Category: Student journeys

If you want to become an ultimate field guide, then you need some training in the bush!

Read time: 5 min

Francois Theron is the head trainer at Bushwise’s campus in the Greater Kruger National Park, where we train field guide students alongside the Southern African Wildlife College. Back in 2004 when Francois trained to become a guide, things were a little bit different than they are today. In this blog, he talks about the value of practical training for today’s guides.

New emphasis on training in the bush

Field guiding today has become extremely competitive. Back in the day, lodges might have given guides a broken-down land rover and a large calibre rifle and sent them on their way to conduct a safari. Training in the bush took a different tone when you were expected to learn on your feet.

I completed my field guide training eighteen years ago and started my career at a small intimate rustic bush camp in the Timbavati game reserve, which forms part of the Greater Kruger Park. I was excited beyond belief I was issued a uniform and off I went on my first game drive! 

Things were different two decades ago…

I will never forget the excitement and expectations I had for myself stepping into this career, there was so much out there that I wanted to know. Having the opportunity to learn and train in the bush, alongside trackers and guides that have been in the industry for several years was beyond my wildest expectations.

When I started my training as a field guide, the courses were much shorter and there were far less legal requirements and qualifications one had to adhere to and obtain. This might sound all good and well, but I soon realised that my training was not quite where it should be for a young person doing this kind of job. 

What you really need is practical training in the bush, to learn and be an effective guide.

The value of practical bush training

The misconception of just jumping into an open game viewing vehicle and looking for animals, and being handed a rifle and looking very impressive doing walking trails soon became a wake up call for me. 

I quickly realised that there are so much more out there than the big animals we are looking for. Guests started asking questions about birds, trees, grasses, insects – things I still had much to learn about. Eighteen years later, having years of experience in the bush and specialist qualifications in vehicle-based guiding, trails and birding, my training has not ended yet. 

There is always more out there to learn and experience; I now see how classroom-based theory and practical bush training is so important for young guides entering the industry.

Training in the bush: my first solo walk

Nearly two decades later I still remember my first solo bush walk like it was yesterday. I gathered my group and did my trail briefing and off we went along the river sharing my knowledge and love for the bush looking at hippos and birds calling in the riverine, I was in my element! 

We started making our way back to the lodge when we encountered a big elephant bull making his way up the river bank. At this stage, he was completely unaware of our presence and we waited patiently for him to pass by without disturbing him or making our presence known to him. 

For some reason, however, he picked up on us and turned and started walking straight towards where we were sitting. I hoped he would stop and smell and be satisfied that we were no threat to him like inquisitive elephant bulls quite often do, unfortunately I was not that lucky. 

A bit too close for comfort

As a newly qualified trails guide, one must obtain numerous dangerous game encounters hours on foot before you are allowed to do walks on your own, but it was at this stage that I truly felt that these hours and encounters that I have obtained with a trail mentor was not enough to have prepared me for this moment. 

The elephant continued towards us and stopped, smelled and gave us a proper mock charge and then turned around and walked away as I had hoped he would have done much earlier. For the guests, this was an absolute thrill – and to a certain extent it was for me too – but when you have the responsibility of other people’s safety and wellbeing in your hands, this was a bit nerve racking as a young and not so experienced guide. 

A reminder of the value of field experience

Looking back on this experience, it’s quite the reminder of a guide’s responsibilities to their guests. Physical training in the bush is the most important aspect whether you want to become a vehicle base guide, trails guide, both or even go into other aspects of nature conservation! 

Having mentors to train and get you up to a level that you are competent and comfortable enough to handle any dangerous situation out in the field is what we’re all about at Bushwise. Our trainers have thousands of hours experience vehicle based and on foot and we train not only in theory but in practice. 

Putting theory into practice

From game drives to bush walks to shooting and tracking animals, we train safari guides at Bushwise to be ethical, safe and stand out from the crowd.

Living and training in the bush has been the best and most rewarding career choice I have made and there has not been a single day that I regret any of it. Training students in the African bush is truly amazing. 

For students from all over the globe experiencing the safari industry, practical bush training is a once in a lifetime experience – one you could experience by joining a Bushwise course.

