The tranquillity of the scene is both calming and exhilarating, offering quiet excitement as fishermen paddle their canoes out onto the water. Today, the lake lies still, its waves forming only gentle, carpet-like ripples across the surface. Everything feels natural and earthly.
Finding true privacy and seclusion is often a great challenge. Yet here, I have come across a place so peaceful — so genuinely down-to-earth — that I almost hesitate to tell anyone about it, wishing instead to keep it for myself. This is my second visit to Ngumbo Village, on the shores of Lake Nyasa, in just two months, having travelled all the way from Arusha. On this trip I was accompanied by my friend, Mr Olsen from Copenhagen, who wanted to explore the southernmost part of western Tanzania.
The landscape is dominated by a clean, quiet stretch of beach. As we strolled along, we realised that the people here carry no worry lines; they simply live for today. Olsen remarked that this unhurried lifestyle is precisely “what the doctor always prescribes”.
Midday passed quietly as we walked along the edges of nearby marshlands — home to a variety of birds. We watched African Openbills and African Skimmers gather in their masses. Far out over the water, swarms appeared like plumes of smoke: Tiny, harmless lake flies known as Chaoborus edulis, called Likungu in the local Nyasa language. We saw fishermen in their canoes rushing to harvest the flies, from which they make likungu cakes. These black flies were also recorded by David Livingstone, who “discovered” the lake on 15 October 1859 — though this would surely have come as some surprise to the communities who had lived around Lake Nyasa for centuries.
We watched otters peeping out of the deep water and people enjoying a swim. It is usually safe to swim in Lake Nyasa: the water is clean, with no drifting plants or driftwood and the lake offers beautifully clear underwater views. Remarkably, it is free of bilharzia. The surface and deep waters do not mix, which contributes to its clarity. We took a boat trip to Liuli, which gave us the perfect vantage point to enjoy the lake’s famous blazing sunset. I even dived beneath the surface to admire the kaleidoscope of fish darting between rocks in the shallows. Crocodiles and hippos inhabit the lake too, though they tend to keep to the more vegetated and muddy areas rather than the broad, clear waters.
Birdlife was abundant, and the area is a notable stronghold of Lillian’s Lovebirds. We saw Pel’s Fishing Owl, Böhm’s Bee-eaters and Livingstone’s Flycatchers along the riverside thickets. Trumpeter Hornbills were a common sight in and around the lake, and we were fortunate to spot one of the most sought-after birds in the region — the African Pitta (Pitta angolensis), a striking species with brilliantly coloured plumage. Observing this extremely elusive bird was a rare and memorable sight.
