Basic HTML Version
stretching from Namibia to Luanda:
• wet interior highland
• dry savanna in the interior south and southeast
• rain forest in the north and in Cabinda
The coast is generally flat, with occasional low cliffs
and bluffs of red sandstone. There is but one deep
inlet of the sea - Great Fish Bay (or Baía dos Tigres).
Further north are Port Alexander, Little Fish Bay and
Lobito Bay, while shallower bays are numerous.
Lobito Bay has water sufficient to allow large ships to
unload close inshore. The coast plain extends inland
for a distance varying from 48 to 165 km. This region
is in general sparsely watered and somewhat sterile.
The approach to the great central plateau of Africa is
marked by a series of irregular terraces. This inter-
mediate mountain belt is covered with luxuriant veg-
etation. Water is fairly abundant, though in the dry
season obtainable only by digging in the sandy beds
of the rivers. The plateau has an altitude ranging
from 1,200 to 1,800 m. It consists of well-watered,
wide, rolling plains, and low hills with scanty vegeta-
tion. In the east the tableland falls away to the basins
of the Congo and Zambezi, to the south it merges
into a barren sandy desert.
www.ebizguides.com
20
General Information
The mountain chains which form the edge of the pla-
teau, or diversify its surface, run generally parallel to
the coast, as Tala Mugongo (1,350 m), Chella and
Vissecua (1,500 to 2,000 m). In the district of Ben-
guela are the highest points of the province, viz. Lo-
viti (2,370 m), in 12° 5' S., and Mt. Elonga (2,300 m).
South of the Kwanza is the volcanic mountain
Caculo-Cabaza (1,000 m). From the tableland the
Kwango and many other streams, flow north to join
the Kasai River (one of the largest affluent of the
Congo), which in its upper course forms for fully 300
mi (490 km), the boundary between Angola and the
Congo State. In the south-east part of the province
the rivers belong either to the Zambezi system, or,
like the Okavango, drain to Lake Ngami.
Like the rest of tropical Africa, Angola experiences
distinct hot rainy season and dry cool season, also
known as cacimbo, often characterized by a heavy
morning mist. The climate can vary considerably
from the coast to the central plateau and between
the north coast and the south coast.
The Arco oasis in the desert of Namibe (photo credit Kodilu)
© Kodilu
CLIMATE