The former are mostly Maasai people, benefiting from local tourism. As a result, there is a close and often symbiotic relationship between human and wildlife communities here. The area is also notable for its location on village land rather than within a game reserve or national park that prohibits human settlement. This is one of the world’s largest collections of human footprints and well worth a visit. Descend to the shoreline however and marvel at ‘the Lake Natron footprints’, fossilised footfalls preserving moments over 120,000 years ago when two groups of Homo sapiens traversed the volcanic-ash terrain. With a magical location ‘guarding’ Lake Natron, Ol Doinyo Lengai is an extremely steep climb – but reach its peak and you are rewarded with breathtaking views over Ngorongoro, Kilimanjaro and all the volcanoes of the Rift Valley! On a clear day this view is absolutely outstanding.

The scenery is phenomenal some of the most spectacular in Africa. Approximately six hours drive from Arusha itself, this is an area well off the beaten track, consisting of a near-pristine forest reserve and extensive grass plains interspersed with mountains, rocky hills, and even a live volcano – Ol Doinyo Lengai, ‘Mountain of God’ in Maasai.

The lake sits close to the Tanzania/Kenya border, in the Arusha region.

Lake in tanzania lake natron