Lake Ngozi is an awe-inspiring emerald-green crater lake nestled within the Uporoto Ridge Forest Reserve, about 22 kilometres south of Mbeya at an altitude of 2.620 meters. Surrounded by steep, forested crater walls, it is Africa’s second-largest crater lake and one of the region’s most spectacular natural attractions. Reaching the lake involves a scenic 1.5- to 2-hour hike (3.5 km) through dense montane forests and upland grasslands.
Formed hundreds of thousands of years ago, Lake Ngozi occupies the caldera of an ancient volcano that collapsed into a crater approximately 2.6 kilometres long and 1.5 kilometres wide. The lake is also steeped in local folklore. According to one legend, German colonial soldiers threw their treasures into its depths and cast a spell to protect them. Another tale speaks of a mysterious twelve-headed snake that guards the lake and its secrets.
We hired a tuk-tuk through Bolt to combine visits to the Great Rift Valley Viewpoint and Lake Ngozi Crater. The excursion took around seven hours in total and cost TZS 100,000, including two hours of waiting time while we completed the hike.
The route is incredibly scenic, winding through beautiful mountain landscapes, but the roads are steep and full of sharp bends. Our tuk-tuk couldn’t make the final climb to the visitors’ centre (🎟️30,000 TZS), so we had to hire a motorbike for the last steep kilometre, which cost an additional TZS 5,000.
Parking location – Mbeya: 8.9104149S 33.4481472E (🅿️5,000 TZS,🚻,🚿,💦,🫧)