BY: Francois Theron, images by Louise Pavid

#bushwise #fieldguide #safariguide #training #animals #apprenticefieldguide #safari #fieldguidetrainer #sightings #fieldguiding #endangeredspecies #gamedrive #elephant #fieldguidecourse #fieldguides

This blog was written by Bushwise student Trevor Hinze, whose week as camp manager coincided with the first week of game drives. 

Read time: 4 mins

To kick things off, I will be honest; I didn’t know what to expect as a camp manager since this week felt more official than week 1. 

This week would be different since we all had to conduct our own game drive and our fellow students as the guests. We would be split up into two groups, namely group A and group B. I was in group B and Sipihwe was driving us in the morning, and Slon in the afternoon. 

Starting the week right: game drives!

On Monday, we started the first day at 06:30 in the morning on the game viewers. Sipihwe was our lucky charm today because we barely made it out of the gate when we bumped into lions. One male and the other a female. They were quite relaxed, even in our presence. We didn’t see anything else – except a hooded vulture – during the morning drive.

 When we got back to the campus at 10:00, we had a lecture about weather and climate by none Trevor Myburgh – who makes any lecture entertaining and enjoyable. After lunch we were assembled by Louise for a couple of photos for our future CVs. 

At 15:00 we went on another game drive, this time with Slon driving us and he showed great driving capabilities over some of the harsher stuff. We didn’t find anything of particular interest. 

Learning some animal track and sign

Trevor did show off his exceptional guiding skills. We stopped by a “ rhino postmark “. Trevor told us about how a rhino will defecate in the same spot to mark his territory. He also explained that rhinos will walk with their hind legs into their own feces and start walking. In this way he marks out his territory. In the late evening we saw a lone elephant bull just calmly feeding along the fence line. Man, it was quite a day..

Tuesday was quite an uneventful day. Apart from 04:00 in the morning, when the lions roared next to the campus fence line at the airstrip. However, I was also woken up by Chulu – who had to pack warm drinks and snacks in preparation for his game drive – and Jacques, who would be driving those of us in group B. 

The drive was very quiet with no sightings. We had a lecture on ecology from Darren after the drive. In the afternoon, Annemie spoke to us about hospitality and wines and she gave us some great tips.

Being a good field guide = being a good host

On Wednesday group A got very lucky on their morning game drive. They had a brief glimpse of a young female leopard. Meanwhile, us in group B spent a wonderful 20 minutes with a spotted hyena. 

Biomes was the lecture for Wednesday and it was done by the Francios, who explained each biome and its “flagship species” in great detail. Other than that not much happened on our afternoon drives except for going over some trees and plants and some of their different medicinal uses.

Finally my chance to lead game drives…!

On Thursday, it was finally my chance to guide a game drive. I mostly did the driving, while Francios did the guiding. I started out a bit shaky, but got the hang of things a little while into the game drive. 

After the game drive, at 10:30 we left for the Hoedspruit Reptile Center where we were taught a few things about snakes and we got to watch the dissection of a giant plated lizard that had been dead for six months. Some of us, including me, couldn’t handle the smell! All in all, it was quite a good but busy day. 

Ending the week on a high note

On Friday, things went a little different than usual. As Flora was driving us around, Francios suggested that we walk back to the campus from where we were in the field. The campus was about a kilometer away when we stopped and started the walk on this cold morning. 

We made it back safely to the campus without, unfortunately, seeing any animals except for a few birds including the African Stone Chat. At around 10:30 we did a few revision tests on the lectures we received during the week.

I loved my week as Camp Manager and for being one to such an awesome group of people as well as outstanding trainers.

Have you ever wanted to drive a game viewer in the African bush? Join a Bushwise course and learn how you too can have this much fun in the African bushveld.

#lion #AdvancedRifleHandling #gameranger #bushwise #fieldguide #safariguide #trailsguide #training #guidejobs #tracks #apprenticefieldguide #safari #fieldguiding #tracking #trackandsign #gamedrive #guiding #elephant #fieldguidecourse #fieldguides

In this blog, Bushwise student Heidi Reinheimer tells her story of coming from the USA to South Africa to pursue her dream of working in conservation with African wildlife.

