KNP HISTORY: History of Camps

Joep Stevens is a keen historian who was introduced to the Kruger National Park by his parents in 1966. This ignited his interest in and passion for the Park.

Part 10: Shingwedzi – the remotest of camps

In Issue 9 of KRUGER MAGAZINE, we featured Part 2 of Skukuza Camp history. In Issue 10 we look at the history of Shingwedzi Camp.

A-circle with the flowering impala lilies. Photo © Joep Stevens

The origin of the name Shingwedzi

Shingwedzi is named after the river with the same name and it is thought to have been derived from the Tsonga word ‘ngwetse’, meaning ‘the sound of metal objects rubbing against each other’. Many of the rocks in the river originate from the ironstone or dolerite hills in the river basin and when walking over the rocks there is a typical metallic resonance in the sound.

Origin of Shingwedzi Camp

Ranger Bert Tomlinson was transferred from Malelane to the newly established Shingwedzi section in March 1933. In 1934, Bert, with approval from the warden, decided on a suitable site to set up his headquarters in the vicinity of where the current Shingwedzi Camp is located.

How Shingwedzi Camp developed

The first road between Letaba and Shingwedzi was completed in . For the tourist season (winter) of , only a tent camp could be erected, but the exercise was worthwhile as the area was popular with the visitors. In these early years Shingwedzi was very remote, before towns such as Thohoyandou and Phalaborwa were established, and essentially the closest towns were Louis Trichardt and Gravelotte, both about 200km away