Letaba Rest Camp

Letaba is a main rest camp along the Letaba River in the north-central region of Kruger National Park in South Africa. It sits near the junction of the H1 (the park's main north road) and the road to Phalaborwa gate. The name comes from the Sesotho word for "river of sand", because of the wide, generally shallow river.

Letaba
View of the river from the camp perimeter
LocationSouth bank of the Letaba River
Coordinates23.8543796°S 31.5766711°E / -23.8543796; 31.5766711
Elevation225 m (738 ft)[1]
Campsites60 tent or caravan sites
Residences
  • 5 three-bed huts with communal ablutions
  • 10 two-bed and 10 four-bed permanent furnished canvas tents on stilts
  • 86 rondavels
  • 10 six-bed guest cottages
  • Melville guest house (sleeps 9)
  • Fish Eagle guest house (sleeps 8)[2]
RestaurantsTindlovu (website)
Facilities
  • communal ablutions and cooking facilities for campsites and huts
  • Laundromat
  • Petrol station
  • Mobile phone reception
Operated bySouth African National Parks
Websitewww.sanparks.org/parks/kruger/camps/letaba/

History

The area around Letaba had been settled for millennia before the creation of Kruger Park. In the 1800s, the inhabitants of the land were the Ba-Phalaborwa people, a Sotho-speaking tribe who inhabited the area. They were primarily crop and cattle farmers, but had an extensive iron smithing expertise, trading their iron goods with Arab merchants along the east coast of southern Africa, in what is today Mozambique.[3] The people of the area were removed during the creation of Kruger National Park, but most of their descendants live just outside the park's gates.

On the evening of 9 September 2020, a fire burned a significant part of the shop at Letaba, which was put out by firefighter teams from Olifants and Phalaborwa, as well as staff and guests at the camp. There were no fatalities or injuries, but the shop had to be closed to be rebuilt, leaving visitors without a way to buy necessities during their stay. Less than a week later, a similar fire burned at the restaurant at Berg-en-Dal Rest Camp.[4][5][6][7]

Facilities

Letaba features a Tindlovu restaurant overlooking the Letaba river, a small conference centre with a 55-seat auditorium, a swimming pool, laundromat, filling station, slimline ATM, and first aid station.[8][9]

Activities

Letaba is in a fairly dark area of the park, making stargazing an ideal nighttime activity. The camp also provides guided bush walks, game drives, breakfasts and dinners in the wild and a TV lounge. There is also a riverside camp walk along the inside of the camp's fence.

Nearby Attractions

Letaba is near several wilderness and 4x4 trails, the Matambeni bird hide, and the ruins of the Masorini settlement.

Masorini

38 km from Letaba along the Phalaborwa road is the ruin of a BaPhalaborwa tribe village from the 1800s called Masorini. It was likely a trading hub connecting Venda farmers in the north with Portuguese, Arab, and Chinese traders along the east coast. There is a museum and picnic area on site with guided tours to the top of the hill, where reconstructed furnaces and huts can be seen.[10]

Game viewing

Letaba lies in Mopani veld, which has quite dense bush. As a result, the animal density is lower than can be expected further south near Skukuza and Lower Sabie. However, bushbuck, elephant, buffalo, and waterbuck are still quite common. Secretary birds, kori bustards and ground hornbills are known to inhabit the area.[11][12]

Flora and Geology

Letaba is in a transition zone between the granite and gneiss to its west and basalt to the east, providing some unique geology. To the west of camp, clusterleaf shrub is common, while the east side gets more apple-leaf. The entire area is filled with mopane trees. Tamboti, knobthorn and leadwood are also common in the area.[3]

Elephant Hall
Elephant statue outside the Letaba Elephant Hall

Unique to Letaba amongst camps in Kruger is the Elephant Hall, a small museum dedicated to elephants.[13] It includes sections about elephant biology, behaviour, ecology and evolution. The primary exhibit is the display of the tusks and skulls of the Magnificent Seven, a set of enormous tuskers (elephant bulls with very large tusks). The hall was renovated in 2017 with financial assistance from donors worldwide and design assistance from professor Kevin Todd and his students at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia.[14][15][16][17]

The Magnificent Seven
See also: Manjifieke Sewe Olifante (Afrikaans page about the Magnificent Seven)
See also: Isilo (elephant), who lived more recently than the magnificent seven
The skull and tusks of Shawu in the Elephant Hall before its renovation