It was two years ago that I decided to come to South Africa for the first time. It was late February of 2020, and I was so ready to visit the place I had been obsessed with my whole life. I came as a conservation intern and did GIS mapping and research on a pride of African lions in the Rietspruit Game Reserve. 

Six weeks in, however, as we all know, the whole world imploded as COVID-19 hit and shut down the lodge I was staying in. Heartbroken, I made my way back to the USA. I was on the verge of never wanting to leave South Africa by the time COVID-19 hit so when I was back in the States, it was hard to not imagine coming back.

I tried to make it work and be happy starting a new career in the USA, but South Africa was always there in the back of my mind. And so I made it my mission to save up enough money and do a Bushwise course and find a way to make a career in the bush. 

During my internship I had become rather close to a few of the guides at the lodge where I was based. I remember the conversations we had and how I had promised them that I would come back from the USA to South Africa and try to be a safari guide one day as well. They were the ones that spoke so highly of Bushwise that there was never a question in my mind about where I would end up going to be trained as a guide when I made it back  from the USA to South Africa. 

I would sit at the back of the safari car and all my education in animal science and ecology would spring to  mind and I would wish I could be the person sitting at the front of the car speaking to people and spreading awareness about conservation and the natural world around us. 

I have a lot of experience working in conservation – ranging from oil spill reclamation to animal behavioural studies. I loved the research work, but I had begun to realise that to make a broader difference in the world, education was the key. People want to be educated in a way that is both interesting and entertaining – which will  help them to form strong personal connections and opinions about nature. 

I saw countless educators attempt to teach the world about our climate issues and the importance of ecology, but there was a certain zest and passion that I had only found in the South African bush through the safari guides I met along the way. Even though my research did make a difference and even assisted with winning an environmental lawsuit, I wanted to be in the field working directly with people. 

This always makes me laugh now because originally, I had gotten into animal science to get away from people, but soon realised that people are what is really at the centre of today’s issues. I’ve come a long way from – now, I love every aspect of being around people, I just had to be in the right environment. 

So far, I have not regretted a single moment of it. Even though it’s only our first semester we have already done everything from driving assessments to running our own game drives, from nature classes to first aid. Learning everything from geology, ecology, weather and climate, and biomes. 

Getting to immediately use this information out in the bush is so satisfying and motivating – I never want to stop learning. I’m so thankful for the little family we are beginning to form. I can already tell this is going to be an incredible first six months and am already looking forward to our future placements in lodges. 

Just like Heidi making the journey from the USA to South Africa, you could make a major shift in your career and become a safari guide. Apply today to join a Bushwise IFGA Safari Guide Course 6/12 Months.

#bushwise #fieldguide #safariguide #Exam #training #animals #apprenticefieldguide #safari #fieldguiding #Assessments #gamedrive #guiding #fieldguidecourse #studying #fieldguides

As we begin the next Bushwise IFGA Safari Guide course, alumnus Gareth Jones has some words of wisdom as a Bushwise student. Let’s hear his tips and tricks to make the most of your time at Bushwise.

BY Gareth Jones

Like students before me, I’m astounded by how quickly the time passes when you’re out in the sunny African bush. No single day is ever the same. At the end of the course, I thought it best to write up some key tips from a “pro” so that any future students can get the most out of their time here!

Tip 1: Relax, you’ll learn so much more than you thought you could

Before becoming a Bushwise student, I’d never really gone out into the bush and my knowledge of wildlife consisted entirely of the usual suspects – lion, giraffe, elephant, zebra, and a few bits and pieces picked up via the odd David Attenborough documentary playing on the TV. 

If just six months ago you’d have asked me to identify birds by sight and sound, I don’t think I’d have gotten even a single right answer. At first the number of different species seemed incredibly daunting, yet within just a few months, I now feel confident to identify nearly all the usual suspects you’d see while out on a game drive. 

