Karonga

Karonga sits at the northern end of Lake Malawi in a stretch of the rift where the sediments have produced an unusual quantity of fossil material, and the Cultural and Museum Centre there displays it: Malawisaurus, a sauropod described from bones found nearby, and the Malawi hominin jaw, an early Homo specimen dated to around two and a half million years, among the older such finds anywhere. The museum also covers the region's more recent history.

History

The district is rich in Pleistocene and Holocene archaeology of the Middle and Later Stone Ages and the Iron Age, and in September 2009 students on an excavation here found more prehistoric remains. A British trading post opened here in 1883 and became the basis of the modern town (Wikipedia, Karonga).

The main sights

• Malawisaurus - the sauropod described from material found in the district.
• The hominin jaw - an early Homo specimen dated to around 2.5 million years.
• The rift sediments - the deposits that produced the fossil material.
• The museum galleries - the wider coverage of the region's history.

When to go

May to October is the dry season. The museum keeps daytime hours and closes on some days. The town is hot through most of the year.

Things to know

The town itself has little for visitors beyond the museum. Museum opening can be unreliable. It is a long way north of the main routes.

Nearby

Misuku Hills are northwest, and Livingstonia is south.

Key facts