January 2016

FGASA Level I –  85 Day Program

Welcome to our second course in the Balule area. We have relocated to the Balule which is also part of the Greater Kruger. We have acquired a tented bush camp on the banks of the Olifants river on the Struwig Eko-Reservaat.  Being on the river we have many Elephants coming to drink and crossing in front of the camp,  it is an amazing experience to be asleep and have a herd of elephants feeding and communicating all around you!

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Ann and William are two students that have come for this experience and schooling and want to become some of the best guides in the country! The last two months they have worked and studied hard to achieve this. They have passed many exams during this course. These exams range from bird calls, frog calls, trees, mammals and many more.

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A very important aspect of the course is being able to communicate to people and present information. To enforce this Ann and William were asked to do several presentations on different mammals. It was clear in the beginning that they struggled, however they pushed through their nervousness and became more relaxed and started to enjoy giving presentations. Through researching these mammals they gained more in depth knowledge in the different mammals which definitely helped them with their preparation for their practical drive.

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This time Jens came with Clinton (an old student!) to teach  the students the basics of First Aid. This is a legal requirement if you want to be a guide in South Africa. Often guides are guiding in areas where the closest medical facility is miles away. Having a basic knowledge of how to deal with medical situations is majorly important. None of the students had done a first aid course before and they were amazed about the amount of knowledge presented to them by Clinton.

During this part of the course the students were assessed for Track and Sign and Trailing according the Cybertracker system. This is an international system and is recognised by the Field Guide Association of Southern Africa. We had practised many hours looking at tracks and signs in the bush. Is it a lion or a leopard track? Is it a Toktokkie beetle or maybe a scorpion track? Not all that easy… However they all did well and both achieved Level II for Track and Sign. For the trailing component they had practised several man trails AND animal trails. A Level I Trailing certificate was also achieved by both. If people have achieved levels with Track and Sign AND Trailing the Cybertracker system will award them a Tracker certificate. This certificate will be awarded to the level of the lowest level achieved. In this case it meant that William and Ann are now both Trackers level I! Well done Ann and William!!!

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During the course we had the privilege once again to have Jan joining us. With his experience from the last few years he was a valuable added source for Ann and William. This year he was once again assessed for Track and Sign and he achieved a Level II! He was very happy with this. We were very grateful for him to join us for a few weeks and are looking forward to his company in August once again.

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On Wiliams’s assessment drive he had the management couple of Struwig as guests. This gave the game drive a very official feel. He did well and managed to teach these experts in the guiding industry some new things. He treated them to a proper sundowner and was able to interact with them on a social level. Well done to William! Our brand new Level I Field Guide!

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The lions were very active and the students were very lucky to watch them on a warthog and a buffalo carcass. Close to main camp is a spotted hyena den and this has ensured the hyenas to be very relaxed with the car. At one point we even had an on foot encounter with a leopard. Everyone was out of the car ready to look at some tracks when Acima looked to her left and a leopard got up, ran and growled. Luckily he ran away from Acima and not towards her! He had been less than 30m from her. We must have surprised him and he had waited for his moment to escape the scene.

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