Whilst out in the bush, you get more than enough time to prepare – and chances are you’ll pick things up pretty quickly just from being immersed in the environment around campus. However, I would recommend teaching yourself just one or two calls a night. This way you can fly through things and the slides and sounds exams will be a walk in the park.

Tip 2: Explore your surroundings

Luckily for students, during the day we’re usually given some free time to do as we please. Whether splashing around in the pool, using the campus gym or taking a relaxed walk around the fenceline, you find yourself surrounded by copious amounts of wildlife whether it be botany, birds and, in extremely lucky situations, mammals! 

From woodpeckers to the local elephant population, there will always be new sights and sounds to spot with each one providing a learning opportunity and the ability to grow as a guide.

Tip 3: Take notes

The trainers here at Bushwise have many years of invaluable experience guiding out in the bush. This is why I’d think it’s key to take a small notepad out on drives and walks so you’re able to record any interesting tidbits! 

As a Bushwise student, I’d recommend filling up your notepads with all these tidbits so that you can start to incorporate what you have learnt into your own drives. Whether for jotting down interesting facts you can pass onto guests or gleaming key tips from industry professionals, the notepad is my most valuable tool when out in the bush or around camp.

Tip 4: Enjoy the little things

Whilst on campus, it’s easy to get the idea that your time here will go on forever, unfortunately you quickly realise this isn’t the case. Many students here on campus have taken to writing a small diary or taking a few pictures every day. Despite feeling like a lifetime, your time here will feel indescribably small so make sure you make the most of it! 

Fortunately for those students studying at the Southern African Wildlife College, the Kruger National Park is only a short 10 minute drive making for an amazing weekend destination for all those who want to explore, year long passes are available for purchase to all those who enter the Kruger national park with them paying for themselves after only a few visits.

So relax, take notes, explore and most importantly enjoy yourselves! For anyone who wants to go the extra mile there are plenty of extra courses in the nearby area such as venomous snake handling – including Mozambique Spitting Cobras and Black Mambas – and a trailing course for anyone that wants to follow in Colin Patrick’s – a globally renowned tracker that we were fortunate enough to be trained by – footprints after catching the tracking bug.

As our new course begins at Bushwise, we are already preparing for our January 2023 intake. Apply today to jump-start your field guiding career!

#bushwise #fieldguide #qualification #safariguide #training #apprenticefieldguide #safari #fieldguiding #Assessments #gamedrive #guiding #fieldguidecourse #studying

BY Brody Merles, Bushwise graduate

Camp manager blogs are written by our current students who each get a chance to lead and manage a group (of their fellow field guide students) for a period of one week.

I could almost smell the nervousness of my peers coming into one of the most important weeks of all our lives. It was finally the week we had all been working so hard towards, practical assessment week! It was finally upon us after a well needed off-week, which I’m completely honest probably should have been spent glued to a good book on animals of the Savanna biome. 

Instead, it was spent perusing the tree lines of Kruger National Park for any kind of fascinating life we could find – learning is so much more fun when it’s done practically! It was a week filled with excitement.

One-by-one, we all gave our best versions of a game drive that would hopefully blow the beards off our assessors’ faces (well,  at least my assessor’s magnificent beard) and one-by-one we were nailing it! My personal game drive ended up being the most fun I’ve ever had. Probably because I decided that morning that as long as I have fun and enjoy what I’m doing all my guests can feed off that positive energy and have a blast. 

This past week turned out to be a very productive one and has given me a completely different view of myself by showing me that I can actually achieve my goals and dreams. This week has also done wonders for my self-confidence (possibly a little too much, but hey let me have this one).  

All my friends that played a massive role in getting me to this point also have made gigantic leaps in their own ways, which really does give me that warm fuzzy feeling inside. It feels like we’re a big happy Bushwise family, even once we’re Bushwise graduates.

One of the most crucial lessons I’ve learnt, not only over the course of this week but the entire course thus far, is that everyone is different in their own way. This really means that we bring a different perspective to the overall work space. Instead of avoiding these perspectives, ideas or personalities, we should rather incorporate everyone’s personality into the family dynamics (dysfunctional, weird and crazy aspects as well). 

