PUNDA MARIA REST CAMP - KRUGER NATIONAL PARK:
Punda Maria's lush vegetation attracts a wide variety of rare bird species and wildlife.
Punda Maria Camp is the northernmost camp in the Park, and is situated 10km (6.2 miles) from the Punda Maria Gate. Punda's accommodation in Kruger National Park consists of 2 prime four-bedded cottages, 22 basic 2&3-bedded bungalows, and a camping/caravan area. Drive the Mahonie Loop, which makes a circuit around the rest camp, going through the heart of the Punda Maria Camp sandveld community, with its rich variety of trees and shrubs and excellent bird watching. Punda Maria Camp is the best place from which to observe the rare Nyala Antelope in the Kruger Park.

Punda Maria Camp lies in an area of fascinating history and unsurpassed bird watching. It is also recognized as the best region inside the Park for Kruger National Park safari accommodation in which to spot the often shy Nyala Antelope. Punda Maria has recently been upgraded and has received seven luxury tents and a swimming pool. Punda Maria Gate has received a new building, reception area and ablution blocks; providing trouble free Kruger National Park safari accommodation.

The prime Kruger National Park safari accommodation units are two four-bedded cottages, secluded among vegetation in a high-lying part of Punda Maria Camp. Each has an encircling veranda, a bathroom, fully equipped kitchen and air-conditioning for comfortable Kruger National Park safari accommodation.

Further down the hill are two terraces of pretty, white washed bungalows, divided into 18 two-bedded units and four three-bedded units. Each unit is air-conditioned and comes with a toilet, washbasin, built-in cupboards and a fridge at your Kruger National Park safari accommodation. The three-bedded units have the added advantages of showers and fully equipped kitchens. The bungalow tiers slope down towards shared ablution, kitchen and barbecue facilities, Kruger National Park safari accommodation.

Holiday visitors to Punda Maria Camp do not so much come for the game as for the camp's rich historical heritage, since the vegetation supports fewer big game species than elsewhere in the Kruger Park. Nevertheless, large herds of Elephant and Buffalo roam the Mopane-covered plains, Rare Tsebbebe and Sable are frequently sighted, from this Kruger National Park safari accommodation. By road, Punda Maria Camp is just over five hours from Johannesburg.

History of Punda Maria Camp:
The name of the rest camp was given in 1919 by the first ranger to be posted to the area, Captain JJ Coetser. He mistakenly named his post Punda Maria in the belief that this was the Swahili name for Zebra, the first big game he saw on arrival. The correct Swahili name is actually 'punda milia' (meaning Striped Donkey). When the error was pointed out to him, he chose to retain the name, in honour of his wife, Maria, who bore him 12 children. Many years later, Park officials corrected the name, and for a while the rest camp was known as Punda Milia, but in 1981 it was changed back to the original 'Punda Maria'.

When Captain Coetser was posted to Punda Maria Camp, his main aim was to curb ivory poaching. In the early 1900s this region was the haunt of smugglers, poachers and hunters, who based themselves in an assortment of derelict shacks at Crooks Corner, where the borders of South Africa, Mozambique (formerly Portuguese East Africa) and Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) met at the confluence of the Limpopo and the Luvuvhu rivers. Fugitives from the law could just slip across one of the borders and take refuge in a foreign territory when the authorities came searching for them.

The hunters at Crooks Corner realized that they could supplement their income from ivory by recruiting labour for the Witwatersrand mines, and an illegal trade in labour began. The government eventually put a stop to this and Wenela was given sole authority to recruit labour. The Wenela recruiting station now stands as a sombre reminder on the S63 loop near Pafuri.

ACCOMMODATION:
Punda Maria's accommodation in Kruger National Park caters to a variety of guest requirements.

- Punda Maria Camp has quaint original huts
- Accommodation units are air-conditioned
- Camping area for tents and caravans
- Electrical power available
- Picnic facilities for day visitors

Campsites:
Tent or caravan sites, with power point, communal ablutions and cooking facilities, with maximum of 6 persons per site, for accommodation in Kruger National Park.

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, at the accommodation in Kruger National Park.

You have a choice of kitchenette or communal kitchen and more over; with or without riverside view for your accommodation in Kruger National Park.

Guest Cottages:
Cottage accommodation in Kruger National Park, comes in 6 bed units, 2 bathrooms, kitchen and dining room/lounge, riverside view.

Safari Tents:
Tented accommodation in Kruger National Park, is in 2 or 4 bed permanent canvas tents, communal ablutions and cooking facilities, fridge.

