An update on Satara Plains Camp and what the Kruger’s exceptional rains mean for the 2026 season
The 2026 season is under way at Tshokwane River Camp, and the wilderness is delivering everything we know and love about this extraordinary time of year. The bush is alive, the game viewing is exceptional, and the first guests of the season are already carrying home experiences that are difficult to put into words and impossible to forget.
At Satara Plains Camp, the story is a different one this year, and we want to share it with you.
The Situation
The exceptional rainfall this season has had a profound effect on the landscape surrounding the camp, and the very qualities that make this part of the Kruger so extraordinary, its diversity, its wildness, its untouched character, have made access to the site deeply challenging.
Access to the Satara Plains Camp site is currently challenging, and the conditions required to safely erect the camp simply don’t exist yet. We’re working closely with SANParks to ensure that every step we take complies fully with the environmental standards that govern circumstances as unique as these, and we’re committed to doing this properly rather than quickly.
Why we’re waiting
Kruger Untamed was founded on a clear conviction: camps that pride themselves on leaving no trace must also know when not to arrive! Driving vehicles across saturated ground, compacting soil that is still recovering, and erecting infrastructure before the site is genuinely ready would cause exactly the kind of damage our entire operation is designed to avoid, and it would be contrary to everything we stand for.
So we’re waiting until the earth dries, the ground firms, and the Satara site is ready to receive us as it deserves. With long-term forecasts showing no further heavy rainfall predicted and the worst of the unseasonal weather hopefully behind us, we’re looking towards July as our likely opening window and we’re positive about getting there.
What happens next
At this stage we’re looking towards July as the likely opening window for Satara Plains Camp, and we’re genuinely excited about what awaits when we do return to site.
The rains that have delayed us have also shaped something remarkable out there, and the adventure and experience that Satara delivers will be richer and more extraordinary for it. Mother Nature has been busy. We can’t wait to see what she’s done.
We will keep you informed as conditions develop, with regular updates here on the journal, in our newsletter, and across our social media channels. So keep a weather eye out for news.
Our reservations team has been in touch with guests whose bookings have been affected, and we’re deeply grateful for the understanding and continued support.
The Kruger is a resilient wilderness that recovers, as it always does, on its own terms and in its own time. We’ll be there when it’s ready, and when we are, it will be worth the wait.
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