LETABA CAMP - KRUGER NATIONAL PARK:
A green and thriving oasis, Letaba Camp offers comfortable accommodation in Kruger Park with excellent Elephant and bird viewing opportunities.

- Being close to 3 major dams, provides for excellent wildlife viewing
- View game on a 3 hour night drive
- Banking facilities, first aid and a fuel station are available
- The Goldfields Environmental Education Centre is located within the camp
- Choose from guest houses, cottages, bungalows, huts or furnished safari tents

The idyllic Letaba Rest Camp is situated on a sweeping bend of the Letaba River, midway between the southern and northern boundaries of the Kruger National Park, South Africa. At Letaba Camp you can choose between a guest house, cottage, bungalow, hut or a furnished safari tent, as well as camping and caravan sites, for your accommodation in Kruger Park.

All units are serviced daily and supplied with bedding, towels and soap, at your safari accommodation in Kruger Park. The fifth largest rest camp in the park, Letaba Camp has a wonderfully relaxed air about it and its accommodation in Kruger Park is comfortably spread out in spacious semi-circles facing the wooded lawns and the river beyond.

The character of Letaba Camp depends heavily on the tall shady trees (Sycamore Fig, Natal Mahogany, Sausage Tree and Apple Leaf), expansive lawns and indigenous gardens, where tame Bushbuck wander. Visit in winter and you will find the gardens a riot of colour, with several species of Aloe and the Impala lily in full bloom, at your accommodation in Kruger Park. The Aloes attract a variety of birds like the White Bellied and Marico Sunbird, Crested Barbet, Blackheaded Oriole and Black Eyed Bulbul.

Letaba Camp offers excellent bird watching opportunities all year round. Pearlspotted, Barred and Scops owl can be spotted in camp, while the Giant Eagle Owl is regularly recorded along the river, from your accommodation in Kruger Park. Green Pigeon and Brown Headed Parrot are to be found high in the tree canopies.

Letaba means 'river of sand' and the sandy riverbed makes for excellent game viewing, particularly Elephant, which abound in the area. Letaba Camp is a green oasis in the surrounding mopane veld, and remains a firm favourite with holiday visitors for accommodation in Kruger Park.

Accommodation at Letaba Camp comprises of 30 camping sites, 5 huts, 44 bungalows, 10 guest cottages, 2 spacious guesthouses and 20 furnished safari tents. All of the guest houses and cottages can be easily accessed by people with mobility difficulties. A wilderness trail hike along the southern bank of the Olifants River will give you an unsurpassed opportunity of viewing some of the Kruger Park - South Africa's magnificent flora and fauna.

HISTORICAL INTEREST OF LETABA REST CAMP:
In prehistoric times, parts of the present-day Kruger National Park were inhabited by successive groups of people. One such example is that of picturesque Masorini Hill which is 39km (24 miles) from Letaba. Human habitation at Masorini has been traced back several centuries to the late Stone Age, while more recently it has been home to the BaPhalaborwa tribes people who inhabited it in the early 19th century.

They were cattle and crop farmers, as well as ironsmiths of note, who made a living by manufacturing iron artifacts and trading with Arab merchants on the east coast. Archaeological excavations have revealed hut floors, packed stone walls and terraces, grinding stones, pot shards, glass beads, ash and even food remains.

Most impressive, however, are the iron-melting furnaces, smithies and worked artifacts. The village offers an example of a specialized economy and well-developed technology that existed well before the arrival of the white man in South Africa.

The origin of a typical Portuguese cross, carved into an old leadwood tree along the S95 road just north of Letaba, remains shrouded in mystery. It may have been carved by the Portuguese explorer, Ferdinandes das Neves, during his expedition to the Soutpansberg in 1860-61.

AFRICAN MAMMALS GUIDE IN THIS AREA:
- Aardvark
- Aardwolf
- African Buffalo
- African Wild Cat
- Ansorgis Free Tailed Bat
- Badger
- Banana Bat
- Banded Mongoose
- Bat-Eared Fox
- Black Rhino
- Blue Wildebeest
- Burchells Zebra
- Bush Pig
- Bushbuck
- Cape Hare
- Cape Otter
- Caracal
- Chacma Baboon
- Cheetah Civet
- Duiker
- Dwarf Mongoose
- Eland

- Elephant
- Giraffe
- Greater Cane Rat
- Hippo
- Hyena
- Impala
- Jackal
- Klipspringer
- Kudu
- Large-Spotted Genet
- Lechwe
- Leopard
- Lesser Bushbaby
- Lesser Yellow House Bat
- Lion Mountain
- Reedbuck
- Nyala
- Oribi
- Pangolin
- Porcupine
- Reedbuck
- Rhebuck
- Roan

ACCOMMODATION:
The air-conditioned accommodation units at Letaba are comfortably spread out in semi-circles facing wooded lawns and the river beyond.

