Time flies

So time flies apparently when you are having fun, and it is now several weeks since my last update. On the upside it has been very much the same old same old.

Lots of game drives, town trips (this I dont enjoy, I get to town, do what I have to do as quickly as possible and leave as soon as I can, unfortunately I have had to spend all day there), and lots of data entry in the middle of the day.

I have seen a lot more of the lions in the last couple of weeks, as there are a couple of new lions in one of our bomas (quarentine enclosure) and they have been spending almost all their time hanging around the fence line looking (lovingly in the two males cases) at the new lionesses.

My leopard drought has also been broken, seeing a female up a tree, and one of our big males two nights in a row, as well as our other big male on a territory patrol.

The cheetahs have also featured prominently in my sightings, as well as (finally) some more elephants, including some at base one Sunday morning when I was suprised by a game drive turning up at 6.30am to view the male who was in our garden, and got a lovely sight of me in my pyjamas racing back to my room to put some more clothes on!!!!!

It isnt always the big things that are nice to see, I also enjoy the general game, zebra, girrafe, impala, was very excited to finally see some nyala again, bushbush, warthog babies, kudu, leopard tortoises and of course the many birds, a lot of which I dont know!

The weather is now starting to beging to cool down again, it is getting cooler at night (I am regularly wearing a fleece, athough not many others are, and using my doona pulled all the way up), and slightly less humid.

Update

Where does the time go???

The last month has been busy with game drives, plenty of Cheetah sighings, but lions and leopard have been sadly lacking for me.

I had a lovely week off where I spent a couple of days in Kruger, with some lovely sightings of Rhino, a leopard, and my first Serval!!!!! It was a long few days, but very enjoyable.

With the rainy season, the roads are getting a bit worse, and I have managed to get stuck a couple of times, once very impressively!!!! I have learnt very quickly which roads are passable, and which you need to avoid and find an alternative route around.

Every day here is different, and although you do similar things, it is never the same, and always enjoyable.

Drives drives drives

So the last two weeks have consisted of a lot of drives so I could get used to the reserve and the radio before our volunteers arrived and I started doing drives alone.

I did my first solo drive last Tuesday and managed to find most of the animals, the two cheetah boys were hiding but I find them in the afternoon. It was both exciting and scary being out on my own, but have done a few more solo drives now, and am more comfortable.

Saturday night out volunteers arrived, and Sunday night I took half of them out in their first drive-not a whole lot was seen but we picked up signal for the female lion and had a great sighting of elephant.

Today has been fairly miserable, raining and for here cold, I have had a fleece Olin most of the day-mind you is is probably not actually that cold-probably in the low 20's.

Next week I am off, and hope to get to kruger for a couple of days-where else do you go when you live on a game reserve but a much larger version!!!

Also did a day's tracking, and got to see some tracks I didn't see in my last tracking course-terrapins, wasps, crocodile, lizards.

Happy New Year

So the last week has been much like the last few weeks, I go out on morning drive which starts at 5am and lasts about 4-5 or so hours, where we try to find all 4 of our focus animals, 2 cheetah (the two boys are always together so we actually see three cheetah) and the two lions (who are usually with the other two lions so if we get a vie of them instead of just signal we get to see 4 lions)
I have now started using the radio which is a bit scary, I can't understand a lot of what is said and get all tongue tied when I try to speak-half of what we say is in another language (the local language called shangaan) which is an extra challenge as I am still learning all the words I need to know in it.
I am enjoying my placement, still getting used to only having power for a couple of hours a day ( need to be organized with what you want charged and then careful how much you use it so it will last till the next day :P )
Each time we go it on a drive it is always a thrill to walk in to the cheetahs and stand so close to such a magnificent creature.
I have now moved into the room which is going to be mine for the next 6 months-home sweet home

Merry Christmas

Ok, so it has been a long time since my last post-lets see how we go.

