LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK

Cradled in the glory of its surroundings below the sheer majesty of the Rift Valley wall, Lake Manyara lies serene spreading in a heat haze hacked by a thin green band of forest and the sheer 600 metre red and brown cliffs of the escarpment.

A wedge of surprisingly varied vegetation sustains a wealth of wildlife, nourished by chattering streams bubbling out of the escarpment base and waterfalls spilling over the cliff. Acacia woodlands shelters the park’s famous but elusive tree-climbing Lions, along with squadrons of mongoose feasting on the trail of  Buffalo and Elephant- the most pachyderms per square kilometre in Tanzania.

Deep in the south of the park, hot springs bubble to the surface in the shadow of the escarpment. Hippo wallow near the lake’s borders of sedge. The park host 400 varieties of  birds, including thousands of red billed Quelea flitting over the water like swarms of giant insects; Pelicans, Cormorants and Pink streaks of thousands of Flamingo on their perpetual migration.

Enter Lake Manyara from the village of Mto wa Mbu and eclectic market town where several tribes converge to form a linguistic mix that is the richest in Africa.