- Each site has its own power point
- The bungalows are air conditioned
- Units are serviced daily and supplied with bedding, towels and soap
- Accommodation units are comfortably spread out
- All the units have a fridge

Kruger Park accommodation at Letaba Camp comprises guest houses, cottages, bungalows, huts and furnished safari tents to choose from, as well as camping and caravan sites. All units are serviced daily and supplied with bedding, towels and soap, at your Kruger Park accommodation.

The fifth largest rest camp in the park, Letaba Camp has a wonderfully relaxed air. The units are comfortably spread out in spacious semi-circles facing the wooded lawns and the river beyond, offering great Kruger Park accommodation.

The bungalows at Letaba's Kruger Park accommodation are air-conditioned and most come with three beds, an en-suite shower and a toilet. Self-catering facilities vary somewhat. All the units have a fridge, but only some are equipped with both a two-plate stove and a sink (communal cooking facilities are provided). No cooking utensils, crockery or cutlery are supplied. Three-bedded huts are available at Letaba's Kruger Park accommodation for the budget-conscious, and visitors in these units make use of communal kitchen and ablution facilities.

The six-bedded cottages at Letaba's Kruger Park accommodation offer additional features, like french doors leading to a spacious living room backed by a fully equipped, open-plan kitchen. Each of the bedrooms has air-conditioning, and there are two bathrooms. All of the cottages can be easily accessed by people with mobility difficulties.

For guests that prefer luxury Kruger Park accommodation, the comfortable, self-contained Fish Eagle and Melville guest houses accommodating eight and nine persons respectively, offer exquisite riverside views. The concept of exclusivity reaches new heights with the Fish Eagle guest house, where guests have a bird hide for their own private use.

Letaba Rest Camp had been overhauled in recent years, and one of the most noticeable changes has been the upgrading of the camping site, with its expansive lawns, shady trees and spotlessly clean ablution blocks. Some visitors set up camp right against the fence, hoping for a close view of the game outside, such as the Spotted Hyena that readily patrol the boundary of their Kruger Park accommodation at night.

The 2 or 4-bedded furnished tents share the splendid camping area and offer good value. They are erected on cement floors and shaded by nets. Each is equipped with a cupboard, fan, table, chairs, fridge and electric light. Communal ablution facilities are available.

Summary of Accommodation:

Campsites
Tent or caravan sites, with power point, communal ablutions and cooking facilities, maximum of 6 persons per site.

Bungalows:
2 or 3 bed round rooms. Equipped with ablutions (most with showers, but some with baths), air-conditioning, some have both hotplates and sinks, some only have sinks.

You have a choice of kitchenette or communal kitchen and more over; with or without riverside view.

Guest Cottages:
10 x 6 bed units (three twin-bedded rooms, one with bathroom en-suite), two bathrooms, kitchen, lounge/dining area, large verandah and outside braai (barbecue).

Safari Tents
2 or 4 bed permanent canvas tents, communal ablutions and cooking facilities, fridge. Maximum of 6 persons per site.
Melville and Fish Eagle Guest Houses
Melville: Sleeps 9 (3 rooms with 3 beds) and has exclusive riverside view
Fish Eagle: Sleeps 8 (4 rooms with 2 beds) and has a bird hide and riverside view.
Both are fully equipped with en-suite bathrooms, kitchen, lounge, dining room and television.

- Cafeteria
- Curio Shop
- Emergency Road Service*
- Petrol Station
- Laundromat
- Picnic Facilities
Please Note: ALL Emergency Road Services are from Satara.

