Ngorongoro Highlands and Gol Mountains

The Ngorongoro Highlands and Gol Mountains walking holiday is in a unique area of forested rolling hillsides and craters, above the Great Rift Valley escarpment in Tanzania. After glimpsing the world famous Ngorongoro Crater we travel further into this World Heritage Site to the spectacular Empakaai Crater. The first two days are spent exploring the craters, walking through the savannah and hills of this amazing area and staying at another of its famous craters, on our way back to the Ngorongoro Crater.

The Ngorongoro Crater is one of the world's best wildlife watching destinations, the spectacular setting of the crater, which is 20km in diameter and with walls 600m high acts as a natural barrier that the animals tend to stay within. We spend a night in one of the crater-rim lodges before descending the next day in four-wheel drive vehicles to the floor of the crater to spot game. We are sure to see many of the more common animals and will not leave disappointed. We leave the crater and travel to almost the Serengeti National Park boundary before turning north and heading through the eastern Serengeti plains to the remote Gol Mountains.

This is the start of our three day walk through the Gol Mountains, part of the internationally designated Ngorongoro Conservation Area and Loliondo Game Reserve. The ancestral home to the Masai people, the Gol Mountains rise out of fertile grass plains in an area of almost forgotten wilderness between the Serengeti and Ngorongoro boundaries, firmly on the migration path as the animals move freely between the plains of the Masai Mara in Kenya and the Serengeti.

Rocky granite outcrops (Kopjes) and lone acacia trees are scattered throughout these plains that are home to wildebeest, zebra, giraffe and other game, making the Gol Mountains an iconic part of Africa.  We walk to one of the biggest Kopjes, Nasera Rock and climb onto it for far reaching views and can visit a traditional Masai Boma to see how life goes on for the people that live here.  There is also time to visit the Olkarien Gorge which cuts into the mountains and is a very important breeding ground for large numbers of the Ruppels Griffon Vulture that live in this part of East Africa.

Leaving the Gol Mountains we travel east through the Mosonik Plain and walk from here down the escarpment of the Great Rift to Lake Natron at its foot, with great views of nearby volcano Oldoinyo Lengai.

There is an optional ascent of volcanic Oldoinyo Lengai (2878m) for those wishing to climb to its summit, and from here we travel south along the bottom of the Great Rift Valley to spot game in Lake Manyara National Park, before spending our last night in a lodge overlooking the park from the top of the escarpment (with optional night game drive, and canoeing). A final game drive in the park the next morning as part of the drive back to Arusha and our flight home confirms we have experienced as much of this amazing part of the world as possible - this Ngorongoro Highlands and Gol Mountains walking holiday has it all!

Why not extend your trip and enjoy East Africa for a little longer either by combining any of our trips, or by adding a safari or beach extension detailed on our Trip Extensions page.

	Click here for the Ngorongoro Highlands & Gol Mountains Detailed Itinerary online
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