Ruaha National Park

Ruaha is the great southern wilderness of Tanzania, and after the 2008 expansion that absorbed the Usangu Game Reserve, it became the largest national park in the country at 20,226 square kilometres. Located in central-southern Tanzania, it is defined by the Great Ruaha River, a permanent water source that carves through the park and becomes the lifeline of the ecosystem in the dry season. Its relative inaccessibility means it receives a tiny fraction of the visitors of the northern circuit, yet its wildlife is comparable and its landscapes are more varied.

The park sits at a biological crossroads where eastern and southern African ecosystems overlap. This produces an unusual species list that includes both greater and lesser kudu, both sable and roan antelope, and one of the largest concentrations of Africa's endangered wild dogs. Lion prides here are among the largest recorded anywhere in Africa, with prides of twenty animals not unusual. Leopard are common along the riverine forest, cheetah hunt the open plains near Mwagusi and Mdonya, and the elephant population is estimated at over twelve thousand, the largest in East Africa.

The landscape ranges from open miombo woodland and rocky escarpments to river terraces lined with giant baobabs and doum palms. In the dry season, from July onwards, the Great Ruaha River shrinks to a chain of pools that draws almost every mammal in the park to drink. Game concentrations at these pools rival anything in Africa. In the wet season the river runs strong, the miombo turns emerald green, and the birding is exceptional with over 570 recorded species.

Ruaha is a walking-safari destination as much as a driving one. Private concessions along the river offer guided walks with armed rangers, night drives, and small-vehicle exclusivity that is not available in the northern parks. Combined with Nyerere (formerly Selous), it forms the classic seven to ten night southern circuit itinerary.