Olduvai Gorge
Oldupai Gorge
One of the 'Cradles of Humankind.' Louis and Mary Leakey found Paranthropus boisei and Homo habilis fossils here. The museum on the gorge's edge tells the 2-million-year story of human evolution.
Oldupai Gorge (its official local name, taken from the Maasai word for a wild sisal plant) is about 48 km long and 90 m deep, located within the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Its rock layers clearly record about 2 million years of geological and human history. In 1959, Mary Leakey discovered the skull of Paranthropus boisei (known as 'East Africa Man'). Fossils of Homo habilis and many Oldowan stone tools were found soon after, making this one of the most important sites for studying human origins. The Oldupai Gorge Museum on the rim displays fossil replicas, stone tools, and the history of the excavations. A viewpoint has guides who explain the rock layers. Nearby is Laetoli, where footprints about 3.6 million years old, discovered in 1978, are displayed as replicas. Admission is about USD 30 (confirm on site), and it's open roughly 08:00 to 16:30. Getting there: The gorge is along the main road from the Ngorongoro Crater to the Serengeti. A detour takes about 10 minutes, and it's often a stop of about an hour on the way. Nearby is the Shifting Sands, a moving black sand dune.
Opening hours
About 08:00–16:30
Nearby sights
- Shifting Sands
- Maasai Cultural Boma (Ngorongoro)
- Laetoli Footprints
- Ngorongoro Crater
- Olmoti Crater
- Karatu Coffee Farms (Gibb's Farm)
- Empakaai Crater
- Lake Eyasi & Hadzabe