I spent a lot of time studying for my trails guide exam, which I didnt feel I went well in, and wasnt sure I would pass (there were 3 sections and you had to get a minimum of 60% in each section and an overall average of 75% to pass. One section, on rifles, only had 20 points so get one question wrong an you would fail, considering I made a lot of those answers up, my confidence wasnt high!!!) The result is I did actually pass!!! Miricles do happen :)

Almost as soon as we had finished our exam we all headed off on our placements. I am just down the road at Karongwe, with a volunteer organisation called GVI, doing research. This involves two drives a day (spread between all the staff, so I am not on two drives a day every day), trying to find all of our focus animals each drive. Our focus animals are a female cheetah called Ketswiri, two male Cheehtas called Jabu and Djuma, and 4 lions, Maggie, Lisa, Zera and a sub adult male. We also collect data on any sightings of leopard, elephant, hyena, or anything unusual such as pangolin, honeybadger etc.

I have had some really great sightings, we walk in on the cheetahs every day to check on them, this is an amazing feeling to be so close to a wild animals with no rifle etc. The other animals we only view from the car. For the first two weeks I was here I was just a passenger, learning the roads etc, but for the last week or so, I have been driving, and really learning the roads, the next step is actually trying to use the radio which I am slightly scared of.

I have had some amazing sightings while being here already. I have seen a leopard make a Jackal kill just next to the car, seen baby hyena who are so cute, a 2 day old buffalo calf, leopards trying to mate, lions on a kill, cheetahs on a kill. No matter how many times I see the animals, I always love it.

Assessment Drives, Snakes, Elephant rides and Kruger

Ok so it has been a while since my last update-where does the time go????

The last two weeks of semester was spent madly trying to study and get ready for my assessment drive, where we had to take a 3 hour game drive, trying to cover all the topics that we have learn over the course.

Over the two week period we also got to go on a lot of other peoples assessment drives, which were good as you got to see how other people did their drives, and got to eat their really good food on the drinks break, but after doing 5 drives of the same route you also got to know all the trees things that they would stop at.

My drive was on the Thrusday night of the first week, which convienently also happened to be in the middle of the pouring rain. Trying to do a game drive for 3.5 hours, in the rain, with people who really didnt want to be there, and not seeing any animals was very difficult, but the result was I passed!!!

The Friday was then spent on an overnight stay at GVI, for an interview on placement, where I was subsequently offered a placement and where I will now be spending the next 7 months.

The second week was then spent on more game drive assessments and after the final ones, a few days relaxation, before we started our week off.

The first weekend of our week off was spent up at a fellow students house, having a farewell party, and then I headed back to camp and as I had hired a car with Lukas.

Monday was spent relaxing at camp, then Tuesday Lukas and I headed off to a snake handling course together. This was so much fun, we got to handle several very venomous snakes (Snouted Cobra, Mozamique Spitting Cobra, Boomslang, Black Mumba) as well as a couple of Rock Pythons, one of which was 4m long! The most scary was the python as it went for you while the others tryed to move out of your way.

Wednesday Lukas and I headed off to do an Elephant Back Safari, which was also fantastic, it was great to see the bush from another prospective. While it wasnt very long only about an hour or so, it was peaceful and lovely to be out in the bush in a different way.

Thursday we headed down to Kruger for the day, leaving camp at 2.30am, and getting to the gates as they opened at 5.30, driving round all day (and seeing some really amazing things, Hyena cubs, Lion cubs, Impala babies, a Leopard in a tree with a kill, Elephant babies) and not getting home until about 9.30pm.

The last couple of days have been spent relaxing but it is back to the books now to study for our last exam which is next Friday, and then we head out on placements, and the next stage of the adventure begins.

Hyena cub getting up close and personal

Lion cub

FGASA exam

This week saw us sit our final FGASA (Field Guides Association of Southern Africa) exam, the first of 3 exams we have spent the course aiming towards.

