Exciting Inland Sport Fishing Safaris in Tanzania
Inland sport fishing is rapidly becoming a popular leisure activity among visitors to Tanzania.
Although fishing is not permitted in national parks and game reserves, Tanzania’s fresh water rivers and lakes – occupying over 6 per cent of the country’s total area- provide visitors with numerous rewarding fishing opportunities.
During the rainy season, the country’s rivers and their tributaries are inhabited by plenty of fish and it is therefore a good idea to take a fishing safari after the short and long rains.
The short rains fall in November and December, while the long rains are received in April and May. Some of Tanzania’s best inland fishing fishing grounds are Mwanza, Musoma, Lake Tanganyika and Rufiji River. These areas are among the most popular safari destinations in Tanzania.
There are plenty of tour safari companies organizing fishing safaris for visiting fishing enthusiasts seeking for best fishing experiences in Tanzania. Boatmen at the ports of Mwanza and Musoma located on Lake Victoria are so welcoming and they can also allow you to go with them on their daily fishing trips. Lake Victoria, by far the largest lake in Africa, is home to attractive freshwater tropical fish species that are imported to aquariums the world over.
Mwanza, the southern port of Lake Victoria, is home to huge Nile Perch and Tilapia and it one of the best places to get started. The port city is also the cultural centre of Sukuma, the largest ethnic group in Tanzania. Musoma, on the other hand, sits on the eastern edge of Lake Victoria near the Kenyan border and has plenty of Nile Perch - locally known as Sangara or Chengu.
The port has plenty of boats to take visitors across the lake. Lake Victoria is the largest tropical lake in the world and second largest freshwater lake in terms of surface area. The lake’s shoreline is 3440 km and has more than 3000 islands many of which are inhabited.
Lake Tanganyika is also a popular fishing ground and Nile Perch and Goliath Tigerfish are frequently caught here. Lake Tanganyika is the second largest freshwater lake in the world after Siberia’s Lake Baikal and it boasts over 350 species of fish. It stretches across four countries: Burundi, Zambia, Congo DRC and Tanzania, with the latter claiming the largest share.
The lake is a popular sport fishing spot in Tanzania and it hosts more than 2000 plants and animal species. About 600 of these species exist nowhere else in the world outside the lake’s watershed.
Both salty and freshwater fishing opportunities exist on Rufiji River, which is the largest river in Tanzania. Freshwater fishing takes place in the size-able 21 lakes in the Rufiji floodplain area along River Rufiji and in hundreds of ponds and creeks. These lakes and creeks fill up during the annual floods and they yield excellent catches of fish.
Salty water fishing is normally done near the Rufiji coast, where good conditions for prawn fishing exist on the sandbanks off the Rufiji Delta. Aside from inland sport fishing, fly fishing along the rivers and large streams of Tanzania is also a popular activity among visitors.
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on Tuesday, February 10th, 2009 at 7:46 am and is filed under Tanzania.
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March 1st, 2009 06:07
I heard many sport fishing in Tanzania from my friend. I’ve seen the pictures and it was literally awesome. I couldn’t descrbe the beauty of its serene. I hope someday I could get there with my fishing accessories. Thanks for the post buddy.