Letaba

The Letaba camp is elephant country, with a great view over the Letaba river.

About Letaba

Letaba Rest Camp is beautifully located in the bend of the Letaba (Sotho for River of sand) river, just about halfway up the length of the park. The area surrounding Letaba is well known for its birding and elephant and even houses the famous elephant hall, commemorating the famous big tuskers(large tusked elephant bulls) of the Kruger National Park

The Letaba Rest Camp has a great mix of local attractions and interesting wildlife sightings. The Elephant Hall, that commemorates the great tuskers of the Kruger National Park, is well worth a visit. Great birding on game drives and within the camp site. A swimming pool is great for those hot summer days. Elephant, buffalo and waterbuck are often seen as well as predators such as lions and cheetah. The Masorini archeological site, is an interesting change from safari drives. In the camp some bushbuck and tree squirrels feel quite safe and at home.

Why visit Letaba?

Letaba has a lush green tree canopy, with Apple Leaf, Natal Mahogany, Sausage Tree, large Sycamore Fig adding shade to the camp and food for many animal and bird species.
Letaba is surrounded by a mass of Mopane, which supports numerous elephant.
The camp also has an interesting nightlife, listen for Nightjars, Barred, Scops and Pearl-Spotted Owls, and even Verreaux’s Eagle Owl, and outside the fence for hyena and lion.

Tips:

A family friendly camp, with varied accommodation and facilities.
Great game viewing as you leave the camp gates – for newbies, slowly follow the river course towards Letaba or a circular loop past Balule.
Various walks in the camp site offer great birding and tree spotting possibilities.
Masorini hill is an interesting archeological site close by.

Biome(animal and plant habitat)

Letaba is situated in a convergant biome, knob-thorn, bushwillow woodland and Lebombo vegetation surrounding the camp and open savanna with stunted Mopane shrubland.

Animals to look out for in the area:

Elephant
Leopard
Buffalo
Lion
Hyena
Cheetah
Fruit bats
Waterbuck
Vervet monkey
Giraffe

Birds to look out for in the area:

Brown-throated Martin
European Nightjar
Greater Painted Snipe
Green-capped Eremomela
Herons
Mourning Dove Owlet African Barred
Owlet Pearl-spotted
Owls African Scops
Owls Barn
Red-billed Oxpecker
Red-capped Robin-Chat
Red-headed Weavers
Red-winged Starling
Storks
Swallow Grey-rumped
Swallow Pearl-breasted

Not to miss routes in the area:

S46
S47
S93 – along the Letaba river
S95
S62
S69
S47 – along the Letaba river
Engelhard Dam H1-6, S95, H1-6, Letaba river bridge – great views – often game, S62 follow signs to Matambeni hide, Engelhard dam and Engelhard lookout, return on S62, H1-6 70km 3 hours
Mingerhout Dam H1-6, S47, S131, H9 40km 2 hours
Masorini Archeological Site H9, S69, S70, H9, Nhlanganini, H9, S51, Masorini Archeological and Picnic Site, H9 return 100 km 4,5 hours

Water centered game and bird viewing:

Letaba river: – Wherever the river is close, expect sightings, on the roads S47, S95, S46, S93, S44 which often have good sightings
River crossings: Letaba river H1-6
Dams: Nhlanganini, Engelhard

Notable Camp Facilities and Activities:

Shop
Restaurant
Bush breakfast and barbecue(braai)
Game drive in an open vehicle, with a trained guide
Filling station
Letaba Elephant Hall
Mananga 4 x 4 Adventure Trail
Olifants Wilderness Trail
Conference facilities
Guided bushwalks
Camp walks