Pretoriuskop rest camp, Kruger National Park

Pretoriuskop is one of the oldest camps in the Kruger National park and was the first to offer visitor accommodation, in the late 1920s, in the then Sabi Reserve. These days, some visitors prefer the busier camps further east, which tend to offer better game viewing, but I still love the ‘old Kruger’ feel of this camp. Moreover, it has huge amounts of space for kids, the best and first-built pool in Kruger – sculptured, in part, out of natural rock – and a revamped buffet restaurant, which would fit easily into a private lodge. A takeaway and well-stocked shop make this quiet camp a comfortable base for a couple of days.

Accommodation at Pretoriuskop

Chalets
There is a wide range of accommodation available. The most basic are school huts, which have two single beds and make use of communal kitchen and bathroom facilities. The 52 budget huts have two, three, five or six beds each. These are equipped with air conditioning and a small fridge/freezer, but kitchens and bathrooms are communal. The 54 bungalows have bathrooms, fridge/freezer and air conditioning; some have communal kitchen facilities while others include fully equipped kitchenettes. The four family cottages, with either two or three bedrooms (one of which contains a double bed and the others single beds), are best suited for larger families. All the cottages have two bathrooms, a kitchen and a lounge with television. Two guesthouses accommodate larger groups. The Pierre Joubert sleeps 16 people in eight beds and eight sleeper couches, and the Doherty Bryant sleeps nine in three units, each containing a double bed and one single bed.

Camping and caravanning
The camp site is pleasant and relatively shady – but only if you arrive in time to grab one of the spots under a tree. There is a small communal kitchen, although it has no fridge/freezer. Electrical boxes are scattered throughout the site, but you will need a caravanning-plug converter in order to use standard threepin wall plugs. Individual sites are not allocated, and cannot be booked in advance, so it’s a matter of first come, first served.

Wildlife in and around Pretoriuskop

In camp
A small impala herd grazes the lawns surrounding the huts, carefully cropping away at the grass. Hyenas often patrol the fence.

The surroundings
The immediate surroundings are good for game such as kudu and waterbuck. Sable, tsessebe, common reedbuck, eland and Lichtenstein’s hartebeest are likely to be seen in the area, but they are not common. This is one of the few places in the park where the diminutive red duiker and oribi are also found.

The Big Five
This is not a particularly good area for lion, although they are seen on occasion. Leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino are regularly seen on drives from the camp.

Birds
Keep an eye out for sunbirds, barbets and brown-headed parrots especially when the coral trees and aloes are in flower. Purple-crested turacos (louries) often visit in summer when there is fruit on the marula trees.

Don’t miss!

A dip in the most attractive swimming pool in Kruger National Park is a highlight, but also be sure to be on the lookout for the rare oribi, which you will see nowhere else in Kruger, and other antelope species. It is also well worth following the Sable Trail through camp. There is a small museum and info centre next to the Sable statue.

Jock of the Bushveld – Jock is undoubtedly South Africa’s most famous dog. He was the main character in Sir Percy Fitzpatrick’s bestselling Jock of the Bushveld – based on his days as a young transport rider working the old route to Lourenço Marques (Maputo). The young man and his Staffordshire-cross terrier, Jock, became inseparable, and a number of important ‘Jock sites’ are now marked in the south of the park, indicating places where modern roads intersect with the old trading routes used by Fitzpatrick. In addition, a new lodge – Jock Safari Lodge – has been constructed on a private concession in the area (see page 150). The lodge is themed on Jock’s story and everything, even the dog biscuits you get with your afternoon high tea, is in character.
Jock stayed with his owner until 1889, when Fitzpatrick lost his oxen to tsetse fly and his horses to nagana (African horse sickness). Ruined, he walked into Barberton then took up a job with the Corner House Mining Company in Johannesburg. Jock
was given to a friend who ran a trading store in Pessene in Mozambique. One night, the nowdeaf Jock was accidentally killed
while apprehending a predator in the chicken coop. He had successfully chased off the intruding beast but was mistakenly identfied as a jackal and shot by his new owner.

