Satara Restcamp - Kruger National Park

Satara Restcamp - Kruger National Park:

The Satara Restcamp is a busy camp, and not without reason. It is situated in an excellent game viewing area, with the bush relatively open and the animals plentiful and diverse. The camp itself has a rustic charm, with the bulk of the accommodation set out in a series of circles. The camp is well wooded and the daytime bird-life is prolific. At night the clink of fruit bats is fused with the chirping of cicadas and crickets. The calls of owls and nightjars add to the symphony that is punctuated intermittently by the whoop of hyaena, the screech of jackal and the roar of lion. Large concentrations of game and lion occur here. The area is known for its spectacular sunsets. Three dams and six waterholes are found here in close proximity. Rare animal species found in the area are eland, nyala, white and black rhino, sable and wild dog.

Location: The Satara Restcamp lies in the knobthorn veld on the turf flats which offer the best grazing in the Kruger National Park.
The nearest gate is at Orpen, some 48 km away. Nearest other camps apart from Orpen include, Olifants (54 km), Talamati (53 km) and Lower Sabie and Skukuza both of which are 93 km away.

Regulations:

Accommodation:

Sponsored Accommodation

Rudy Frankel Guesthouse (Near a waterhole)

Facilities (Accommodation for 8 persons)

Four air-conditioned bedrooms, each with two single beds and bathroom en suite (bath, shower, toilet and basin).

Lounge/diningroom (with fan), bar and kitchen with an electric stove (with oven), refrigerator, freezer, sink, cooking utensils, crockery and cutlery.

Lapa with barbecue facilities.

Open parking.

Apply four months in advance.

Satara family cottages (10 identical cottages)

Facilities (Accommodation for 6 persons per cottage except Dante Marais which accommodates 5)

Two air-conditioned bedrooms, each with bathroom en suite. One bathroom with bath, toilet and basin and the other with shower, toilet and basin.

One bedroom has a double bed and a single bed, the other has three single beds (Fairweather, General Motors, one Foskor family cottage Lowveld, Trust) and one Checkers family cottage.

One bedroom has two single beds and the other has three single beds (Dante Marais).

Two bedrooms, each with three single beds (Maizecor, one Checkers and one Foskor family cottage).

Each unit has a lounge/diningroom with a ceiling fan and an open- plan kitchen with a gas stove (with oven), refrigerator/freezer, sink, cooking utensils, crockery and cutlery.

Open veranda.

Barbecue facilities at each cottage.

Open parking.

Apply four months in advance.

Stanley Guesthouse

Facilities (Accommodation for 9 persons)

Three air-conditioned bedrooms, each with three single beds and bathroom en suite (2 with bath, toilet and basin and 1 with bath, shower, toilet and basin).

Lounge/diningroom with fan and open veranda.

Kitchen with a gas stove (with oven), refrigerator/freezer, sink, cooking utensils, crockery and cutlery.

Barbecue facilities.

Open parking.

Apply thirteen months in advance.

Wells Guesthouse

Facilities (Accommodation for 6 persons)

Three air-conditioned bedrooms, each with two single beds and bathroom en suite. Two bathrooms have a shower, toilet and basin, and one has a bath, toilet and basin.

Air-conditioned lounge/diningroom with a 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

74 Campsites � tent or caravan sites, with power point, communal ablutions and cooking facilities, maximum of 6 persons per site.
100 x Bungalows � 2 or 3 bed rooms, equipped with ablutions (most with showers, but some with baths), refrigerator, air-conditioning and sink.
53 x Bungalows � 2 or 3 bed rooms, equipped with ablutions (most with showers, but some with baths), refrigerator, air-conditioning, and a hotplate and sink.

Wheelchair Access Accommodation

There are 2 two-bedded huts in the rest camp with barrier free facilities. The ablutions have a bath facility. The camp is situated over flat terrain and access is made easy by the paved roads that lead around all the accommodation units. Access into and inside the camp�s restaurant, reception and shop is easily achieved. The communal washing-up facilities are on a raised level that requires assistance to be accessed. There is a barrier free toilet and shower facility in the camp site.