I found out I really enjoyed trying to get a chuckle out of the trainers with a well-timed joke here and there, whether it be a joke for Darryn or asking Francois a pointless question just to see the funny faces he would pull. Riaan was a gold mine of jokes that were carefully hidden by his professionalism. The dynamic personalities of everyone around me made for the best five and a half months of my life.

As the last day of being around these people and new found friends fast approaches, I have been feeling conflicted with my emotions. I look forward to being home with my family and friends, but then the realisation of leaving all these new found friends leaves me wanting to relive the last half a year over and over again. 

All this time I thought I was doing this course to become a Bushwise graduate and qualified Field Guide. I never thought I would end up leaving with so much more than just a qualification. I’m leaving with the experience of a lifetime, filled with memories with some of the most incredible and amazing people. 

In closing, for anyone that may be on the fence about whether the leap or not, it’s worth it. I can assure you that it is without a doubt worth it. 

I can’t emphasise how invaluable this journey has been for me. Yes, it has been a lot of work and it has been stressful at times. But it’s been worth it for this feeling of triumph at and the friends made along the way. And of course because of the beautiful sunrises and sunsets, and the incredible animals we got to see.

Wouldn’t it be great if you never worked another day in your life? Through a career in field guiding, this could be you. Apply today to join Bushwise and start your wild career journey.

#bushwise #qualification #safariguide #animals #tracks #apprenticefieldguide #safari #wilddogs #tracking #trackandsign #fieldguidecourse

Bushwise IFGA Safari Guide students forge their own game paths as they grow in their careers. Elmar Kleinhans shares his experience in the last few weeks of our six-month course. 

It was the last stretch of the course with only three weeks left before everyone headed off on their separate ‘game paths’ in the African bushveld.

With students doing drive assessments (our last assessment before becoming an Apprentice Field Guides), the stress and tension levels were high. In these drive assessments we must demonstrate all the things we have learned and experienced throughout the last five months. Things like how animals behave in their natural environment, how different plants can be used for many medical uses, and the different types of birds and how to identify them. 

We must put this vast knowledge into a three-hour game drive that is meant to be entertaining and enjoyable for our ‘guests’ and show them how we guide. It creates a lot of stress for us students, but it also makes it fun and interesting .

Once we’ve completed our practical assessment drive, along with our written assessment, we’ve earned the qualification of CATHSSETA Apprentice Field Guide. The next step is to prepare ourselves to fire a .375- calibre bolt action rifle in Advanced Rifle Handling (ARH). This step is very important for when we want to trail guide in the future. 

This is not an easy task as the calibre is big and packs a punch, while the rifle itself is very heavy, and it seems to grow heavier as you practise shooting at targets. We go through a few exercises that get cumulatively harder and harder. The last and hardest one is the lion charge because the lion target moves at a very fast speed (still much slower than a real lion), which puts a lot of pressure on the shooter as it gets closer and closer to you. At the end of the day, my arm was quite sore and weak after holding that rifle for so many hours.

Following our ARH qualification, the fun really begins. This is where we will experience the African bushveld from a different angle, not from the vehicle, but rather on foot. This training prepares us to earn our Apprentice Trails Guide qualification one day, through Bushwise and Lowveld Trails Co. 

During this training, we work to observe animals on foot without altering the animal’s behaviour in their natural habitat. We experience so much in the few days when we are out on foot in the bush between all the trees, insects and animals. And it’s amazing to look for animals and see how they act in the natural environment without a vehicle engine roaring.

After all of the intensity and excitement of these activities, we spent a day in Kruger National Park with our fellow students. There we can just enjoy a relaxing day in the African bushveld, talking about all of our shared experiences, memories, what we’ve achieved and where we’ve been placed. 

We head to graduation where we met other Bushwise students at our annual prize giving ceremony, and we got to know them and share our experiences and feelings about the course over the last six months. We had a lot of laughs together that evening.

After all that, the end of the Bushwise course is slowly crawling closer and closer as we reach a turn in our game paths. And it’s sad that the course is coming to an end, but I’m glad that I joined the course and I’m going to miss everyone at the end of the course when we all say goodbye to each other and everyone going their separate ways.

