How to get to Mahale National Park Overland?
My survey area of Bende language is next to Mahale National Park, but little is known how to get to there through Bende-land. If you are brave enough, you can try the route through the Bende-land.
Most tourists go to Mahale N.P. by boat from Kigoma. But if you have good ability of driving and a strong enough car (4WD and some other equipments for safari such as a winch, a hoe etc.) and a little more brave to fight with some evil people (most of them are kind, but not all), you can manage to get there if it were dry season. In rainy season the road is completely closed.
I hope you will reach Mpanda by car without any problem on highways (Dar es Salaam - Morogoro - Iringa - Mbeya - Tunduma - Sumbawanga - Mpanda). If you find it difficult to arrive at Mpanda, you had better to give up continuing your safari. From Mpanda take the road to Kibo. The road is surprisingly in the good condition. Now at Kibo, take the Mwese road. My survey site is on the way to Mwese (Katuma village: 73km from Mpanda). Mwese is 124km from Mpanda. The road from Kibo to Mwese is still and all well. You may take lunch in Mwese, or you can find even a guest house (In Mwese No.2 area).
You can find it more adventurous on the road from Mwese. From Mwese you will find some small villages. The bigger of them is Lubalisi (151km from Mpanda). At 185km point, you have to go into smaller road to arrive at Lukoma village on the lakeshore, where is found at the 192km point from Mpanda. The road ends here. Up to the 185km point, some South Africans are found in dry season. They are aroundthere for gold-mining. So the road up there may be improved in the future.
Lukoma is an ordinal village. Local people are not accustomed to invite tourists. You are supposed to go to greet a chairman of the village. You may find there so-called policemen "askari" who tell you that they can arrange the safari from Lukoma to Kasoje (where National Park office is). If you have enough budget, take it. They required us 90,000 Tsh. (90 USD). But if you are a clock-watcher, I recommend the way we took. On the lakeshore, try to talk with fishermen, and charter a row boat to get to Mgambo (16,000 Tsh. for 6 rowing men). At Mgambo, go to the police station and call to National Park office by radio communication. They will arrange you a boat (at least we did not pay for that). You may be required to pay for kerosene, about 20,000Tsh. It will take you one hour. Now, you have arrived at Mahale National Park. Have a fun with sweet chimpanzees and wonderful nature of Mahale!
LINK for Mahale NP
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