Lake Tanganyika is the longest freshwater lake in the world and the second deepest after Lake Baikal, reaching 1,433 metres — which puts its floor 642 metres below sea level. It stretches 677 kilometres north to south and averages 50 kilometres wide, shared between Tanzania, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, though Zambia claims only 7% of its surface.

The lake holds more than 350 species of fish, and 98% of its cichlids are found nowhere else on earth, which is what draws divers and aquarists as well as anglers. Sport fishing runs to goliath tigerfish and Nile perch. Zambia’s stretch of shore takes in Nsumbu National Park and the sandy beaches and rocky coves around Kasaba Bay, and Mpulungu at the southern tip is the main point of access.