Find yourself immersed in the African bushveld soon, by applying for a Bushwise course. You could be walking down a game path soon, just like Elmar!

#gameranger #bushwise #fieldguide #safariguide #apprenticefieldguide #safari #fieldguiding #gamedrive #fieldguidecourse #studying #fieldguides

Bushwise trainer Wayne Lubbe is based at our Mahlahla campus, near the Greater Makalali Game Reserve. In this post he tells his story of growing from a field guide himself, into the field guide trainer he is today!

Ever since I can remember, I’ve had this internal desire to be close to nature. So back in 2010 I traded my office job in Johannesburg to pursue a job with ever-changing sunrises and sunsets. I enrolled in a field guide training course with a training company in the northern-most parts of KwaZulu Natal, a province of South Africa. 

My training was divided into six months of theory-based training and six months of practical training. My time there was full of adventures and countless hours of learning about the African fauna and flora, which is the same as what Bushwise students experience now. After completing my studies in 2011, I got an opportunity to work as an apprentice guide on a private game reserve just outside Hoedspruit called Kapama. 

On this reserve, I learnt to lead and guide guests, and to see things through the guests’ eyes. This was done in open game viewers and on foot as a back-up trails guide. I loved working in nature and exploring the great outdoors. I’ve managed to find and live out my passion as a true nature ambassador.

After five years, my time on Kapama came to an end. I wanted to explore the industry a bit and got an opportunity to work as trails guide at Elephants Plains in the Sabi Sands game reserve. There, I focused mainly on walks, and exploring the fauna and flora with guests on foot. I very quickly had plenty of animal encounters and countless hours on foot as a walking guide. This was also when I discovered a hidden passion for wildlife photography, and soon I purchased my very first DSLR camera.

In 2017, I changed locations and worked at Madikwe in Northwest Province on South Africa’s border with Botswana. At Madikwe, I worked as a field guide, trails guide, and later as an intern guide trainer and mentor for young field guides doing their practical training. My purpose was to develop interns so that they have a vast knowledge of the environment, and are driven by a passion for guiding. I was dedicated to teaching young people about our extraordinary natural heritage and inspiring the students to do their part to protect it. 

It was also at Madikwe Safari Lodge that I met Byron Ross, field guide trainer, who did our mentorship training with his company. Byron’s influence on me was instrumental; he is a true mentor and someone I will always look up to and aspire to be like.

After 11 years of guiding, I decided to focus my attention on the training of field guides on a full-time basis with an opportunity that was presented to me by Bushwise. I joined the team in February 2022, as a field guide trainer. 

Bushwise supports the professional growth of its trainers, and so I began studying to write my IFGA Safari guide exam and to register for my professional trails guiding qualification. I was also determined to get my SKS (Birding) qualification as I am a passionate and keen birder. My purpose at Bushwise is to share my knowledge and experience that I have acquired over the past decade with students young and old, and to help each of them to find their individual niche in this extraordinary field.

It is still early days for me as a trainer, but the days have been full of adventures since joining Bushwise. I honestly love being able to see the joy and personal growth from each of the different students as they live the campus life to the full, just as I did from my training days.

Train with the best of the best, like Bushwise trainer Wayne on our Mahlahla campus, or at our Greater Kruger campus. Apply today and start your field guide career.

#gameranger #bushwise #fieldguide #qualification #safariguide #trailsguide #training #apprenticefieldguide #safari #fieldguidetrainer #fieldguiding #gamedrive #guiding #fieldguidecourse #fieldguides

BY: Luke Potterton

Camp manager blogs are written by our current students who each get a chance to lead and manage a group (of their fellow students) for a period of one week.

Living in the bush is an amazing and unique experience, there is always something to be learnt. Whether it’s about yourself or the environment in which you live in. I find that when I am in nature, I am at my calmest, I am able to reflect on who I am and what I want to achieve in the future.

I have gone from living in the city of Cape Town to living in the middle of the bush, African savannah, in Limpopo, and going on game drives every day learning about every single aspect of the bush, whether it is learning about the mammals, trees, reptiles and even the insects.