FACILITIES:
- Information at Reception
- Public Telephones
- Post Box, ATM in Shop
- Basic First Aid Assistance
- Cafeteria
- Cutlery and Plates Hamper
- Emergency Road Service*
- Petrol Station
- Laundromat
- Picnic Facilities

Huts:
Hutted accommodation in Kruger National Park, includes; 3 bed round rooms with communal ablutions and kitchen.

LOCATION:
Punda Maria Camp is one of only two main rest camps north of the Tropic of Capricorn in the Kruger Park, South Africa.

- Situated on a ridge amongst rolling hills
- Sub-tropical climate can be enjoyed at Punda Maria Camp
- Punda Maria Camp is the northernmost camp
- The nearest entrance gate is at Punda Maria Gate
- Johannesburg is just over five hours from Punda Maria Camp

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

PUNDA MARIA GATE: Take the N1 to Polokwane (Pietersburg), at Makhado (Louis Trichard) link up with the R524 follow this route for ±140 kms and that will take you to the gate. Allow between 5 to 6 hours for the trip to the gate. Punda Maria Main Rest Camp is 8km away from the gate. Allow about 20 minutes for the drive to the camp; however if you want to enjoy the game viewing possibilities give yourself more time!

WHERE TO GO:
- Mahonie Loop
- Thulamila
- Thulamela Archaelogical Ruins
- Pafuri Picnic Site
- Crook's Corner
- Dzundzwini Hill
- Babalala Picnic Site

CLIMATE:
Kruger Park in South Africa is in a summer rainfall area. Such precipitation is usually convectional and can result in heavy downpours. The summer months (October to April) are hot and often balmy. Winters are warm and mild, although visitors going on night-drives will require warm clothing.

VEGETATION:
The camp is situated in sandveld in Kruger Park - South Africa. The sandy soil means the area is well drained and several natural springs occur. The plant communities are very complex. No single tree species dominates, but several species are restricted to this ecozone.

Trees found in this region include: Apple Leaf, Tamboti, Baobab, Leadwood, Shrub Mopane, Mixed Bushwillow, Baobab Sickle bush, Weeping Wattle, Pod Mahogany, Magic Guarri and Mopane. Grazing is sparse to moderate sweet grass in the Kruger Park, South Africa.

ACTIVITIES:
Punda Maria Camp is the best place from which to observe Nyala Antelope on a safari in Kruger National Park.

- Exclusive Dawn Game Drive, Exclusive Sunset Game Drive
- Excellent bird watching opportunities
- Visit the cultural museum site
- Large herds of Elephant can be spotted
- Drive the Mohonie Loop around the rest camp

A trip to Pafuri will produce plenty of Nyala and Impala, and possibly some Bushbuck, on your safari in Kruger National Park. Vervet monkey and baboon will be seen in abundance and plenty of Hippo and Nile Crocodile in the riverbed itself. Early arrivers on safari in Kruger National Park, heading down Nyala Drive may well be lucky enough to see bush pig.

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

GAME:
Game can prove sparse but Kudu, Nyala, Buffalo and Sharpe's Grysbok thrive in this habitat. Wild Dog, Elephant and Lion are also frequently recorded. The Mahonie Loop is also the best venue for a safari in Kruger National Park to see the diminutive Suni Antelope.

BIRDING:
In the camp, particularly on the Paradise Flycatcher Trail, yellowbellied and terrestrial bulbul and bearded robin should be looked for, while on safari in Kruger National Park. Birding throughout the camp is excellent. Birds of prey are common overhead. Black eagle is sometimes seen, while in winter the whitenecked raven is a regular visitor.

The Mahonie Loop, (the 25km circular drive around the camp) is undoubtedly one of the most rewarding birding drives in the Kruger National Park. One should give oneself plenty of time to cover the distance, and travel with windows down and stop frequently, particularly for calls, on safari in Kruger National Park.

On a good day one could record several of the following 'specials': Whitebreasted cuckooshrike, crowned hornbill, chestnutbellied (greyhooded) kingfisher, crested guineafowl, gorgeous bush shrike, cape parrot, African and European golden oriole (both summer), yellowspotted nicator, stierling's barred warbler and Dickinson's kestrel.

Narina trogon has also been recorded on the loop, but is shy and elusive. On the drive from Punda Maria to Pafuri via the Klopperfontein Dam, rackettailed roller and mashona hyliota have been recorded. This is also one of the best areas to search for yellowbilled oxpecker sightings, when you are on safari in Kruger National Park. This species was absent in the Kruger National Park for many years, but returned in the 1980s and their numbers are still increasing. Buffalo are the preferred hosts.

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 rest camps, 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 rest camps.

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 a 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 losing.

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.