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.

View point with the Tsavo plains in the background. 

Our car got stuck in a massive hole. 

Mkomazi landscape again. 

There wasn't much water and this was the only lake we saw. 

Plains and hills. 

View of the Tanzanian plains. 

Ana doing some birding. 

Sunset at night. 

Lake Duluti

Overcast morning with canoes ready to go. 

Lake Duluti is a small crater lake located about an hour and half drive from Moshi, about 10km (6 miles) east of Arusha. The area is beautiful with a rim of forest surrounding the lake before giving way to human settlements surrounding it. Although it is small and surrounded by development, it does provide a quiet oasis and a welcome hiking trail. 

There is a small strip of the lake that is developed with a bar/restaurant, small campground, and then the park offices. The park offers canoeing and occasionally attempts to insist on a ranger but you can walk alone. I imagine it would take about 1 1/2-2 hours to walk at a reasonable pace, though we spent about 5 hours birding and taking our sweet time. 

There are two trails though one is technically outside the park area. One trail through a forest on the edge of the lake and one located on the upper rim of the crater. We first walked the unofficial trail along the rim and it provided some stunning vistas of the surrounding plains and Mt. Meru. I'd imagine on a clear day you may even be able to see Mt. Kilimanjaro. The trail led to an odd area that is apparently a Christian spiritual area. People go there to pray and read the Bible and there are some "caves" though they are really more like slightly concave rock walls. Apparently people camp out there for days. The trail cuts down to the trail circumventing the lake but since the area was pretty crowded and it wasn't really our scene, we headed back down the way we came. 


We then made our way back to the trail head, had lunch, and then set off on the main trail circumventing the lake. The trail is surrounded by forest though the water remains in clear view. The bird life is quite rich and there are massive monitor lizards lounging in the sun. The trail was quiet and we only saw other people once. We took our time watching birds and relaxing along the shoreline. 

I can't believe it took me so long to get to Lake Duluti as it's a beautiful area, reasonably priced, and one of the few places you can actually go on a hike!

Ana writing her bird list.

Looking over Lake Duluti from the ridge. 

Lake Duluti with Mt. Meru in the background. 

On the trail. 

Thick vegetation began immediately from the shore. 

Walking along the trail. 

Gigantic Caterpillar. Unfortunately I didn't take a picture with scale but this thing was bigger than any of my fingers. 

Two monitor lizards lounge on a log covered in cormorant shit. 

More trail hiking. 

They had a few rest stops with benches and trash cans, which was nice. 

Towards the late afternoon it really cleared up and was a beautiful day. 

Arusha National Park Trip II

Open grasslands with zebra, giraffes and waterbuck grazing. 

It took us about a year and a half for our first visit to Arusha National Park, but after discovering it (along with acquiring a vehicle) it's easily become the most accessible and affordable national park to explore.

Although it has nowhere near the amount of big game the other big national parks have, it has a variety of ecological zones, as well as less visitors and a more intimate feel. Certainly not the iconic plains of Serengeti; rather the park is in the shadow of Mt. Meru (4655m/15,275 ft) on the western border of the park with Ngurdoto Crater in the east. The incredible variety of habitats include montane rainforest, open crater lakes, and grasslands.

The park entrance is only about an hour drive from our house in Moshi. Seeing as the fees are still relatively high (costs us about $50 for the both of us) we got there at 7am (park opens at 6:30). Unfortunately for us, it is still the tail end of the rainy season and the park is quite wet in general. It was a misty morning and we decided to explore the Ngurdoto Crater in the east end of the park. We hadn't been there before and we figured if it was rainy and foggy, we might as well have a bit of cover in the forest.

The montane rainforest is fantastic and the muddy and steep roads gave us time to test our new vehicle. Birds and monkeys called in the distance as the fog and rain fell on the trees and rocks coated in moss and lichen. We went up to a viewpoint and met a lonely park ranger. He explained you can typically get beautiful views of the crater, akin to Ngorogoro Crater but smaller. The weather was very chilly and we enjoyed the non-existent view, though still beautiful landscape and tranquil setting.

Driving up around Ngurdoto crater. 

Seems to be quite wet this time of the year. 

Misty and rainy montane forests are some of my favorite habitats.

After spending the morning in the forest, we spent the rest of the day driving around and hanging out at the lakes. Known as the Momella Lakes, there are seven shallow alkaline crater lakes (thee exception is Lake Longil being freshwater). Being alkaline, they are very salty and animals don't use them for drinking, rather they use them for the micro-organisms and algae that adapt to each lakes varying mineral content.

There also happened to be thousands of flamingos which was quite a sight to see. The weather had cleared up in the afternoon so the wildlife was out. Since the grasses are in full growth and the animals are fat, they seemed to have more time on their hands. We saw waterbuck, giraffes and zebras all fighting, likely for breeding rights or social status. The giraffes were particularly incredible to watch as they swung their heads into their rival's body in hopes of inflicting damage with their stubby horns.

The afternoon was quite leisurely as we toured around the lakes. There is a circular road around them and we realized we needed to come back and spend a whole day just on the lakes. We ended up leaving the park around 5:30 and we've already made plans for our next Arusha National Park excursion!

Interesting geography by the Momella Lakes. 

Driving up to Big Momella Lake revealed more than a few flamingos. 

Tulusia Lake with flamingos. 

Tulusia Lake from another angle. 

Lekandiro Lake. The road was extremely overgrown and the absence of most wildlife explained why.   

Ana checking out some Little Grebes at the infrequently visited Lekandiro Lake.  

Roads in the park. 

Tons of flamingos. 

Mt. Kilimanjaro with Momella Lakes and flamingos. 

Mt. Meru in clouds with Momella Lakes in front. 

Mt. Meru covered in clouds. 

Nice landscape.