When I started at Bushwise, I did not know what to expect. I was asking myself questions like, what will the other students be like? What are the trainers going to be like? And will I not get tired of the bush since I will be there 24/7?

Now that we are coming to an end of the course, I have the answers to these questions. From day one I have enjoyed every single minute at Bushwise, even though I have to admit that waking up at 5am nearly every morning does take some getting used to. The people I have met on this course have become family, although we may not always get along. 

At the end of the day, these people are the only other people who went through the same experience as me and we will always have one another’s backs. I have made some great friendships that I am sure will last for a lifetime. 

By being at Bushwise I have met many unique characters and people from different cultures. I thoroughly enjoy learning about where people come from and learning about their cultures. The training at Bushwise has been remarkable and the trainers have created good relationships with every student and are able to provide the support and structure needed from students.

While being at Bushwise, I have learnt that it’s impossible to get bored of the bush; every day is a unique experience and I always seem to learn something while I’m out here. I have learnt that no matter how different one animal or species might be, they are all connected in one way or another.

I have done things in the past six months that I would never think I would do in my whole life. From assisting in conservation to learning to safely handle rifles.

Seeing conservation in action was a truly special and unique experience. Not many people in their lifetime will have the opportunity to assist reserve management with their projects. We got to see big game animals up close and personal, in a way I couldn’t otherwise imagine. Being able to do this was truly a humbling experience and puts the beauty of nature into perspective.

As I reflect on where I was in January and where I am now, I am amazed by the amount I have grown personally and the knowledge I have attained while attending Bushwise. When we were initially told the course itinerary and what we were going to be doing throughout the course, it felt rather stressful. I thought I would definitely not be able to learn all the trees as well as the birds in the area. However, now as I reflect on the amount I have learnt, it is truly astounding. 

Does living in the African savannah, learning all about its wildlife, sound like an amazing experience to you? Follow Luke’s footsteps and apply today to join a Bushwise course.

#gameranger #bushwise #fieldguide #qualification #safariguide #trailsguide #astronomy #safari #fieldguidetrainer #fieldguiding #gamedrive #guiding #fieldguidecourse #studying #fieldguides

BY Juandre Grobler, Bushwise field guide student

Camp manager blogs are written by our current students who each get a chance to lead and manage a group (of their fellow field guide students) for a period of one week.

When I first arrived at Bushwise I was nervous and didn’t know what to expect. I was just out of school and suddenly taking this big step into adulthood. For an introvert like myself, it’s extremely difficult to meet new people and make friends. Being surrounded by new field guide students and trainers in a whole new area far from home was very overwhelming.

From the start, the trainers were all very generous and helpful. I could easily talk to them, and they are understanding. With all this stress and pressure, they introduced us to our campus and made us feel at home even though we were far from our own. We started off with extremely fun and entertaining activities like a snake lecture (and handling)  and experienced our very first game drive with Bushwise.

Track and sign was my favourite activity by far. It’s all about understanding what happened at a certain spot and creating a story, and thinking like an animal. It’s an amazing experience and to get a level for it felt pretty satisfying. 

I was totally amazed to see Colin Patrick and his dog Koda in action and how well mannered and trained she is. Alongside the fun of the practical experience, we worked through the theory. It’s a lot of work, which scared us at first, but with the support of our trainers we all passed our exams with flying colours. 

During my time here as a field guide student, I have learned a lot of things. How to safely and responsibly use a rifle as a trails guide. How to drive a 2.5-tonne vehicle up and down mountains with ease, while keeping all of my guests safe and comfortable. How to professionally serve guests and be positive even if I’m stressed or tired. There are so many things that I learned– both for the industry and for my personal life. You definitely get to look at life in a different way. 

In our free time, we still got up to a lot, like getting rid of a wasps’ nest that caused an outage in one of the rooms. Listening to music and doing exercises in front of someone’s room without even realising they were sleeping. Searching and using our skills in tracking to find a kill from a leopard. And even though we all come from different histories and lives, we all come together as one big family and sit around the fire at night and share our stories. What an experience.

