Lake Mweru

Mweru straddles the border with Zambia in the far southeast, a shallow lake around a hundred and thirty kilometres long, fed by the Luapula and draining north towards the Congo. The shores are low and swampy in places, with fishing villages along them and a substantial trade in dried and smoked fish moving inland. Birdlife on the margins is abundant, and the Luapula wetlands to the south hold shoebill among other species. It sees almost no visitors from outside the region.

What you actually see

• The lake - shallow open water with low shores, around a hundred and thirty kilometres long.
• The fishing villages - settlements along the shore with drying racks and dugout canoes.
• The fish trade - dried and smoked fish moving inland by road in quantity.
• The wetlands - marsh at the southern end with a strong bird list.

When to go

May to September is the dry season and the only sensible time for the roads. The wet months make the approach very difficult. Fishing activity continues year-round.

Honest expectations

Access is the difficulty: the roads from Lubumbashi are long and poor and the journey takes days rather than hours. There is no visitor infrastructure at all. Malaria and bilharzia are both concerns around the lake.

Nearby

Kasenga is the road town on the Congolese side, and Lubumbashi is far to the west.