Katavi National Park is located in the western area of Tanzania. Wild, remote and isolated,

Katavi National Park is located in the western area of Tanzania. Wild, remote and isolated, Katavi is one of the most untouched areas of the entire country. In 2001, for example, the Serengeti received 100,000 guests; in contrast the Katavi National Park had only 83 visitors! Katavi offers unspoilt wildlife viewing and is the third-largest national park in Tanzania at approximately 4471 sq km. Part of the well known Rift Valley, the landscape leads down to the shallow waters of Lake Rukwa. A visit here will truly make your Tanzania safari into a unique and wild experience!

Most of the Katavi National Park features tangled scrub and woodland, which hosts large yet tantalisingly elusive populations of the elegant eland, sable and roan antelopes. Most game viewing within Katavi National Park occurs on and around the banks of the Katuma River and its floodplains, including seasonal Lake Katavi and Lake Chada. These marshy lakes are home to thousands of waterbirds during the wet season, and they also support the densest concentrations of hippo and crocodile found in Tanzania.

Within the dry season the floodwaters dissipate, and Katavi National Park changes dramatically in character. The Katuma River becomes little more than a muddy trickle of water and yet it provides the only source of drinking water for miles around. The floodplains to either side therefore host remarkably large concentrations of game. An estimated 4,000 elephants have been known to arrive in the area, along with multiple herds of over a thousand buffalo. Hundreds of zebra, giraffe, reedbuck, and impala provide prey for the seevral prides of lions and clans of spotted hyena resident in and around the floodplains of Katavi.

For more information on visiting Katavi National Park and part of your Tanzania safari,

Sumbawanga is a city located in western Tanzania.

Sumbawanga is a city located in western Tanzania. It is the capital of Rukwa Region. The regional population is approximately 150,000 based on a 2002 census. Many people living in Sumbawanga are Fipa, called so for the native language also spoken there. The name of the town literally translates as "through away you are witches", which may stem from local superstitions and practices relating to spiritual healers, of which there are still some who practice in the surrounding smaller villages on the plateau. The town serves as the location for the largest hospital in the region, Rukwa General Hospital (government funded) and the smaller Dr Atiman hospital administrated and run by the Catholic Diocese of Sumbawanga.

The town acts as a supply and commerce center for the Rukwa province and some government agencies are to be found here, notably the transport department for the region plus the Libori and Morovian conference centres. A modest sized market is situated in the town centre where local produce may be found. This includes maize, fruit, poultry and fish. Many imported plastic goods and electronics are available as well as bicycles and spares.

The local economy is largely dependent on agriculture and small locally owned businesses, currently there is very limited industry or production in the town. Vast improvement could be expected if the road link to Mbeya was improved enabling four-seasonal capacity of this highway and thus greater reliability of transport links which are currently heavily impaired during the long rains season.

The town can be reached by bus from Mbeya which lies to the south with train links to Kapiri Mposhi, Zambia and Dar es Salaam, or from Mpanda in the north.