Gombe Stream National Park
Gombe Stream National Park is Tanzania’s smallest national park. It is an untamed place of lush forests along the shores of Lake Tanganyika. Even though the park is small in size, it has become worldwide known through the pioneering and passionate work of Dr Jane Goodall in 1960. The Briton Jane Goodall studied the behavior of the park’s famous primate inhabitants: the chimpanzees. With only a few touristic visitors a year, the park is primarily used for research studies today.
Main Facts
> established in 1968 with a size of 52 km²
> only accessible by boat
Main Species of Primates
> chimpanzee
> eastern red colobus
> blue, red-tailed, vervet monkey
> anubis and olive baboon
Activities
> bird watching
> chimpanzee trekking
Expectations
> encounters with wild chimpanzees
> incredible scenary with lush forest at the shores of Lake Tanganyika
> a unique safari experience outside the vehicle
> exclusive destination far away from the crowds
Further Details – Gombe Stream National Park
Location and how to reach Gombe Stream National Park…
Gombe Stream National Park is remotely located in western Tanzania on the shores of Lake Tanganyika and can only be reached by boat. The park is situated just 18 km north of Kigoma town, which is the starting point for any boat transfers to the park. Kigoma town can be reached by scheduled flight from Dar es Salaam or Arusha; or by drive on a bumpy and unpaved gravel road.
Gombe’s landscape and wildlife…
The landscape of Gombe Stream National Park consists of an approximately 15 km stripe of tropical rainforest which includes steep valleys, streams and rivers. The vegetation changes throughout the park from tropical rainforest, alpine bamboos to grasslands, which is very much similar to that neighboring Mahale Mountains National Park.
This park is best explored on foot. Visitors can come across various primates on a guided walk including olive baboons, red-tailed meerkats as well as red colobus and vervet monkeys. Gombe Stream National Park is also home to about 200 bird species including tropical boubous, fish eagles, trumpet hornbills, plam-nut vultures, any many more. The park also hosts a large variety of butterflies.
Chimpanzees are Gombe’s main attraction
Gombe Stream National Park is home to about 150 chimpanzees. Guided walks are available to take visitors deep into the forest to observe these extraordinary primates. An although it can be a difficult trek through steep hills and valleys, it is an incredible experience and a highlight from many visitors to Tanzania. Chimpanzees share about 95% of their genes with humans and are our closest relative in the animal world. Chimpanzees are generally easier to find during the dry season, however, for chimpanzee trekking we would recommend Mahale Mountains National Park instead.