Letaba Restcamp - Kruger National Park

Letaba Restcamp - Kruger National Park:

Description: The restcamp and caravan park have beautiful lawns and colossal shade trees. The area is well known for its large apple-leaf, umbrella thorn and mopane trees. Game viewing from the sanctity of the camp itself is excellent and the innovative camp staff offer a variety of adventure activities for visitors to indulge in. The Elephant Hall is a natural history monument par excellence and the camp is a firm favourite with visitors to the park. Rare animals species, such as Eland, Sharpe’s Grysbok and Roan may be seen. Areas worth visiting include the Engelhardt Dam and the Mingerhout Dam. The gravel road to Olifants Restcamp along the Letaba River provides a beautiful scenic drive on which game is frequently sighted.

Location: The Letaba Restcamp is situated on the southern bank of the Letaba River only 50 km from the Phalaborwa Gate. Visitors should enter at the Phalaborwa Gate some 51 km away. The H-9 is tarred all the way. The nearest camps are Olifants (32 km to the south) and Mopani (47 km to the north). There is an extensive network of gravel roads between Letaba and both Phalaborwa to the west and Olifants to the south. Visitors must be aware of travel times between Letaba and Phalaborwa, especially of gate closing time. The journey between the two takes about an hour and a half.

Accommodtion:

Sponsored Accommodation

Fish Eagle Guesthouse (On the river front)

Facilities (8 persons)

Four air-conditioned bedrooms, each with two single beds and a bathroom en suite (bath, shower, toilet and basin).
Lounge/diningroom with ceiling fan and guest toilet.
Kitchen with an electric stove (with oven), refrigerator, freezer, sink, cooking utensils, crockery and cutlery.
Open veranda.
Barbecue facilities.
Open parking.
Apply four months in advance.

Melville Guesthouse (On the river front)

Facilities (9 persons)

Three air-conditioned bedrooms, each with two single beds and a bathroom en suite.
Two bathrooms each have a bath, toilet and basin. The third bathroom has a shower, toilet and basin.
Each bedroom has an interleading enclosed veranda with one single bed.
Lounge/diningroom with ceiling fan.
Kitchen with a gas stove (with oven), refrigerator/freezer, sink, cooking utensils, crockery and cutlery.
Barbecue facilities.
Open parking.
Apply four months in advance.

Other Accommodation:

Six-bed cottages with two bedrooms (each with air-conditioning and three single beds), two bathrooms (each with bath, shower and toilet), a lounge/diningroom, open veranda and a fully-equipped kitchen (gas stove with oven).
Three-bed huts with air-conditioning, shower, toilet and a veranda with a refrigerator, two-plate stove (without oven) and sink. There are no cooking utensils, crockery or cutlery.
Two-bed or three-bed huts with air-conditioning, shower, toilet and a veranda with a refrigerator. Some of the huts have sinks. There are no cooking utensils, crockery or cutlery.
Two-bed huts with facilities for handicapped persons available, equipped with air-conditioning, a bath, toilet, two-plate stove (without oven), refrigerator and sink. There are no cooking utensils, crockery or cutlery.
Four-bed huts with air-conditioning, communal ablution facilities, wash basin, refrigerator and veranda. There are no cooking utensils, crockery or cutlery.
Four-bed furnished tents with beds, wardrobe, fan, table and chairs, refrigerator and electric light. Tents are situated on cement floors with shade net covering. Cooking utensils, crockery and cutlery are not provided.
Campsites – tent or caravan sites, with power point, communal ablutions and cooking facilities, maximum of 6 persons per site

Services:

Banking Facilities
Basic First Aid Assistance
Cafeteria
Communal Kitchens
Curio Shop
Cutlery and Plates Hamper
Emergency Road Service
Laundromat
Petrol Station
Picnic Facilities
Post Box
Public telephones
Restaurant

Activities:

