Lake No

Lake No lies at the northern edge of the Sudd where the Bahr el Ghazal joins the White Nile, a shallow lake fringed with papyrus that marks the point the Nile leaves the great swamp and turns east toward Malakal. It is where the river becomes a river again after hundreds of kilometres of spreading. Pelicans, herons and very large numbers of waterbirds use it. The name comes from the Arabic for the lake, and it appears in nineteenth-century exploration accounts as a key waypoint.

What you actually see

• The confluence - the Bahr el Ghazal joining the White Nile.
• The Sudd's edge - the point the Nile leaves the swamp.
• The papyrus fringe - the reed around the shallow water.
• The waterbirds - the numbers the lake and swamp carry.

When to go

December to March is the dry season and the practical window. The rains from April raise the water considerably. Bird numbers peak in the northern winter.

Honest expectations

Access is by river only and must be arranged well in advance; there is no road. There is no infrastructure of any kind. Mosquitoes in the Sudd are extreme.

Nearby

The Sudd spreads south, and Malakal is east.