Gap year & Travel News

Hi again! Well, we’re now 5 weeks into the January S.A Team’s placement and all’s going well this side! We started the outreach and teaching program today which the Leapers seem to be really enjoying, this will be the project for the next full week so by the end of the week they will be looking ripped and tanned! The team are continuning on the orphanage which the previous Leap groups have started. They are currently adding a room onto the building including plastering, roofing, dooring, windowing, flooring and every other -ing! They are also teaching at the moment too so its a rather busy week!

Building at the oprhanage

Muscle-maina!

Cathy and Elaine with the kids at the orphanage

This group has been rather busy in both the bush as well as the community! On the environmental side they have been getting stuck into the bana grass project which is a continual project which helps with the tame elephants. As the Ellies cant be out the whole time (especially at night) they need their food to be supplemented and we do this by both providing them with collected branches from the wild as well as by feeding them Bana grass. This grass is planted and harvest like any other crop so continual weeding, seeding etc is done. Leapers over the past few months have been instrumental in getting the project off the ground and keeping the orphaned Elephants in good health.

Planting bana grass

In the bush too, the students have cleared a few roads. They do this by forming two teams one levels the roads using sand rocks etc (all of Kwa Madwala’s roads were recently graded and in need of leveling and making mess pits on the side where the water will drain) and the other group cleared the road of all over hanging branches etc. The reserve’s rangers are hugely thankful as now they can carry out a game drive and not worry bout getting scratches on there vechicles (let alone loosing a tyre to the bumpy road!).

Here’s some more update photos to show you what they’ve been getting up to:

1) Kirsty and Jess!

2) Cathy and a white backed Vulture.

3) Honey Badger baiting...

1) The first is of Kirsty feeding Jessica the hippo. She was hand raised from 3 hours by her owner and is completely habituated. She has appeared in over 80 documentaries and has even featured on the Oprah show.

2) This photo is taken at Mohoholo rehab centre and Cathy is feeding a white backed vulture which can weigh up to 10Kg! You just gotta be careful that they take the piece of meat and not your fingers!

3) The group looking into the honey badger enclosure, the honey badger is listed as the most fearless and ferocious animal in the world in the Guinness book of records! There have even been reported deaths on African buffalo by these little guys. Lucky this one is tame and friendly!

4) Tom and Charlie make friends with a Cheetah

4) Tom and Charlie petting Juba a tame cheetah. He is being used as an ambassador for his species as there numbers are on a steady decline! There are only 200 left in the Kruger and there numbers are getting smaller. Hopefully through such projects and environmental education there numbers will increase.

5) Action photo of the Kori Bustards in full flight, winning our second match 2-0!

5) Gooooaaaaaaalllllll!