LAKE EYASI

“Seasonal Shallow Endorheic Salt Lake”

Lake Eyasi is a gorgeous soda lake that’s part of the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, and lies on the southern border of the Ngorongoro conservation area, and is Tanzania’s largest soda lake. The remote region is seldom visited by travelers and is home to the Hadzabe Bushmen and the Datoga tribe. Here you can have a much truer picture of tribal life than in the more tourist areas.

Hadzabe Bushmen are traditional hunter-gatherers who speak a “click” language similar to the Bushmen of southern Africa. The men hunt in the early morning and afternoon with bows and arrows. Poison arrows are used for large game and non-poisonous arrows for birds and small game. The women gather-wild fruits, roots, and tubers. The Datoga is a tribe similar to the Maasai that herd cattle and goats.

Wildlife

While Lake Eyasi doesn’t support the big-game wildlife populations seen in the neighboring parks and conservation areas, it is a birdwatcher’s dream. The shallow waters support a huge diversity of breeding waterbirds from June to November, including large populations of flamingos and pelicans. Hippos are also known to come and wallow in the waters when the lake is full while several other wildlife species frequent the springs in the surrounding region. 

Activities.

  1. Walking.

Walking along the lake and see the local people fishing for tilapia, however, you decide to have a beer while looking at the sun dropping over the Great rift Valley escarpment.

  1. Hunting with Bushmen.

Spend the day with the Hadzabe people, and witness their unchanged, traditional way of life and harmony with the earth. Accompanied throughout by an Enticing journey guide, guests have the opportunity to engage with the Bushmen and learn all about their time-honored hunting techniques, survival skills, food preparation, and cultural norms. A veritable step back in time, this is an undeniably authentic cultural journey into rural Tanzania that reveals the untold world of these charismatic people.

Amongst the world’s last remaining hunter-gatherer tribes inhabiting the scrubby bushland, Hadzabe men search for food alone and return home with golden honey, sweet fruit, or hearty wild game when, and if available. Women go out in large groups and forage for bright berries, baobab fruit, and tubers, depending on availability. In the rainy, wet season, sweet honey is the main staple of their diet along with colorful fruit, tubers, and sometimes meat.

Adjusting their diets to the seasons this tribe is incredibly skilled, selective, and opportunistic seekers and searchers. They have only themselves to rely on to feed their families and tribe.

 

Tour Idea to Get you Dreaming.

Our Favorite Tours Showcasing the Best of Lake Eyasi.

7 Day | Wilds of Tanzania Private Tented Safari

his tour starts in Arusha before heading to iconic safari hotspots such as Tarangire, the Serengeti National Park, and the Ngorongoro Crater before ending off in Lake Eyasi’s home to the Busmen’s people.
cancellation policy

(16)
5/5

$2,847
| Per Person

8 Day | Great Migration Calving Season Safari to Tanzania

 Beginning with an easy night at Kibo palace hotel in the heart of Arusha town, the tour combines Tanzania’s must-see Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti National Park, giving you the chance to tick off the Big 5 along with the great sighting of cheetah in the legendary open plains of Serengeti.
Cancellation Policy

(16)
5/5

From $2,712
| Per Person