The week was spend doing a lot of study, Monday was totally study, Wednesday afternoon was study, and Thursday was totally spend doing study.

The upside was that we did get to go to Kruger for a day trip this week Team A on Monday and us on Tuesday. While we didnt actually see a huge amount (we did see a herd of over 500 Buffalo which was amazing siting in the middle of them, and three Buffalo sorting out their territorial differences) it was great to get out of the camp for a day during the stress of the looming exam.

Wednesday morning we had an info session on what to expect on the exam, and anything else we had questions on. The reast of the day was then spend madly studying for the exam on Friday, with the result being a late rather late night.

Thursday was spent again studying another lond day and late night, with an equally early morning on the Friday for a bit of last minute revision before the test began. I felt that I had done well enough to pass, and we left the tests in the hands of our trainers busily marking them as we all headed into town to head back to the traffic centre and the next step in our licence and PDP application-pick up the result from our fingerprints from one room, walk to the counter 10 meters away and hand the form back in-all in all took about 2 hours, actually quite quick. After lunch in town we headed back to camp and got the all important results of the exam. I was pleasently surprised to find that not only did I pass very well, but also got the highest mark on the course by half at mark at 96%

Satuday I decided to head out on a game drive in the morning with the result that I again didnt get a lot of sleep as it involved an early morning, and then we headed up to Mahlahla for dinner and some relaxing. Sunday was spent doing as little as possible before the study again resumes on Monday for my assessment drive on Thursday, the second of our three major tests

Dragonfly
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Buffalo

Buffalo

Ground Hornbill

Camp at night

Vultures

Bush dinner and study

The time has been flying by, with lots of study being done in preperation for our final exams which are looming

Monday was spend cleaning up the camp after our week off, and then we were taken out on a "Guest" game drive by our trainers to give us an idea on how to run ours for our assessments. We spent quite a while watching dung beetles rolling their dung balls around, then found the elephants and had a lovely time watching them and being surrounded by them. As we were heading home we then found 4 young lions attempting to hunt, and followed them around for quite a while-one of the best game drives I have been on!

Tuesday was spend studying in the morning as and then we hosted Team A in a bush dinner. Considering what we have available to us, it was absolutely beautiful and they really enjoyed it.

Wednesday I headed out on a bush walk with two of the trainers and another student, and we were blessed with finding some elephants again, and getting to watch them for about 45 minutes on foot, but from high up on the river bank as well as up close as we crossed the river. We also tracked and tried to find a lioness on foot but to no avail, but did see th remains of a kill. The afternoon was then spent on a game drive, not a lot was seen this time, but it was great to practice what we are going to have to do on our assessments.

Thursday I again headed out on a morning game drive, where we saw a lot of birds, and I got a much better idea on where I would like to go on my assessment, now I just need to be able to navigate it without getting lost-that should be fun particularly once it gets dark! The afternoon was then spent studying, in preperation for our birding test we had on Saturday.

Friday was a long day of study of birds, ID's and Calls, we have a list of 160 birds we need to be able to ID by sight, and 100 to ID by sound, so it was a cramp session trying to learn as many bird calls as possible ready for our test.

Saturday morning was spent doing bird IDing the visual ID wasnt too bad, but the calls all just sound the same, so didnt go so well. Being just before Halloween we then dressed up (or at least the girls did) and we all headed up to the local bar at the neighbouring reserve to have some fun. A lot of people had dressed up and we all had a great night.

Today it is back to the books, in preperation for my big final exam on Friday

Bush Dinner

Watching Elephants

Watching Elephants

Elephants

Bush Dinner

Dung Beetle

Rifle exams

This week consised of a lot of game drives and our ARH (Advanced Rifle Handling) assessments.

Monday was a game drive in the morning. It was a fairly quiet drive, but we did get a fantastic close viewing of a big male Lion, who was just chilling under a tree. The afternoon we again had placement talks, to check what we were interested in doing.

