Tarangire National Park
The National Park is 2,850 square kilometers
in area and was gazetted in 1970. It is only
a small part of a much larger ecosystem of
some 30,000 sq. km that comprises most of what is
called the Maasai Steppe or southern Maasailand.
Amongst safari connoisseurs; those who really enjoy the
African safari travel experience – the vast open spaces,
the Acacia savannas, the dramatic wildlife, the sandy
river beds, the sausage trees, the changing seasons, the
cool fresh mornings, the heat of mid-day, the day-long
birdsong, the sound of crickets at night, the whooping
call of hyena, the far distant roar of lion - Tarangire is a
place to put on your itinerary.
From the wide-open plains in the north, south along
the Acacia and baobab studded ridges and valleys of
the Tarangire River, and across vast seasonal swamps,
wildlife gathers in large numbers. This is the dry season
refuge for an enormous swathe of southern Maasailand,
and between July and November the wildlife here is
extraordinary by any standards Africa-wide.
Wildlife
It has been estimated that at the height of the dry season
in October the density of large animals -elephant,
buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, ostrich, giraffe, eland etc.
is second only to Ngorongoro Crater worldwide.
This spectacle gathers around the scattered pools of
permanent water along the Tarangire river bed, and also
around Silale Swamp. Lion and leopard are frequently
seen here as well.
The huge baobab tree is characteristic of these
savannas and have been described by naturalists as a
complete ecosystem unto themselves; their nooks and
crannies provide places for bee hives or are occupied
by small mammals such as genet and civet cats, and
their enormous flowers are pollinated by fruit bats.
Many baobabs are hollow and have provided shelter for
wandering bands of hunter-gatherers in the past.
Tarangire is one of the finest places in Tanzania to watch
elephant and spending unhurried time in the presence
of these intelligent giants, often from a vantage point
at a waterhole or spring is one of the greatest pleasures
of a wildlife safari- A favorite routine is to leave camp
early with a picnic lunch and to select a spot overlooking
the Tarangire River or a hinterland waterhole and watch
wildlife come and go.
Tarangire is also one of the few places in Tanzania
where one can find oryx, and more rarely gerenuk and
both greater and lesser kudu, and even on occasions
cape hunting dogs. It is also a birder’s paradise with
more resident breeding species than anywhere else in
Tanzania. Raptors are everywhere; from the masters of
predation and soaring – the martial and bateleur eagles
- down to the tiny but vicious pygmy falcon.
When to go
This is a year-round park with the distinct seasons offering different experiences, from dry and dusty with animals clustered around shrinking water holes and the trickle of Tarangire River, to the green season full of newborn animals and chattering birds.
Getting there
Air. There is an airstrip at Kuro in the center of the Park with daily scheduled flights to all main safari destinations in Tanzania. Road. The journey from Arusha is on a good road and only takes about 1 1/2 hours to the Main Gate in the north. For this reason, safaris often begin here. There is also an entry gate at Boundary Hill on the eastern side of the Park to service people staying at camps and lodges in community areas outside the Park, and a gate at Sangaiwe on the western side with easy access from the main road to Dodoma.