Bush braai (barbecue)
Bush breakfast
Bush breakfast offer the out door enthusiast another opportunity to experience the beauty and serenity of the African bushveld. On the banks of the Letaba your host will prepare a scrumptious wholesome breakfast while you relax and watch the sun rise over the Lebombo mountain range.
Camp Walk with display cabinets
Experience the bush in Technicolor. walk along well trodden elephant paths; smell the damp earth after the first summer rains; feel wood rubbed smooth by generations of buffalo elephant and rhino; taste the fruit of the jackal berry; hear the plaintive cry of the fish eagle and see the kill of a leopard in the fork of a tree. Free entrance. Open Monday to Sunday.
Information centre/Elephant museum - visit the elephant hall and enrich your knowledge on the elephants 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.
Matambeni Bird Hide
Mon – Sat: 08-00 – half an hour after the gate closes
Morning and Afternoon Bush Walks
Morning Drive
Night Drive
Olifants Wilderness Trail
Seasonal Swim Safaris
Sunday- 08-00 – 18-00
This is a unique opportunity to walk in the bush accompanied by a field guide who can track animals and interpret the sites and sounds of the bush is only available for eight lucky guests per walk. This is an experience of a lifetime.
TV Lounge with dart board
Wildlife Documentary Videos

Ecozones near this camp:

General Information:

- Climate
Kruger 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 humid. Winters are warm and mild, although visitors going on night-drives will require warm clothing.

- Day Visitors
Letaba has a designated picnic area set aside for day visitors between the Elephant Hall and E-circle. A small service fee must be paid at reception to gain access to this facility. Hand the till slip to the attendent on duty.

- Emergencies
Emergency Service: +27 (0)13 735 6640
Reception: +27 (0)13 735 6636/7

What to do and see nearby:

In Camp:
- Elephant Hall
- Riverside Walk
Out of camp:
- Masorini Ruins
- Engelhard Dam
- Matambeni Bird Hide
- Engelhard Dam View Point
- Mooiplaas Picnic Site
- Mingerhout Dam

Routes:

Places of special interest / History:

Mrs Ledeboer’s Grave – Anna Maria Christina Ledeboer (née Bindemann) is buried just west of the confluence between the Letaba River and the Makhadzi Spruit. She was the second wife of Henry Ledeboer, who was the ranger of the then Shingwedzi Game Reserve as from April 1, 1921. She apparently died unexpectedly of a heart attack or of malaria. The grave is at the end of the 3rd turn off on the S62.
Portuguese Cross – A few kilometres from the camp on the S95, stands a very old leadwood tree, which has a typical Portuguese Cross, carved into it. It is not certain who carved it or what the significance of it was. The cross could be possibly have been carved by Diocleciano Fernandes das Neves who arrived in Lourenzo Marques on October 5 1855 at the age of 25 and left 13 years later for Portugal. During those 13 years he traded in the interior and hunted elephant. His trade route passed through the current Kruger National Park; it is possible that he carved the cross on his journey in 1860 – 61 en route to the Soutspansberg. Alternatively the cross could have been carved by one of the Portuguese soldiers who carried post or Jaoa Albasini between Lourenzo Marques and Goedewensch.
Masorini Hill – a guide is present and can take one on an adventure through the remains of the village of the ba-Phalaborwa , and learn about their metal and stonework.
The ba-Phalaborwa – Human habitation around Masorini has been traced back a few thousand years to the late Stone Age. During the early 19th century a group of people who practised both pastorialism and agriculture, but who were also renowned ironsmiths, established themselves on Masorini Hill. This Northeastern Sotho tribe were known as the ba-Phalaborwa. They emigrated from the area near the end of the 19th century.

Wildlife:

Mammals:
Most of the 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. Visitors need not even leave the camp to view these animals 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 bushbuck that have become very tame and wander freely amongst the bungalows. Other camp resident include tree squirrels, fruit bats and vervet monkey which must always be considered before leaving food unattended. Please see Kruger/Fauna/Mammals for full park mammal checklists

Birding:
Letaba Camp 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 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 . (See General Activities/Birding)

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.

Kruger National Park Links

General:

Introduction

Accommodation