The Kalambo River forms part of the border between Zambia and Tanzania. It is a comparatively small stream which rises on the Ufipa Plateau in Rukwa Region,Tanzania]] north-east of Mbala at an elevation of about 1800 m and descends into the Albertine Rift, entering the southeastern end of Lake Tanganyika at an elevation of about 770 m, in a straight-line distance of only about 50 km. This accounts for its main claim to fame, its waterfall, Kalambo Falls, which is Africa's second highest falls (after South Africa's Tugela Falls). Below the falls, the river runs in a deep gorge. The site of the river includes important archaeological sites.