Lake Kivu, DRC
Lake Kivu, French Lac Kivu, one of the great lakes of East Africa, situated between Congo to the west and Rwanda to the east. Lying at 4,790 feet above sea level, it occupies 1,040 square miles and is 55 miles long and 30 miles wide. From an average depth of 722 feet, it plunges to a maximum of 1,558 feet. Lake Kivu has a rough, jagged coast and contains numerous islands, the largest of which is Idjwi.
It was at one time part of a larger body of water that filled a structural trough in the Earth. Volcanic outpourings along its northern shore created a dam that separated Kivu from Lake Edward, barred Kivu’s northern outflow, and reversed its drainage to the south through the Ruzizi River into Lake Tanganyika.
Epic Democratic Republic of the Congo Culture & Adventure Route © Monika Newbound
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