The Magnificent Seven—Dzombo, João, Kambaku, Mafunyane, Ndlulamithi, Shawu and Shingwedzi—were seven large bull elephants with enormous tusks ("tuskers"). Each elephant had at least one tusk that weighed at least 50 kg, and all of their tusks were at least 2 m long.[18] Dr. U de V Pienaar, the chief warden of Kruger National Park in the 1970s, decided to publicise these elephants as an example of Kruger's successful conservation work. As each elephant died, their skull and ivory were recovered and brought to the Elephant Hall, with the exception of João, whose tusks broke off in 1984 and were never found. A section of the elephant hall is dedicated to each of them.[19]

Magnificent Seven statistics
Name Life span Tusk length Tusk mass Tusk circumference at lip
LeftRight LeftRight LeftRight
Dzombo c. 1935-1983 255 cm237 cm 55.5 kg56.8 kg 50 cm51 cm
João died c. 1984 271 cm250 cm 70 kg60 kg 51 cm51 cm
Kambaku c. 1930-1985 259 cm265 cm 63.2 kg64 kg 51 cm52 cm
Mafunyane Carcass discovered 1983-11-16 251 cm251 cm 55.1 kg55.1 kg 48 cm48 cm
Ndlulamithi c. 1927-1985 287 cm273 cm 64.6 kg57.2 kg 48.5 cm48 cm
Shawu died in October 1982 317 cm305 cm 52.6 kg50.8 kg 45 cm45 cm
Shingwedzi c. 1934-1981 207 cm264 cm 47.2 kg58.1 kg 47.5 cm48 cm

Emerging Tuskers Project

Kruger National Park is host to a number of current tuskers. Once identified, each tusker is officially named and their home range and features are determined.[20] The list of current tuskers is available on the South African National Parks website, alongside the list of deceased tuskers and female tuskers. The Emerging Tuskers Project relies on submitted photos to help identify new tuskers and track the movement of existing tuskers. Contact information can be found on the Emerging Tuskers Project web page.

2017 Renovation

In early 2017 the Elephant Hall was shut down for renovation. With the help of over R1.5 million in donations from Australia's University of the Sunshine Coast and the South African National Parks Honorary Rangers, it was reopened on 2017-03-20 after nine weeks of renovation. The renovated museum features a more modern design, clearer display panels and design improvements.[14] The renovation also meant the addition of the tusks of Mandleve, the largest ivory-carrying elephant ever recorded in Kruger park, who died of natural causes in 1993. The addition of the Mandleve tusk display was sponsored by Rotary International.[21] The renovation also includes a new lighting system, allowing photographs without the use of flash photography. Future plans include the development of a virtual tour of the elephant hall available on the SANParks website.[15]

References
  1. "Kruger National Park elevation table" (PDF). South African National Parks. Retrieved 2020-01-04.
  2. "South African National Parks - Letaba Accommodation". www.sanparks.org. Retrieved 2020-01-04.
  3. "Letaba Rest Camp - Letaba Rest Camp ✓ View Availability and Rates". Letaba Rest Camp. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  4. "Fire breaks out at Letaba Rest Camp in KNP". Lowvelder. 2020-09-10. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  5. "Letaba camp's shop in KNP gutted in a fire". Letaba Herald. 2020-09-11. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  6. "[PICTURES] Fire in Kruger destroys Letaba shop, staff facilities". Jacaranda FM. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  7. https://www.timeslive.co.za/authors/naledi-shange. "Second devastating fire reported at SANParks in a week". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  8. "South African National Parks - Letaba Activities & Facilities". www.sanparks.org. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  9. "South African National Parks - Conference Facilities". www.sanparks.org. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  10. "South African National Parks - Kruger - Heritage - Masorini". www.sanparks.org. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  11. "South African National Parks - Letaba". www.sanparks.org. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  12. "Kruger accommodation review – Letaba Rest Camp". Getaway Magazine. 2013-05-28. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  13. "Letaba Elephant Hall in Phalaborwa, Limpopo". www.sa-venues.com. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  14. "Facelift for Kruger's Letaba Elephant Hall". Wild Card. 2017-04-03. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
  15. "PICS: Kruger's iconic Letaba Elephant hall re-opens". Traveller24. 2017-03-23. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
  16. "Letaba Elephant Hall Design". www.usc.edu.au. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
  17. "Kruger Park News | New Doors for Letaba Elephant Hall | Online News Publication". www.krugerpark.co.za. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
  18. "Kruger National Park Elephants - Let their Majesty Awe you". Kruger National Park Guide. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  19. "South African National Parks - Kruger National Park - Elephant Hall - Magnificent Seven". www.sanparks.org. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  20. "South African National Parks - Emerging Tuskers Project". www.sanparks.org. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  21. "Kruger Park Times | Letaba Elephant Hall Closed For Renovations | Online News..." www.krugerpark.co.za. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
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