Gombe Stream National Park is situated in the western border of Tanzania, and is easily accessible by boat from Kigoma town which is 16 km to the south. With an area of only 52 sq km, Gombe Stream is one of the smallest National Parks in Tanzania, comprising a narrow strip of mountainous country bounded in the east by the crest of the Great Rift Valley escarpment, and in the west by Lake Tanganyika, the world’s longest and second deepest at 1400 meters deep.

Gombe Stream, like its sister game park of Mahale Mountains to the south, is a park without roads, where you can experience nature on foot accompanied by the park guide. The park’s vegetation varies from the evergreen forests of tall trees to open woodlands and grasslands. The park’s most special feature is its chimpanzees, made famous by Jane Goodall’s study. Chimpanzees are classed as one of the world’s endangered species, and are the primary visitors attraction in Gombe.

Other common mammals found are forest species, mostly primates including baboons, blue monkeys, vervet monkeys, red tailed monkeys and red colobus monkeys. There are more than 200 species of birds in Gombe Stream National Park.

Info

Size: 52 square kilometres.

Location: 16km north of Kigoma on the shores of Lake Tanganyika.

Best Time: July-October or December.

To Do: Chimpanzee trekking, hiking, swimming, Dr. Livingstone’s camp site, and dhow building.

Known For: Chimpanzees