Tanzania is a popular wildlife safari destination in Africa and hosts some of the world’s largest wildlife populations you can ever witness on a safari. Despite not being a popular destination for primate safaris, Tanzania offers some of the famous primate experiences in its National Parks. Chimpanzee trekking in Tanzania can be done in two major National Park; Gombe stream National Park and Mahale Mountains.
Chimpanzee trekking in Tanzania is however not popular like that of Uganda and Rwanda. Uganda is the best chimpanzee trekking destination in East Africa since it has a large number of chimpanzees that can be found in different national Parks and sanctuaries.
Top Chimpanzee trekking sites in Tanzania - Best places to go for Chimpanzee trekking in Tanzania
Mahale Mountains National Park
Mahale Mountains National Park is home to one of Africa’s most studied chimpanzee populations. Around 1000 chimpanzees roam around the isolated and lush rainforest of Mahale just above the beaches of Lake Tanganyika. These are habituated to human visitors by a Japanese research project founded in the 1960’s. Chimpanzee trekking is the primary activity in the park.
The Mahale Mountains rise to an altitude of 2,460 meters (8,069ft) at the highest of the six prominent points that make up the Mahale Range. The highest mountain is also known as Nkungwe and at times borrowed by the park.
Though chimpanzees are the main attraction of the Mahale Mountains, the slopes of the mountains support a diverse forest fauna including readily observed troops of red colobus, red-tailed and blue monkeys. There is also a very colorful array of forest birds.
Getting there;
To get to Mahale Mountains National Park, tourists can use charter flights from Arusha, Dar-es-salam or Kigoma. The other means of transport can be by motorboat from Kigoma lasting about three to four hours. The park borders Lake Tanganyika and therefore can be reached by boat.
Gombe streams National Park
Gombe streams National Park is just 16 miles north of kigoma on the shores of Lake Tanganyika in western Tanzania and was made famous due to the pioneering work of Jane Goodall who founded a behavioral research program in the 1960’s and is still running. Gombe Streams National Park is the smallest of all Tanzanian parks (52 square kilometers) a habitat to chimpanzees spanning the steep slopes as well as the river valleys that border northern sandy shores of the stunning Lake Tanganyika.
On top of the chimpanzees, other primate species in Gombe Stream National Park include large troops of olive baboons, red-tailed and red colobus monkeys. The park also supports about 200 unique bird species ranging from the fish eagle to peter’s twinspots.
Chimpanzee Trekking Experience in Tanzania
While on a chimpanzee trekking safari in these unique settings, tourists walk through guided trails in search of the chimps. The trek is guided by clues like the previous night nest, shadowy clumps high in the trees, fresh dung or scraps of half eaten fruit. Watching the chimpanzees swing through the forests is amazing, it feels like being so close to nature unlike when on a game drive.
When you get amidst the chimpanzees, you see them preening each other’s glossy coats in concentrated huddles, squabbling noisily or bounding into trees to swing effortlessly between the vines.
Best Time for Chimpanzee Trekking in Tanzania
For ultimate safari experiences, it is always recommended to time your safari very well with the experiences you want to experience at their best time. The Best time for chimpanzee trekking is during the dry season which is between June and October. This time is best for forest walks, hiking and camping safaris. However chimpanzees can also be trekked all year round.
During the times between February to June and then from November to mid-December it is the rainy season and chimps don’t move so far which makes tracking them easier. However, though chimps can easily be tracked in the rainy season, quality pictures cannot be taken during this time. And also the trails are more challenging to follow since they become more slippery and impassable.
While on your Chimpanzee trekking safaris in Tanzania, you can tailor make your tour with other tourism experiences hiking, swimming, and nature walks, bird watching and snorkeling among others especially when you visit Gombe stream National Park and Mahale Mountains National Park. Other activities that can be done while on your Tanzania tour include; Tanzania wildlife safaris to the parks like Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara and Tarangire National Park.