The staff are definitely the heart of Bushwise. The amount of advice and support they give us is inexplicable. They treat us as friends and shape our guiding characters. Without them, I don’t think this campus would be the way that it is. You can truly see that they have a passion for what they are doing and that they really care for students. They know when to be friends, and when to be professional. Rose, Pulane, Iris and Philip are kind people that you want to be friends with as they look after us and campus. With our time as students on Bushwise coming closer to an end, it’s beginning to feel sad here as this place has grown on us. 

I would recommend Bushwise to anyone who would want to be in the industry. At first it’s scary, but you soon become a family and meet amazing people. You also learn a lot of things in a short time and doing this course is worth every cent. 

From new graduate to field guide student – does this sound like you? Chat with us and start your field guide journey!

#bushwise #fieldguide #qualification #safariguide #safari #fieldguiding #fieldguidecourse #studying #fieldguides

BY Jordan Fourie, current Bushwise student

Camp manager blogs are written by our current students who each get a chance to lead and manage a group (of their fellow students) for a period of one week.

What does Bushwise mean? Is it for a certificate that says, “you are a legal field guide” or is it just to learn about the bush and to become, in a sense, “bush wise”?

My Bushwise journey started out rough. Just before I was supposed to arrive on campus, I tested positive for COVID-19. My parents and I were distraught; we had just travelled 11 hours the day before only to find that I was not able to join my fellow students on campus. Postponing my course date would have caused more fees for my parents and I. Instead, the Bushwise staff went out of their way to find me comfortable accommodation and allowed me to start in a unique way, by quarantining first. I will always be grateful for that. 

That week was confusing for me. I had absolutely no symptoms, so it was as if I was just living a normal week. Being alone was great because I still Zoom-called into activities and I had one of the Bushwise staff to check up on me every now and then. That really showed me how important we students are to the Bushwise staff.

The Wednesday evening after my quarantining and negative test result, I finally joined campus. Being the only student to not be there from the start was hard, and I felt like an outsider. But the students and the trainers made me feel welcome and I slowly started to feel like a member of the Bushwise family. 

Studying came easy to me which was surprising because I was not very good with marks in high school, I was extremely nervous about the theory part of Bushwise. However, getting full marks for my first test took that fear away! I was in my element, having trainers that made it fun and interactive made studying that much easier.

I made major improvements in my driving skills as well. From getting used to the vehicles to being able to do a proper guided experience, I improved over time. Obviously I still have improvements to make, but I am getting there and that’s what matters. 

On my last practice drive, I encountered South Africa’s giant, the African elephant. While I have a healthy respect for animals, I‘m genuinely not afraid of any animal. However, being in front of a beautiful majestic elephant still sends shivers through my entire body! 

No matter who you are, whether you have no fear of anything, when an animal bigger than your vehicle stands in front of you, you become a mouse, powerless compared to it. Thankfully, this interaction (as with our other elephant observations) was peaceful and the elephant didn’t mind our presence.

So, to answer my question in the beginning, I think Bushwise is those things but also something else entirely. Yes, it includes becoming a legal guide, and yes, it’s helped me start to fully understand nature. But at the end of the day that is not all Bushwise is about. 

To me, Bushwise is a family and the experience is about the journey. As a student, you’re like the little sibling that needs to be protected but not held back, to grow as a person, to come out of your shell, and to learn how to act in certain situations. It’s about the memories we make along the way and developing a passion for nature. 

Through Bushwise we can become guides that make an impact on others, to help nature regrow and survive. If we don’t, the next generation won’t be able to see and experience the wildlife we have today. 

In David Attenborough’s words, “The fact is that no species has ever had such wholesale control over everything on earth, living or dead, as we now have. That lays upon us, whether we like it or not, an awesome responsibility. In our hands now lies not only our own future but that of all other living creatures with whom we share the earth.”

Help protect our natural world for the next generation by starting a career as a field guide. Apply today to join a Bushwise course.

#bushwise #safariguide #davidattenborough #apprenticefieldguide #safari #gamedrive #elephant #fieldguidecourse