Services:

A first-aid centre.
An AA emergency service for vehicles.
Basic First Aid Assistance
Cafeteria
Communal Kitchens with sinks and cooking facilities but no cooking utensils, crockery or cutlery.
Cutlery and Plates Hamper
Day Visitor Picnic Area
Eco Information Centre
Electricity (not at camp sites).
Emergency Road Service
Film Auditorium
Film shows on conservation and wildlife certain evenings.
Jungle Gym for children
Laundromat
Petrol Station
Picnic Facilities
Post Box
Public telephones
Restaurant
Self-service and take-aways at the cafeteria.
Shop

Ecozones near this camp:

Activities

Bush Walks
Game Drives (Day and Night)
Sweni Bird Hide
Ratel Pan Bird Hide (Piet Grobler Dam)
Sweni Wilderness Trail
Through prior arrangement with the camp, catered traditional dances can be organised.
Wildlife films

General Information:

- Climate
Satara 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
Satara has a designated day visitor area where day visitors and visitors from other camps can barbecue (braai) and picnic. As one enters the gate, it is reached by turning to the left.

- Emergencies
Camp: +27 (0)13 735 6306/7

What to do and see nearby:

N�wanetsi Lookout and Picnic Site

Sweni Bird Hide
Very close to Nwanetsi this hide has been recently constructed.

Tshokwane Picnic Site
50 km from Satara/ 43 from Skukuza/ 44 from Lower Sabie, the site is on a level surface although soft sand impairs free movement in places. The kiosk is accessible. There are 2 toilet blocks. Visitors with disabilities should note that there is an accessible toilet only at the block on the left-hand side of the parking.

Eileen Orpen Dam
4 km from Tshokwane, the Orpen Dam has a viewing hide on the hillside overlooking the dam.

Nhlanguleni
59 km from Satara/ 27 km from Tshokwane, Nhlanguleni is a small and rustic picnic site.

Muzandzeni
Situated 33 km from Satara, this is another small and rustic picnic site.

Timbavati Picnic Site
25 km from Satara/46 from Olifants is this delightful little picnic site overlooking the Timbavati River.

Ratelpan Hide (Piet Grobler Dam)
About 5 km north of the Timbavati Picnic Site on the Piet Grobler Dam, this hide was only completed in July 1999.

Nhlanguleni Picnic Site

Routes:

Places of special interest / History:
Satara Camp: The origin of the name Satara is not cast in stone. About three different sources are suggested. The most popular is that one of the early land surveyors working in the area had an Indian servant named Satra (Hindi for 17). By quirk of fate the locals inverted the name onto the Surveyor but erroneously called him Satara. A variation of this is that the land surveyor was himself Indian and in his notebook scrawled down the number of the parcel of land he was measuring in his Hindi language � Satra, meaning 17. Today it is not a plot of land but the site of the present day Satara Camp.

Wildlife:

Mammals:
Satara is regarded as one of the best game viewing areas in the park and is particularly noted for cats, with lion, leopard and cheetah being recorded regularly. General game includes blue wildebeest, burchell�s zebra, waterbuck, giraffe and the ubiquitous impala. Rhino, buffalo and elephant are also easily seen. Of the smaller animals, the honey badger is something to look out for. At night spotted hyena regularly whoop from the camp�s perimeter while the repetitive sonar chink of fruit bats blends with the chirp of cicada and cricket. See Kruger/Fauna/Mammals for full park mammal checklists.

Birding:
Satara, like other camps, has a plethora of resident birds. Particularly prominent are Redbilled Buffalo Weaver, Glossy, Greater Blue-eared and Burchell�s Starling and Mourning Dove. At night Giant Eagle, Barn, Scops and Pearlspotted Owls can be seen and heard in camp. The open plains to the north of the camp are a good place to record Montagu�s and Pallid Harrier.

The N�wanedzi Picnic Site (24 km from Satara) is worth visiting. Violeteared Waxbill, Yellowbellied Bulbul, Mocking Chat are regulars here, while Shafttailed Whydah has been seen nearby. There is also a viewing platform that provides an elevated view down on the N�wanedzi River. About 2 km from N�wanedzi on the S37 Road the Sweni Bird Hide is well worth stopping at. In winter, when water levels are low, and rocks, mud-banks and reeds are exposed, the site is exceptionally active bird-wise, with many passerines coming to drink and joining the ubiquitous Hammerkop, Greenbacked Heron and Great White and Little Egrets. In summer, after heavy rain, the high water levels reduce the bird-life. However it is an excellent venue to see Bluecheeked Bee-eater that is regularly in attendance here. (For more birding information go to General Park Activities/Birding).

Vegetation:
Satara like most camps has been artificially well wooded. The surrounding vegetation is knob thorn /marula savannah on basalt soils. A few kilometres west there is an intrusion of ecca shales soil which hosts very sweet grass often overgrazed. This intrusion also hosts Delagoa thorn thickets. To the east, the N�wanetsi region lies in Lebombo Mountain Bushveld on rhyolite soils. Tree euphorbia and red bushwillow are prevalent.

Kruger National Park Links

General:

Introduction

Accommodation