fdbotha wrote:I had a suggestion that the car on the right is a 1941 Plymouth, which would fit well with an early 1950's date.
My father had a 1949 Dodge . Dodge and Plymouth had the same front bonnets , but the boots differed somewhat . I have some pics of our old Dodge somewhere and will look it up , but I think that car on the right was a Plymouth 1948 model . Certainly not 1941 - those models were of quite a different build , with the boot shaped straight down , and not sloping like the later models .
Tread softly , and let your departure not be spoiled by the damage of your arrival
If memory serves me right, Letaba experienced a total revamp. Can recall seen a picture were the old huts were demolished. Soon after Olifants appeared on the map. Guess this was all part of a strategy.
To this day I believe Lower Sabie can still boast with some original huts. We recently occupied these. - the cloned ones.
Other than Punda Maria I don't know of any original huts still in existence.
It cannot be made more or less for that matter but it can be altered to suit.- The universe.
This is a great topic and thanks to all for sharing. The oldest huts still in use would be the six at Balule which originate from very early 1930's. Yes, Letaba old huts were all demolished (unfortunately). Other originals still in use, indeed, Punda Maria and also Shingwedzi, although interior was modernised in 70's and 80's. Lower Sabie so called finch nests (cluster) and stables are still the old ones from late 1930's and then of course Pretoriuskop still has many of the originals from early 1930's.
Thanks for your comments and I agree, it is a great topic. I had the same concern about old Balule, which has huge nostalgia due it's age and the fact that time has virtually stood still since it's opening in 1930. There is some structural damage to some of the units, door ripped out, etc, but this will be repaired rather than rebuilt.
Yes, I forgot about Ma-blom. This indeed is a transformed version of what the old huts at Letaba were like, no verandah or any kitchen or bathroom facilities. That would make it one of the oldest buildings in the current camp. It is used for honorary rangers on duty and if I have it correctly, named after a previous garden supervisor of the park that was stationed in Letaba and aptly named "Ma-blom" by the local staff.
Thanks, Madalla, most interesting. Yes, the camp was where now circle D is and the north-south road ran west of that. Don't you have more pics to share?
Love the photo's too and can place the location in the camp (Skukuza) in many of the instances as well. And the cars of my childhood - Citroen ID19 , Zephyr 6 , Austin 1100 and Vauxhall Velox. I wish I could remember the license plate codes - TBJ for the Citroen. I wonder where they were from?
Last edited by Shidzidzii on Wed Oct 31, 2012 8:02 am, edited 1 time in total.
What an amazing trip back in time these old photo’s are Those days were different in many ways I think and one of them is that there was no computer technology available and to communicate with family or friends must have taken ages by postcard or letter but I guess the ‘Tiekie Box” made it kind of possible . I guess a person had to go through some kind of “telephone exchange” in Skukuza perhaps and continually dropped money in the money box
“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”
Skukuza had a manual phone exchange untill after july 1986.
KNP is sacred.I am opposed to the modernisation of Kruger and from the depths of my soul long for the Kruger of yesteryear! 1000+km on foot in KNP incl 56 wild trails.200+ nights in the wildernessndloti-indigenous name for serval.
Thank you for posting this Kruger photo Chirinda . I remember those impala lily and birds bedspreads and curtains . It was very Kruger - Kruger like having tea and a bush snack at the Tshokwane Tea Room before taking a slow drive along the Sabie River to see the elephants.
“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”
. I guess a person had to go through some kind of “telephone exchange” in Skukuza perhaps 
and continually dropped money in the money box 
. I remember those impala lily and birds bedspreads and curtains 
before taking a slow drive along the Sabie River to see the elephants.