The forested slopes behind the beach are where the chimps are. Trackers locate the group in the morning and radio their position; the walk in can be short and flat or several hours of steep, humid climbing, depending entirely on where the community has moved. Time with them is limited to an hour and masks are required.

The lakeshore itself is the other half of the experience — white sand, absurdly clear water and hundreds of endemic cichlid species that make snorkelling straight off the beach genuinely worthwhile. Tanganyika is the second-deepest lake on Earth and its fish fauna is a textbook case of evolutionary radiation.

The forest generally holds red colobus, red-tailed and blue monkeys, and yellow baboons on the beach, while the mountains behind hold species that few visitors ever reach.

The lake at dusk brings the fishing boats out with lamps, a line of lights across the water that is one of the region's defining sights.

The dry season from May to October is the practical window, when chimps tend to be lower on the slopes and the walking is easier. The heaviest rains make trekking difficult and many camps close.

Practicalities

Access is by charter flight from Arusha or Dar es Salaam to an airstrip up the lake, then a boat transfer of an hour or more. It is expensive and slow, and the small number of camps must be booked far ahead.

Mahale is often paired with Katavi National Park, a genuinely wild and little-visited savanna park on the same charter circuit — the combination is one of the great safari itineraries in Africa.