are Sea Worthy Certified. They are fully equipped with state of the art navigational and communication equipment. Life jackets and first aid kits also form part of the accessory on board. All boat drivers and assistants have under gone Life Saving training.
Air Craft
For Air Charters we normally use a C-206 5 seater and a C-208 Grand Caravan 13 seater Single engine light aircraft. These aircraft are the most suitable for small airstrips like the one at Mahale National Park. Please contact us for the most reasonable rates.
The Steamer
A history afloat. The Mv Liemba was railed to Kigoma by the German?s during World War 1 and was originally called Graf Von Goetzen. Before it had embarked on its maiden voyage, the Germans sank the ship to prevent it from falling into British hands. This legendary ship is still in operation but not as a steamer anymore. The ship plies once a week on schedule between Kigoma and Mpulungu with a brief stop at Lagosa, village near Mahale, during both legs of the voyage
Accommodations
GOMBE LUXURY TENTED CAMP
camp situated at Mitumba, near the Mitumba stream is at the northern end of the Park. The location is the best in the area, it is on the lakeshore, has a spacious beach and all the tents are under big shady trees.
