Straddling the Eastern Rift Valley west of Iringa,and covering over 20,000 square kilometers ,Ruaha is Tanzania’s largest national park, and one of the least visited, too, with barely a hundred tourists on any one day. The parks rich biodiversity stems from the life-giving Great Ruaha River, and the transitional location between eastern and southern Africa. The park contains over 1650 plant species, and a wealth of wildlife, including pretty much all the species you’re likely to see in the northern parks except for black rhinos, whose whereabouts are now kept secret given the predations wrought by poachers in the 1980s. Also targeted by poachers were Ruahas elephants, who have recovered much better: their present population of around twenty thousand is the largest and densest of any Tanzanian park. Ruaha is also noted for antelopes, being one of only a few areas where you can see both greater and lesser kudu, and the elusive sable and roan antelopes .Other denizens include zebra, the shy bushbuck, Grants gazelle, eland, giraffe, impala,reedbuck,Defassa waterbuck,Liechtensteins hartebeest,klipspringer,kirks dikdik,mongooses( slender ,banded and dwarf) and, near water, large herds of buffalo. With so much food walking around, its no surprise to find predators out in force, including lions,leopards,cheetahs ,jackals, crocodiles and several packs of highly endangered African hunting dogs. The park is also the southernmost range of the striped hyena. Nocturnal animals, which may be glimpsed in the early morning or late evening, include the aardwolf, ratel, lesser galago (bush baby), porcupine and bats.

Ruahas birdlife is equally rich and colourful, with 529 species recorded to date, many of them migrants (especially mid- Nov to March). Two special species to look out for are the rare sooty falcon, which breeds in the Sahara and the Middle East, and Eleonoras falcon, which breeds further north in the Mediterranean .Other raptors include African hawk, Pels fishing owl and eagles: bateleur, martial, long-crested and snake.

Most safari-goers are confined to the parks lower southeastern section around the Great Ruaha River, separated from the rest of the park by the Ruaha Escarpment .The area is nonetheless representative of most of Ruahas habitats, including miombo woodland plateau and isolated hills in the west: undulating plains: acacia and baobab bush land : palm-fringed swamps: grassland : evergreen forest around the main rivers; seasonal “sand rivers” , whose water pools draw wildlife in the dry season; and, of course ,the Great Ruaha River itself.

Arrival & Information Ruaha National Park

The park entrance is 125km west of Iringa along all-weather murram (roughly 3hr) .Self-drive is possible in a 4WD if you’re experienced on rough roads, but the usual approach is an organized safari: by road from Dar, Iringa or Tungamalenga (20km from the park, accessible by public transport) ,or by plane from Dar or Arusha,usually in combination with Mikumi National Park,Selous Game Reserve or Katavi National Park. Park fees (valid 24hrs), paid at the gate 9km inside the park boundary if you’re driving, the fees is charged per person and vehicle park entry fees.

The park headquarters are in Msembe area, 6km beyond the entrance gate)www.tanzaniaparks.com/ruaha.html).The best sources of information are either of TANAPAs guidebooks, which can be bought at the gate ,at the lodges, or in bookshops in Arusha,Dar,and Stone Town .The older monochrome booklet describes game drives in scientific detail, while the full-colour edition makes a more attractive souvenir.

The best time to visit is the dry season (June-Oct, sometimes mid- Nov), especially the end of that period when animals concentrate around the receding waterholes in the parks seasonal sand rivers (which unfortunately now includes the once perennial Great Ruaha). The rains start in earnest in December : the resurgent vegetation makes this a beautiful time to visit, and its great for birds , but game is harder to see.The rains are heaviest in January when many tracks are likely to be cut, and continue until end April and mid-May.

Organized Safaris

Recommended safari companies are reviewed .Most visitors come on all-inclusive flying safaris, which can also be arranged by the parks camps and lodges. Special deals are sometimes offered.

On a driving safari from Daresaalam, your first and last day will be spent on the Tanzam highway (or a good half-day from Mikumi or Udzungwa). You can cut times, and costs ,by arranging things in Iringa or through the lodges and camps located outside the park near Tungamalenga ,whose costs are essentially 4WD rental including driver/guide plus park fees ,meals and accommodation .

Accommodation Ruaha National Park

The luxury tented camps and lodges inside the park are mostly neo-colonial in feel and searingly expensive, though their “game packages “do at least include game drives and sometimes bush walks. If you’re coming by road ,you should be able to get cheaper “drive in” rates-this being full board without game drives, as you wont need their vehicles .None of them are fenced ,so there’s always a chance of seeing ( or at least hearing) wildlife pass through at night.TANAPA maintains more sanely priced accommodation in the form o fbandas near the park. All accommodation is best reserved in advance.

