Times in Tanzania: Mkomazi National Park

Landscape in Mkomazi

Mkomazi National Park is one of the newest national parks in Tanzania, only gazetted in 2006 although previously it was a game reserve. It is located in the northeast corner of Tanzania only about a two hour drive from Moshi. The park covers over 3,200 km² (790,000 acres) and is dominated by Acacia-Commiphora vegetation; it is contiguous with Kenya’s Tsavo West National Park.

Compared to the bigger parks in the northwest, Mkomazi is relatively devoid of big game. It is also a bit out of the way for most tourists although it is known for its birding. We had two different groups of friends that were interested to go so we organized a weekend camping trip to check out the park. We were all interested in perhaps spotting some elusive wild dogs, though we knew it would be tough. There was relatively little information regarding the park on the internet so we figured the best way would be to go and chat with the rangers and drive around exploring the park.

Ana getting ready for the campfire.

Tents pitched and ready.

The camping area in the park is quite adequate with a massive space for camping and a modern building with toilets and showers. There is also another small building with a small kitchen and dining area though there is no stove and only a sink. We set up our camp and enjoyed the landscape which was basically a valley in between the South Pare and the Western Usambaras.

We spent two days and two nights there and in all honesty (you can be free to say I'm spoiled rotten) the park was a bit of a disappointment. I think the rangers instructed us to explore where the roads and infrastructure were good, not necessarily where there was good wildlife. The landscape was beautiful and the highlight was a high viewpoint which allowed spectacular views of the Tsavo Plains in Kenya to the east and the plains in Tanzania to the west.

We were a bit disappointed in the game as we saw a few hartebeeast. Our friends came the day before and were lucky enough to see gerenuk and cerval, and on the day we left we did get a nice spotting of a kudu. Even the birds were not as rich as we were led to believe though we certainly had a nice time with the beautiful landscape and good company.

There is also a reintroduction/breeding program in the center of the park with rhinos and wildogs. We figured we would explore the "wild areas" this time around as special permission is needed to visit that area and none of us were very keen to see enclosed animals. As the park continues to grow and the road network improves, perhaps Mkomazi will have much more to offer in the future.