Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
GETTING THERE & AROUND
If you aren't travelling on an organised safari and don't have your own vehicle, the easiest
thing to do is hire in Karatu where most lodges charge about US$160 per day including
fuel for a 4WD with a pop-up top. It's also possible, if arrangements are made in advance,
to travel by bus (see Arusha or Musoma for details) to headquarters where staff informally
hires vehicles for US$150 including fuel, but it's much easier to arrange things in Karatu.
Driving is not allowed before 6am or (officially, anyway) after 7pm. Petrol is sold at
headquarters, but it's cheaper in Karatu.
Lake Eyasi
Uniquely beautiful Lake Eyasi lies at 1030m between the Eyasi Escarpment in the north
and the Kidero Mountains in the south. Like Lake Natron way to the northeast, Eyasi makes
a rewarding detour on a Ngorongoro trip for anyone looking for something remote and dif-
ferent, and prepared for the rough road trip from Karatu. It's a hot, dry area, around which
live the Hadzabe (also known as Hadzapi or Tindiga) people who are believed to have lived
here for nearly 10,000 years. Several hundred still follow ancient nomadic hunting and
gathering traditions. Their language is characterised by clicks and may be distantly related
to that of Southern Africa's San, although it shows only a few connections to Sandawe, the
other click language spoken in Tanzania. Also in the area are the Iraqw (Mbulu), a people
of Cushitic origin who arrived about 2000 years ago, and Datoga, noted metal smiths whose
dress and culture is quite similar to the Maasai.
The lake itself varies considerably in size depending on the rains. It supports a mix of
water birds, including huge breeding season (June-November) populations of flamingos
and pelicans but it's little more than a parched lakebed deep into the dry season, lending to
the rather otherworldly, primeval ambience of the area.
This is Tanzania's top onion-growing centre and large irrigation systems line the Chem-
chem River near
Ghorofani
, the main village, a few kilometres from the lake's northeast-
ern end. Its
mnada
(market), held on the fifth day of the month, atracts shoppers and traders
from around the lake region.
All foreigners must pay a US$5 village tax at the
Lake Eyasi Cultural Tourism Pro-
gram office
( 0782-175099; 8am-6pm) at the entrance to Ghorofani. Here you can
hire English-speaking guides (US$30 per group up to 10 people) to visit nearby Hadzabe
(an extra US$20 per group) and Datoga communities or the lake. One option is to join the
Hadzabe on a hunting trip with traditional weapons, for which you'll need to depart before
dawn.
