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Going to Pretoriuskop for the first time in June. What can we expect? What routes are worthwhile from there? Any "special" places to look out for?

I have not been there in a very long time, but also plan to visit in about 2 weeks' time. Bwana or francoisd seems to visit it often if I could recall correctly. It is a nice big Park with a lovely pool for the kids. It is also the oldest tourist camp in the Park with the wolhuter hut as the oldest in the camp. Go have a look at it! Impala used to frequent the camp site when I was there.

What I could remember of it is that it looked quite different from any other area in the Park. Tall grass and some rocky outcrops here and there. the area is good for sable I have heard.

On a recent nightdrive on the birding forum many owls were seen. This is my main reason of wanting to go there.

I also remember seeing a big group of wild dogs. the back road west of Pkop was very nice and there have been some interesting sigthings on it.

As far as one of the "current/previous ? residents of P/kop" mentioned, you can see the following "special" sightings:

1 ) Black Rhino
2 ) Sable
3 ) Reedbuck
4 ) Lichtenstein
5 ) Lion
6 ) Elephant
7 ) Wild Dogs also frequent the tourist roads in that area.
8 ) Kudu
9 ) And the usual ... Impala, warthog etc.

Reason why not so many people there as in other areas is because of the long grass, which makes it a bit more difficult to spot. But well worth the effort once you see on of the top 4 as mentioned above.

Enjoy... That area is my next trip ...

GP, for some reason I've never really "gelled" with Pretoriuskop, not sure why - might be because it's so close to the edge of the park. Anyway, that wierdness aside, it's a very promissing area for leopard (especially driving around the koppies in the early morning - s14/s8 ) and also good for sable. The swimming pool is great for midday as well.

One annoyance is the S10/S7 routes seem to have the road designed the opposite way around from those near Satara, so that the road is at times quite far below the level of the veld. As the grass can get quite long this can be a pain, but don't let it put you off! Wilddog can also be seen in the area, as well as cheetah

The camp is one of the original and has much of the old charm.
Pay a visit to Shitlhave Dam, Mestel Dam and Transport Dam. Take a swim in the pool and do short trip around Shabeni Hill....Plenty Rhino there abouts.

A few years ago i met a student ranger there who , so he said, would take his Bible and go for a walk in the bush. He said he would never be taken out......mmmmmm

Lovely area - Kobie Kruger said in one of her books it was the area she liked best- but not good for animal spotting because of the tall tamboekie grass? For years we firmly believed that there weren't any lions in that area, untill four years ago - we had hardly left the camp when five of them crossed the road right in front of us ! And that was at 1 p.m. !

The camp proved to be a real humdinger in March on my last trip. Nice lion sightings and a rhino. The shabeni loop is fabulous! Go and checkout Mestel dam too.

Plenty of owls around. Heard spotted eagle owl and barn owls calling at the same time.

I loved it so much that I will be going there on Saturday again.

We have seen lots of baboons and monkeys (including inside the camp, impalas also inside the fence), several duikers, lots of kudus, waterbucks and twice tsessebe on the road to Phabeni gate....

Pkop is an older camp.
There is a good shop and restaurant.

We saw rhino and sable on the fayi loop and buffs on the tar road to Skukuza in July. Its not my favourite area but it's all about being in the right place at the right time.

Long time since I stayed there but have dropped in for bunch. Quite a cool looking camp - with fair amount of shade. Has a swimming pool for residents.
There is the Mestel Dam which you can sit at, various drives around koppies with pretty good views - remember wild dog, thino sable, roan in the area. Each time we have tried to book in there it has been fully booked.

Shitlhava and Transport (Vervoer) dams on the H1-1 are nice dams to spend some time at. Saw Sable, rhino and secretary birds on this road at the end of June this year.

These two ladies have just been to Pretoriuskop here are some of their sightings.

I love the scenery.
Love the camp
Nice restaurant
Two nice lookoutpoints
Shitlhave Dam to Skukuza
Mestel Dam on S3 to Phabeni
And you can get out at the Phabeni picnic site which is nice
The drive on the S3 is very nice with the Drakensberg always in full view

Pkop is one of my favourite camps. Stayed there 2 nights this year so far. Saw the all of the big 5 in those two nights.

It is one of the better places to see rhino and buffalo. Lion sightings are also very frequent. Read some of my previous sightings here.

Lovely rustic camp and awesome breathtaking views around the camp. There are plenty of roads to be driven. the scenery is breathtaking. Remeber to visit Jock of the Bushveld's birthplace.

The Shabeni loop is a must. For birders look out for purple-crested turaco and brown-headed parrots in the camp. Best swimming pool in the whole Park.

I love this camp!!

Pretoriuskop is one of my favourite bigger camps. Definitely not for good game viewing, but certainly for tranquility and some "old-world" charm. To me the mere appearance of quiet calmness is the greatest power of attraction. The history of the camp also adds a certain nostalgic value (to me at least).

For sure Pretoriuskop is not known as the best game viewing area in the park. This is mainly due to the dense vegetation of tall thatching grass in the region - known to be quite unpalatable. The silver cluster leaf (also rather unattractive for most browsers) is about the most dominating tree in this section of the park. But Pretoriuskop is one of the best areas to find kudu. Sable is also quite commonly seen, especially in the vicinity of Ship Mountain (next to the H2-2).

Although not a mecca for predators like lion and cheetah, I have seen both species on various occasions in the area. Entering the park at Numbi one year, our first sighting was a big male lion between Numbi and Pretoriuskop. I had my one and only caracal sighting in the park very near to the camp. One of the largest pack of wild dogs I ever saw was on the H1-1 (Napi Road) ear to Shithlave.

The bustle of loops around the camp is prime territory for white rhino. The only black rhino sighting on my list was recorded on the S3 (Albasini Road) between Shabeni and Phabeni. I agree with Wildtuinman - the Shabeni Loop (S10) is a must. Sightings of klipspringer are about guaranteed on this road. It is also one of very few roads in the park where you have a chance to see red duiker (although I have never seen one myself).

Up to a certain stage one was nearly certain of finding common reed buck at Shithlave. (Wish I know what happened to this family). Big herds of elephant are nowadays quite common if you travel on the Voortrekker Road (H2-2) towards Afsaal picnic spot.

If you are keen baboon watchers (like me and my wife) you will struggle to find better places to watch these creatures' behaviours than around the rocky outcrops surrounding Pretoriuskop (yes, it is better than the Lower Sabie Road - also known as the Piccadilly Highway).

In spite of the fact that Pretoriuskop is a rather big camp, you will not experience the same numer of vehicles on the tourist routes around the camp as with other bigger camps. This is probably because of the many different routes around the camp.

Thus, if you want to see big herds of game - Pretoriuskop is not for you. But if you want to experience real serenity, mixed with some nostalgia and the chance to see some of the more uncommon species - go for Pretoriuskop (the warm and friendly camp).