LOCATION:
Letaba Camp provides ample opportunity for bird watchers and excellent day and night game drive safaris in Kruger Park.
- Many large predators in the vicinity make this ideal game viewing territory
- The camp is situated on the southern bank of Letaba River
- There is an emergency vehicle service centre and workshop
- Letaba Camp is an ideal stopover when traveling the length of the park
- Phalaborwa Gate is the closest entrance to Letaba

Visitors to Letaba Camp can enter Kruger Park - South Africa through the Phalaborwa Gate. The journey from Johannesburg to Phalaborwa Gate takes about 5 hours. The closest rest camps are Olifants, 32km (19 miles) to the south and Mopani, 47km (29 miles) to the north. Letaba's strategic position makes it an ideal stopover for anyone traveling the length of the Kruger Park - South Africa. The Phalaborwa Kruger Park - South Africa Gateway, is just 4km (2.5 miles) from the Phalaborwa Gate.

The camp is situated on a bend on the southern bank of the Letaba River and is one of the oldest and largest camps in the Kruger Park - South Africa. It is only 50km (31 miles) from the Phalaborwa Gate and 32km (21 miles) from the Olifants Rest Camp. The name Letaba is derived from one of the local languages, Sepedi, and means 'sandy river'.

In the Letaba District there are actually 3 rivers bearing the same name, the Great Letaba, the Middle Letaba and the Small Letaba. They eventually become the Letaba River which joins the Olifants River in the Kruger National Park on its way to the Indian Ocean. The Letaba River is a flat area with dense Mopane Shrub and little grass.

HOW TO GET THERE:
Travel routes and times from JHB/PTA

VEGETATION:
Letaba is a riverine camp and well foliated.

There is a wonderful selection of trees and shrubs including sycamore fig, impala lily, common coral tree, lala palm and leadwood.

The vegetation around the camp is mopane shrubland.

In planning a game-viewing drive from Letaba, take into account that animals are drawn to water, and the consequent confluence of three major dams (Mingerhout, Engelhardt and Nhlanganini) may bode well to your hopes of making exciting game spotting safaris in Kruger Park.

In this, the Matambeni hide on the northern bank of the Engelhardt dam, offers a particularly good vantage point from which to brush up on your knowledge of water birds. You may also wish to consider heading for Malopenyana and Middelvlei to the north, where game viewing is consistently good on safaris in Kruger Park.

PLEASE NOTE:
If you must walk around at night please do not do so without a torch.

GAME:

Most of the Kruger National Park's larger mammals can be seen in the Letaba vicinity, although it is not good Rhino country.

However Elephant abound, particularly in the Letaba riverbed itself. Waterbuck and Buffalo are also plentiful on safaris in Kruger Park.
Visitors need not even leave the camp to view these animals on safaris in Kruger Park and lucky visitors have been fortunate enough to witness Lion and Cheetah kills on the sandy riverbed in front of the restaurant complex.

The camp itself hosts a healthy population of Bushbucks who have become very tame and wander freely amongst the bungalows.
Other camp residents include Tree Squirrels, Fruit Bats and Vervet Monkey; which must always be considered before leaving food unattended.

BIRDING:
Letaba has a rich bird population and is particularly good for viewing Owls. Pearlspotted, Barred and Scops have been simultaneously recorded in a single tree, while Giant Eagle Owl is regularly recorded along the river itself. Scan all large riverine trees carefully.

Greencapped eremomela should be looked for in the camp and like most camps in the central and northern parts of the Kruger National Park, Mourning Dove is particularly prominent as are Natal francolin, Arrow-marked babbler, Brown-hooded Kingfisher, Kurrichane thrush, Orange-breasted bush shrike and Red-headed weaver.

Birding along the river edge is always productive. The Matambeni Bird Hide on the northern bank of Engelhard dam is an excellent place to watch water birds. On the south bank of the dam a number of redwinged pratincoles appear annually to breed. They have also been seen on the sand banks in the river in front of the camp. The Masorini Ruins close to the Phalaborwa Gate is a good venue to view Yellowthroated Sparrow, Mocking chat and Redheaded Weaver on birding safaris in Kruger Park.

5 THINGS TO SEEK:
- Bushbuck
- Elephant
- Lala Palm
- Red Headed Weaver
- Fish Eagle

AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST:
In Camp:

Elephant Hall:
Visit the Elephant hall and enrich your knowledge on the Elephant's social structure distribution and ecology, morphology and physiology, origin and evolution as well as their relationship with humans. There are 3-D displays giving an exciting visual in-depth background to Elephants. The highlight of the exhibition is the impressive ivory collection, which includes the tusks of the legendary 'Magnificent Seven'. The hall also serves as a general ecological information centre.