Activities offered at Pretoriuskop

Guided early-morning, mid-morning, sunset and night drives are offered in a 10- or 23-seat vehicle – the larger vehicle being less expensive. These are all booked at reception. The four-hour morning bushwalks (refreshments included) and three-hour afternoon bushwalks (refreshments included) can also be booked at reception, but a maximum of eight people are accepted on a walk.
Bush braais on one of the nearby koppies include a three-hour drive and there is a cash bar on site. The 4×4 Madlabantu Adventure Trail (roughly 41/2 hours, depending on your stops) leaves from Pretoriuskop. The southern stretch is frankly very tame and the only tricky sections are the two river crossings, which do not pose any difficulties in the dry season. The northern parts are more challenging, where slightly more skill in 4×4 driving is required; book at reception on the day of the trail. Advance bookings are not accepted. Wildlife documentaries are shown in the camp’s small open-air theatre if weather permits.

Best drives around Pretoriuskop

Pretoriuskop is situated in the Pretoriuskop Sourveld Ecozone, which is characterised by tall grass and thick bush that make game-viewing tricky in places. That said, many good routes are indeed accessible and offer a combination of fantastic scenery and good game viewing.Fayi Loop The collection of dirt roads that make up the S14 (Fayi Loop) to the south of the camp pass through beautiful scenery encompassing granite koppies protruding from a sea of tall grass studded with mixed bushwillows, kiaat, knobthorn acacias and so on. The grass can make game viewing difficult, but kudu and baboon are common and white rhino, sable and leopard are all seen occasionally. This region includes some of the best landscape and views in the whole park – which makes up for the lack of wildlife.

Albasini Road
The S3 (Albasini Road) is named after the trader João Albasini who was an important trader in the region, operating a chain of stores that supplied transport riders moving between Lydenburg and Delagoa Bay (Maputo). It heads north from the H1-1 near Numbi Gate, passing the Mestel Dam, which is usually surrounded by good game, mainly waterbuck and, in thicker vegetation, bushbuck, but because the entire route runs through sourveld, game-viewing may be difficult along the rest of the way. This improves after you cross the S1 (Doispane Road) where the vegetation changes to mixed thornveld, before reaching the Sabie River where it follows the course, passing through mixed thornveld interspersed with thick riverine vegetation characterised by tall sycamore figs, jackalberries, leadwoods and so on. Once you reach the river on the S3 (Sabie River Road), game viewing usually improves dramatically and this road can be very rewarding, with lion, elephant, leopard, rhino, kudu and a host of other species regularly seen. Also take time to watch for smaller animals such as dwarf mongoose, which otherwise you might miss. When you reach the S3 intersection with the S4, turn for home via the S1. Alternatively, take the S65 past the Nwaswitshaka Water Hole.

Napi Road
The H1-1 (Napi Road) is an attractive road, offering views over southern Kruger and passing interesting watering spots and landscape features. Take the short detour to

Shitlhave Dam. This is a magnet to game in the area and often attracts a collection of general wildlife and water birds, such as three-banded plover, black-winged stilt, blacksmith lapwing, black-crowned night heron and malachite kingfisher. The H1-1 passes both the Napi Koppie (505 m) and the turnoff to Transport Dam, another large dam well worth the short detour.

Further east along the Napi Road is the northerly turn-off of the S65 which leads to the Nwaswitshaka Water Hole, a hot spot for game. Lion are regularly seen and the open grassy sweetveld hosts herds of zebra, wildebeest and other grazers. A family of ground hornbills is also regularly seen, so keep a lookout for these easily recognisable, black, turkey-sized birds.

From Nwaswitshaka continue north along the S65 to the Doispane Road and return that way, or retrace your steps and continue a little further along the H1-1 to visit the Stevenson-Hamilton Memorial Tablets, 10-plus kilometres after the intersection. If there is still time, head home past Renosterkoppies Dam (also called the Shirimantanga Dam) which is usually surrounded by large numbers of game. Rhino are regularly seen, while lion and leopard are reported frequently.
Voortrekker Road The H2-2 (Voortrekker Road) heads east, skirting the base of Ship Mountain, which was a popular camping spot for the transport riders in the late 1800s. A small plaque commemorates the birthplace of Percy Fitzpatrick’s famous dog, Jock. The site itself is a short detour from the main road, with not much to recommend it apart from its historical significance.

The entire Voortrekker Road is, however, often rewarding, with many lion, wild dog, leopard, white rhino, elephant and kudu sightings. It ends a short distance from the popular Afsaal Picnic Site, which is well serviced and has toilets, gas cookers for hire, chairs and tables, as well as a small shop and takeaway restaurant.

This is an extract from the Kruger Park Guide by Cameron Ewart-Smith and Sunbird Publishers. This is an extract from the Kruger guide. Want the whole guidebook? Buy the Getaway Guide to Kruger National Park here.