Tuesday we started our ARH, our group was up in the morning, where I managed to both drop a bullet in my first part of the assessment, pass the second part and completely miss the targets in the third part-unfortunately I didnt manage to get my basic Rifle Handling, let along my ARH. The afternoon was spent on another game drive, where we saw the Rhinos at night, we had been tracking them most of the afternoon and only managed to bump into them on the way home in the dark-lovely to see nontheless.

Wednesday we had another game drive in the morning, where we again didnt see much, but are getting some good practice at identifying trees and getting our basics down for our assessment drives. In the afternoon we had another go at getting our ARH, and this time I managed to do even worse, passed the first part, but then couldnt hit the target with my third bullet in the second part-again I missed out on my ARH.

Thursday we had game drives in the morning, doing more tree ID, and basics. Once again, not a whole lot was seen. The afternoon we chose not to go on our game drive, but instead study as we were had to go to town on Friday to apply for our PDP's and therefore would miss out on a lot of our study.

Friday was spent entirely in town, arriving about 8.30 and sitting at the traffic centre all day, finally getting out about 3.30, and racing round to do our shopping for the week off, before heading back to camp, getting back about 6.

After the test on Saturday we started our week off, the rest of the Saturday was spent being lazy, and then Sunday I started doing some work to finish my workbook off and begin my revision for our final FGASA exam, practical assessment drive and Birding exam.

Monday, Tuesday and today have also been spent as lazy mornings and study in the afternoon and often late into the night-as will the rest of the week, not the most enjoyable week off I have had, but neccissary.

A moth decided my leg was the best place to sit, and it was huge so we wanted photos of it

Beautiful Male lion

Some of the smaller animals-Dungbeetle

Cats Cats and Rifles

It has been an interesting week.

Monday we had conservation all day, a lecture in the morning on conservation and reserve management, and then a DVD in the afternoon on the history of conservation in South Africa-it is very interesting, but I am not sure that I would want to take on the responsibility.

Tuesday we had our last lecture of the course, History and Culture. To make it more interesting (learning about the stone age and iron age just doesnt grab me the same way as mammals, or reptiles etc do) we had a waterbuck sprint straight past the lecture room. We thought it was a bit strange, but didnt think anymore about it, until 2 cheetah followed the waterbuck stopping just outside the classroom-that really did distract us from the lecture. As good prospective guides, we all headed outside to have a look at the cheetah which had decided that they were tired and wanted a lie down under the trees. We got a fantastic sighting of them, managing to get about 10m away. The rest of the lecture was a little more difficult to concentrate in after that, and not quite so interesting.

We then headed out on our sleepout for the semester in the afternoon. We went to a new spot, a small drainage line. It was a pleasent time, and then at 2am the people on watch found a lion with the spotlight only about 4 meters from where we were sleeping-that certainly got us up, we had to wake the rest of the group up and get into the cars where we would be safe until the lions moved off. Needless to say after 2 very cold hours in the vehicles, we headed back to bed at about 4am, but as I was on watch at 5, there was no sleep that night-it was all worth it though.

Wednesday afternoon we had our last rifle dry runs before we got to shoot our first rounds on the Thursday, just to check we were capable to do our AHR (Advanced Rifle Handling) next week.

Thursday we had a game drive in the morning, where although we didnt see much was good, and managed to find a few new road, and learn some more about the trees and animals. The afternoon was rifles which I found quite fun, never thought I would say that about guns. I managed to do quite well, didnt really feel the kickback from the rifle but clearly dont have enough muscles to hold the rifle up for long, I started out quite well and then my shots all started to go low-my best effort was getting two bullets through the same hole, so I thought I had missed with the second on!

Friday was another long day of study, ready for our test on Saturday.

On Saturday a couple of us headed into town where we had organised to do some rifle practice, to see if we improve our aim. Afterwards it was back to camp for our test and then a lazy afternoon in my room watching movies.

Vulture

Cheetah near lecture room

Sleepout