Overview of Letaba Camp:
Accommodation at Letaba Camp comprises of 30 camping sites, 5 huts, 44 bungalows, 10 guest cottages, 2 spacious guesthouses and 20 furnished safari tents. All of the guest houses and cottages can be easily accessed by people with mobility difficulties. A wilderness trail hike along the southern bank of the Olifants River will give you an unsurpassed opportunity of viewing some of the Kruger Park's magnificent flora and fauna.

KRUGER NATIONAL PARK:
The world-renowned Kruger National Park offers a wildlife experience that ranks with the best in Africa. Established in 1898 to protect the wildlife of the South African Lowveld, this national park of nearly 2 million hectares, SANParks - Kruger National Park is unrivalled in the diversity of its life forms and a world leader in advanced environmental management techniques and policies.

Truly the flagship of the South African national parks, Kruger is home to an impressive number of species: 336 trees, 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 507 birds and 147 mammals. Man's interaction with the Lowveld environment over many centuries - from bushman rock paintings to majestic archaeological sites like Masorini and Thulamela - is very evident in the Kruger National Park. These treasures represent the cultures, persons and events that played a role in the history of the Kruger National Park and are conserved along with the park's natural assets.

The Kruger National Park is the primary destination in South Africa for many international tourists. Each year more than half a million visitors are registered.

The National Park was opened in 1898 at the instigation of then-president Paul Kruger. After hunters had considerably decimated the originally rich game stock, all the land between the Sabie and the Crocodile Rivers was put under the protection of Nature Conservation to ensure the survival of the remaining animals. Only as recently as 1961 was the extended Kruger Park fenced in.

The park stretches from the Crocodile River in the south up to the Limpopo River, which is the international border in the north. Altogether it is 350 km long, 65 km wide and comprises an area of about 20,000 sq km.

A web of roads of 1863 kilometres leads through the National Park, 697 kms of them being tarred. For the visitor there are numerous differently equipped restcamps, most of them scenically positioned. Within the park boundaries, travel is only allowed between sunrise and sunset. After dark one has to stay in one of the fenced restcamps.

The best time for observing the animals is the dry winter season. Then the grass is low and bushes and trees don't have leaves, so that one can have an unobstructed view. Because it virtually doesn't rain in winter, the animals come to the waterholes to drink in the mornings and evenings and can easily be viewed from the car.

Overview of The Kruger National Park

Where nearly 2 million hectares of unrivalled diversity of life forms fuses with historical and archaeological sights – this is real Africa. The world-renowned Kruger National Park offers a wildlife experience that ranks with the best in Africa. Established in 1898 to protect the wildlife of the South African Lowveld, this national park of nearly 2 million hectares, SANParks - Kruger National Park is unrivalled in the diversity of its life forms and a world leader in advanced environmental management techniques and policies.

Truly the flagship of the South African national parks, Kruger is home to an impressive number of species: 336 trees, 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 507 birds and 147 mammals. Man's interaction with the Lowveld environment over many centuries - from bushman rock paintings to majestic archaeological sites like Masorini and Thulamela - is very evident in the Kruger National Park. These treasures represent the cultures, persons and events that played a role in the history of the Kruger National Park and are conserved along with the park's natural assets.

Vegetation and Climate

The Kruger National Park is generally flat to gently undulating, with average height of 260 metres (853 feet) above sea level, with its most mountainous areas being along the eastern boundary, formed by the Lebombo Mountains. Sixteen distinct landscapes provide a multitude of habitats for the Kruger Park's inhabitants. Located in the Southern Hemisphere, the Kruger Park has its share of rain and hot weather. During the summer months (September-April), the Park experiences sporadic rainfall in the form of quick thunder showers. April through August represent the winter months in Southern Africa which in turn means very little rain. As far as rainfall is concerned, the southern region receives the largest amount of rainfall while the central plains receive the least. The temperatures average from 30 C (86 F) in January (summer) to 23 C (73 F) in July (winter). Please be aware that the maximum temperature can reach 47 C (117 F) (January) and 35 C (95 F) (July).For your information, the average nightly temperature can range from 7-18 C (45-64 F) (January) and most certainly freezing in July. It is highly advisable to wear 'breathable' clothes to avoid heat exhaustion or stroke during the day, drink plenty of water and ensure that appropriate clothing is available in the often cold nights.

