Amani Nature Reserve

Amani Nature Reserve (1997) In The Eastern Arc Mountains, One Of The Oldest And Most Diverse Forests In East Africa, With Endemic Chameleons, Birds Such As The Amani Sunbird, And An 1890s German Botanical Garden And Research Station. Visited On Guided Forest Walks And Bird Tours From Tanga Or Muheza. · Muheza, Tanga

Amani Nature Reserve lies in the East Usambara Mountains, a cool, wet forest about 900 m above the Tanga plain and part of the ancient Eastern Arc. It holds a very high number of endemic plants, birds and amphibians, including the Amani sunbird, the Usambara eagle-owl and several chameleons. Beside it is the Amani Botanical Garden, founded by German colonial scientists in 1902, with old research buildings, tall trees and tea plantations. Guided walks lead to the Zigi trails, Mbomole Hill and the Kwamkoro waterfalls, past Shambaa and Bondei villages. The honest picture: this is a quiet eco-trip for birdwatchers, botanists and chameleon hunters, and it is a long, rough road from Muheza. Facilities are few, the track is poor in rain, and leeches come in the wet season. It suits someone already in Tanga or Lushoto with spare days. Come for the forest and its small creatures, not for big game. Treat it as a slow stay of two nights, with early mornings, damp boots and tea on a veranda, and not as a box to tick between two longer journeys.

Montane forest reserve in the East Usambara Mountains about 35 km from Muheza and 900 m above sea level, with the Amani Botanical Garden and the Zigi trails, Muheza, Tanga, Tanzania

The reserve and garden are open every day of the year in daylight hours, and guided walks start in the morning. Night walks for chameleons need a ranger and prior notice. Some forest trails are CLOSED or muddy after heavy rain. Confirm with the reserve office.

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