Camping inside the park is on a shade less pitch along the Great Ruaha River, near the park headquarters at Msembe.The site has pit latrines but nothing else, though you can use the showers at the nearby bandas. There are also special campsites, whose locations change every few years: those at Mbagi and Mdonya are recommended, but tend to be block-booked by safari companies. Outside the park, you can pitch up at the excellent Chogela Camp Sit. At a different level is the luxury fly-camping offered by Mwagusi Safari Lodge and Ruaha River Lodge: for a patently absurd $ 2000 (the lowest rate-being for two people and two nights –including park fees), you get everything laid on, from champagne breakfasts and personal butlers to game walks and drives, yet still get to enjoy the delights of bucket showers and dome tents.

The Park

The parks 400km of tracks mainly cover the southeastern sector around the Great Ruaha River, near the park entrance and lodges. If they haven’t been trashed by elephants looking for back scrubbers, road junctions are marked by numbered signposts, corresponding to the parks guidebooks: unless you’re with a guide, the guidebooks are essential for exploring the area beyond Msembe.Driving is only allowed between 6am and 7pm, and remember that off-roading is illegal and environmentally destructive. In the rains, always enquire beforehand as to which roads are open. Lastly, be wary of elephants: the inaccessibility of huge areas of the park, especially in the rains, makes it ideal territory for ivory poachers, an ongoing problem, albeit nowhere near as bad as it was in the 1980s. The massacres of that decade have made older elephants nervous and sometimes aggressive towards humans, particularly if they’re with calves’ .So, treat all elephants with uncommon caution, and back off if they show signs of irritation.

The parks pristine condition owes a lot to the humble tsetse fly, which transmits sleeping sickness. The disease doesn’t affect wildlife but does bring down domestic animals and humans, so herders have traditionally avoided the area.Don't worry about contracting the disease, yourself-infections are extremely rare, and the main tsetse-infested area is in the infrequently visited miombo woodland. If you do go there, the usual precaution is to keep car windows closed.

Game Drives

If you’re short on time, the tracks along the Great Ruaha River downstream from Msembe re always good for a broad range of wildlife, including elephants, lions ,leopards, and most of the parks ungulates. Hippos and crocodiles also put in appearances, but you’ll need luck to see sable antelopes, cheetahs or hunting dogs. There’s a picnic site in a groove of acacia trees by junction R24, where you can leave your car. Once done, head back to Msembe along the south bank of the Mwagusi Sand River: elephants and plains game are frequent visitors to its dry-season waterholes, as are predators –easily camouflaged in the flanking vegetation.

Msembe area itself has a web of tracks, the highlights including a hippo pool close to junction R8, which also has crocodiles, and Kimiramatonge Hill to the north, where you might see klispringers.Msembes dominant tree species here is the tall Acacia Albida, ecologically important for its role in preventing soil erosion. Unfortunately, most of the tree cover disappeared in the wake of the catastrophic poaching in the the 1980s: the presence of the park headquarters led elephants to associate Msembe with safety, but their resulting high numbers ending up trashing the acacias. Things haven’t been helped since by the drying of the Great Ruaha River, which has increased pressure on areas surrounding the remaining waterholes.

In dry weather, you can extend your exploration westwards .From junction W8, a trail hugs the base of the Ruaha Escarpment. After some 10km you reach Mwayembe Spring, whose salty residue makes it a popular salt lick for elephant and buffalo. In the surroundings swamp, you might spot the rare Bohor reedbuck. The road continues along the escarpment base to the Mdonya Sand River, just below Mdonya Gorge .Returning to Msembe along the river south bank; keep an eye out for eland, black-backed jackals, and –in the evergreen riverine forest-birds. Another good long drive follows the north bank of the Great Ruaha River from Msembe to its confluence with the (usually dry) Jongomero River, whose flanking trees are likely haunts for leopards.

With more time, but in dry weather only, you can tackle the 95km drive northwest to the Mzombe River. Up the escarpment, the road passes through undulating woodland where you should see small groups of elephants, and perhaps also sable antelope or Liechtenstein’s hartebeest. There are some walking trails at Mpululu by the Mzombe River, on the border with Rungwa Game Reserve. The river is dry from July to September, when hippos congregate in pools. Walkers need to be accompanied by a park ranger or guide.

Tourists can tour Ruaha National Park for wildlife safaris, birding safaris, flying safaris, road safaris from either Dar,Arusha,Kilimanjaro,Mwanza .There are luxury & budget hotel accommodation in lodges and tented camps. Tour packages by air and road are available on individual and incentive groups tailor made for luxury, mid-range and budget.

Anthony Mmeri is the Editor and Senior Aviation Director at Wings Over Africa Safaris Limited. <br><a href='http://www.wingsoverafrica-aviation.com’> This is an Air Charter Company that specializes on Tanzania Wildlife Safaris |Birding Safaris | Tour Packages To Ruaha National Park Tanzania. </a> The website has guided thousands of travelers to achieve their dream holiday. For more information and guidance, visit the site at http://www.wingsoverafrica-aviation.com/index.php/safaris-east-africa/tanzania-tour-packages.html</a>