ARUSHA NATIONAL PARK
This is one of the beautiful parks in Tanzania, it has often been called a little gem and rightly so. It is only ½ an hour by tarmac road from Arusha town, the safari center of northern Tanzania. With mountains, valleys, lakes, and small plains clothed in green, it has a wonderful feeling of peace and solitude. It is dominated by Mount Meru, which at 4,566 m (14,980 ft) is the 3rd highest free-standing mountain in Africa.
Arusha national park is a habitat for a wide variety of mammals including bushbuck, giraffe, elephant, leopard (rarely seen!), monkeys, duiker, baboon, buffalo, waterbuck and hippo. Moreover, the birdlife is spectacular with over 450 species recorded. It is probably the best place in Tanzania to watch black and white colobus monkeys, and also to listen to their loud and guttural territorial calls echoing through the forests.
The Park also consist a number of beautiful geological features including, Mt. Meru which is a dormant volcano. Ngurdoto Crater, this is complete, volcanic crater which has recently been opened to guided hikes. It is a secret paradise, with a lake on one side and elsewhere clothed in virgin forest and a network of open grassy glades.
A track follows the rim with look-out points established where one can relax with a picnic and look down into this secret world of swamps and plains and spot buffalo, warthog and occasional elephant enjoying its tranquility.
Activities
- Game drive,
- walking safari,
- hiking safari,
- Canoeing and horseback