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Serengeti, crater of Ngorongoro, lake Manyara, Kilimandjaro...
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________________________________________________________________________ National Parc of Serengeti
A mythic place. The largest national park in Tanzania and one of the most spectacular parks in the world, the Serengeti covers some 14,763 square kilometers including large plains, short grass plains, kopjes, and lakes. The name "Serengeti" is derived from the Maasai language meaning "endless plain". It presents a scenery of boundless rolling plains, a variety of game and the extraordinary phenomena of the « great Migration ». Every year, more than 2 million wildebeest travel in long caravans across the plains of the mighty Serengeti, all in search of better feeding grounds, followed by a large variety of other animals (not far behind follow the hungry lions, cheetahs, and hyenas...). On their way back, a brief demographic explosion, during which about 8000 calves are born every day and the great circle starts all over again.
The Olduvai Gorge is located between the Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. Olduvaï, called « the craddle of humanity » is the richest prehistorical site in the world., sketches between the crater of Ngorongoro and the Serengeti national park. The couple leakey, during the excavation of the site in 1931, discovered an important quantity of mammal fossils dating back to about 2 million years. In 1959, the skull of the most ancient humanoïd at this time is discovered upsetting all the theories about human evolution. This major historical discovery will back up the idea of Africa being the craddle of mankind. |
________________________________________________________________________ Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Called the eighth wonder of the world and stretching across some 8,300 sq km, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in northern Tanzania boasts a blend of landscapes, wildlife, people and archaeology that is unsurpassed in Africa. The volcanoes, grasslands, waterfalls and mountain forests are home to an abundance of animals and to the Maasai. Unlike other national parks, the human presence is not totally forbidden. Massaï shepherds roam freely with their cattle in the midst of the wild animals. This site scheduled as « World Heritage » by the UNESCO.
Ngorongoro crater is the world's largest unbroken, unflooded volcanic caldera (20km wide). The Crater, which formed when a giant volcano exploded and collapsed on itself some two to three million years ago, is the only one in the world that remains intact. The top of the crater is at 2286 meters above the sea level and overlooks the wide plains of the Serengeti.i
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________________________________________________________________________ National Parc of Tarangire
Tarangire covers 2600 square miles and includes two large plains and a seasonal swamp in the south. This is a beautiful park filled with Baobabs and Acacias with a large variety of game such as zebras, elephants, giraffes, and waterbuck. All the animals can enjoy the water coming from the Tarangire River.
This park, part of the »World Heritage » of the UNESCO, is more spectacular during the dry season, from June to October, as thousands of animals are migrating from the june trails in the South of the massaï land, right through the park. The concentration of so many animals round the drying up river is godsend for the great predators. Tarangire doesn’t get many visitors because out of the way of the traditional tours and so remains the most unspoiled and wild of the North.
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________________________________________________________________________ National Parc of Arusha
Arusha National Park is a gem of a nature reserve just an hour's drive from Arusha town. Despite its proximity to the safari capital of Tanzania, this is actually the least frequented of northern Tanzania's parks, making it a treat for nature lovers who are interested in more than just seeing the Big Five. This small park (covers only 137 square kilometers) sketches between the kilimandjaro and the Meru mountain at 1530 meters above the sea level contains a wide variety of landscapes, including crater, lakes, mountain rain forests and savannas.
It shows three distinct zones: - The spectacular Lake Momela with a prolific fauna of birds, about 400 different species have been noted in the site; - The crater of the Meru mountain with a great variety of wild animals such as buffalos, zebras, giraffes, waterbucks and so on. - And the small crater of the Ngurudoto presenting its luxurious swamps.
Mount Meru is the second highest mountain in Tanzania at 4,5685m.and the fifth highest in Africa.
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________________________________________________________________________ National Parc of Kilimandjaro
The Kilimandjaro Mountain, the top of Africa with its majestic snow cap rises up to 5895 meters above the sea level. It Three volcanoes form this beautiful mountain: the Shira on the western side, the Mawenzi, “black mountain” and the Kibo. Above the gently rolling hills and plateaux of northern Tanzania rises the snowy peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro, it’s slopes and glaciers shimmering above the rising clouds. Kilimanjaro is located near the town of Moshi and is a protected area, carefully regulated for climbers to enjoy without leaving a trace of their presence. The mountain’s ecosystems are as strikingly beautiful as they are varied and diverse. On the lowland slopes, much of the mountain is farmland, with coffee, banana, cassava, and maize crops grown for subsistence and cash sale. Once inside the park, thick lowland forest covers the lower altitudes and breaks into alpine meadows once the air begins to thin. Near the peak, the landscape is harsh and barren, with rocks and ice the predominant features above a breathtaking African view. Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain that regular tourists can climb, although it remains a considerable feat of human endurance! |
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________________________________________________________________________ Other sites
Oldonyo Lengai
Lake Eyasi A salt lake situated between the Rift Valley’s Eyasi escarpment and the Kidero Mountains (immediately southwest of the Ngorongoro Crater). The meadows along the shores of the lake and the forests are home to a wide variety of wildlife including leopard, hippo, a variety of monkeys, various birds, greater and lesser flamingos, storks and pelicans.
Saa Nane Island, meaning "eight o'clock island", is situated in the lake Victoria region. There is a large variety of reptiles. Hippo, zebra and wildebeest and some caged animals are found within the wildlife sanctuary. This reserve is literally a 95-acre outdoor zoo.
Birdwatchers will enjoy the scenery on Saa Nane while nature lovers can venture onto the rock formations that appear out of the grassy landscape.
Lake Natron This undeep lake is mainly fed by the waters streaming down the Lengaï mountain with a high concentration in sodium, potassium and calcium, is a sanctuary for a settlement of flamingoes.
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