Lake Tana

About this place

Lake Tana is the largest lake in Ethiopia and a source of the Blue Nile, in the north-western highlands of the Amhara Region. It is about 84 km long and 66 km wide, at 1,788 m. Visitors come for boat trips among its islands and old monasteries, and to sit on its calm shores at Bahir Dar, where trees and cafes reach down to the water. It is fed by the Gilgel Abay, Reb and Gumara rivers, and its area ranges from 3,000 to 3,500 square km with the season and rains. Since a weir was built at its outlet, its level has been regulated, controlling the flow of the Blue Nile. Its main islands are Tana Qirqos, Daga, Dek and Mitraha, with old monasteries, many of them quiet places of worship. You take a boat from Bahir Dar across brown-green water and may see many birds, and at times hippos at the outlet. On the Zege Peninsula are forests and round churches with thatched roofs, which you can visit from outside with respect. In the late afternoon the water turns gold, the finest time to return. Do not swim without local advice. Its centre is about 51 km in a straight line from Bahir Dar. Make sure you have a life jacket. Some monasteries do not admit women, so ask before booking. The UK Foreign Office currently advises against all travel to the Amhara region, and access may not be possible, so check official guidance before making any plans.