Vegetation Zones

The varying climatic conditions impact on the type of vegetation in the ecosystem that can survive and flourish in each vegetation zone. This of course affects the distribution and population densities of the various animals - each type favouring some or other ecosystem environment.

History of the Kruger National Park

The first explorer to set foot in the region was the Dutchman François de Cuiper who led a Dutch East India Company expedition to explore. However, the expedition was attacked and driven by local tribes-people near Gomondwane. Only around 1838 Voortrekker expeditions led by Lous Trichardt and Hans van Rensburg were able to successfully establish forward outposts. Hundreds of Europeans and farmers came to the Lowveld lured by rumours of gold and the great quantity of valuable commodities such as ivory and skins.

This caused the number of game to dramatically decrease due to hunting and trading of animal skins and horns. President Paul Kruger was told about the rapid destruction of wildlife in the area by hunters, after which he succeeded to persuade the Transvaal parliament to establish a protected area for the wildlife in the Lowveld region. The "Sabie Game Reserve”, bordered by the Crocodile River in the south, the Sabie River in the north, the Lebombo Mountains in the east and the Drakensberg Mountains in the west, which is now the southern part of the Kruger National Park, was established in 1898.

These reserves would eventually expand into today's Kruger National Park. The Anglo-Boer War stopped any further development of the reserve, but the British, after winning the war, proceeded with the plan to develop the Sabie Game Reserve and gave the task to major James Stevenson-Hamilton in 1902 to protect the animals against hunters, ivory poachers and cattle farmers. The Park was opened to the public in 1927 for visitors to view animals and plant life in an area where they are protected. After the Anglo-Boer War, James Stevenson-Hamilton was appointed as the first park warden. He spent the next 40 years protecting what the war had destroyed. His actions are no doubt an ever-living contribution to the Kruger National Park's current existence. In addition to his animal conservation, James Stevenson Hamilton was also responsible for acquiring another 10 000 hex acres for the reserve.

After World War I, the Kruger National Park was protected by the government of South Africa and remains under the watchful eye of the government even today. The very first ranger in the reserve was Paul Bester who made his residence in a rustic rondavel (hut) which is now the site of the headquarters camp, Skukuza. Documents concerning the History of the Kruger National Park can be viewed at the Skukuza Library. Half a million years ago, the first San stone age hunters roamed the plains in search of game. The modern day bush men have left fascinating rock paintings all over the Republic of South Africa, and Kruger National Park contains over one hundred sites of these paintings. The Kruger National Park is a living memorial to President Paul Kruger and those who have upheld his vision of a protected wilderness reserve which will forever remind us of that which we are so dangerously close to loosing.

A Short Natural and Cultural History·

There are almost 254 known cultural heritage sites in the Kruger National Park, including nearly 130 recorded rock art sites.

There is ample evidence that prehistoric man – Homo erectus roamed the area between 500 000 and 100 000 years ago.

Cultural artefacts of Stone Age man have been found for the period 100 000 to 30 000 years ago.

More than 300 archaeological sites of Stone Age man have been found.

Evidence of Bushman Folk (San) and Iron Age people from about 1500 years ago is also in great evidence.

There are also many historical tales of the presence of Nguni people and European explorers and settlers in the Kruger area.

There are significant archaeological ruins at Thulamela and Masorini.

There are numerous examples of San Art scattered throughout the park.

The park was first proclaimed in 1898 as the Sabie Game Reserve by the then president of the Transvaal Republic, Paul Kruger. He first proposed the need to protect the animals of the Lowveld in 1884, but his revolutionary vision took another 12 years to be realised when the area between the Sabie and Crocodile Rivers was set aside for restricted hunting.

The Scottish born James Stevenson-Hamilton (born in 1867) was appointed the park’s first warden on 1 July 1902.

On 31 May 1926 the National Parks Act was proclaimed and with it the merging of the Sabie and Shingwedzi Game Reserves into the Kruger National Park. The first motorists entered the park in 1927 for a fee of one pound.

Many accounts of the park’s early days can be found in the Stevenson-Hamilton Memorial Library.