Lake Chamo Crocodile Market

The crocodile market is not a market but a stretch of sandy shore on the western side of Lake Chamo where Nile crocodiles haul out to bask in numbers, including some very large individuals, and boats from Arba Minch run out to sit offshore and watch them. The lake also holds hippos, often encountered on the way, and pelicans, fish eagles and storks along the shore. The trip takes two to three hours in an open boat, and the sight of thirty or forty crocodiles lying on one beach with their mouths open is the reason it appears on every itinerary through the south. Boats are hired whole and prices are negotiated at the landing, so joining others reduces the cost considerably.

The landscape

• Basking crocodiles - large Nile crocodiles hauled out on the shore.
• Hippos - pods encountered in the shallows on the way.
• Fish eagles and pelicans - birds along the lake edge.
• The boat trip - two to three hours on open water below the escarpments.

When to go

October to March for calm water and comfortable conditions. Crocodiles bask most in the morning sun, so an early trip is better. Wind can build in the afternoon and make the lake rough.

Things to know

Boats are open, basic and sometimes without adequate life jackets, which is worth checking. Hippos are genuinely dangerous and boatmen sometimes approach too closely for photographs. Prices are per boat and negotiated. Heat and sun on the water are severe with no shade.

Nearby

Arba Minch lies north; Nechisar National Park is on the far shore.