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.

Background

Lake No ranks as the largest lake in South Sudan, with an area of up to 100 square kilometres. The Ruweng Panaruu community calls it Dhoo Lake, and the lake is regarded as the centre of the Ruweng people of the Panaruu section of the Dinka. It sits where the Bahr al Jabal and the Bahr el Ghazal meet, the point at which the Bahr al Jabal gives way to the White Nile proper. Lake Albert in Uganda, the previous major lake on the White Nile, lies approximately 1,156 km upstream.

Source: Wikipedia, "Lake No"

Highlights

• 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.

Good to know

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.

Key facts