CAMP DIARIES: SPORT AND SPORTS IN THE BUSH – SELATI, 22 FEBRUARY 2012

Each batch of EcoTraining students brings new adventures and challenges and our latest crew at our wilderness camp at Selati will be no exception.  Of the 20 new recruits, half are year students and half are doing the 60 day FGASA Level 1 course, which means they are all on the same initial curriculum. Jenn, the camp coordinator at Selati, tells more:

Once the shorter course finishes, the year course will continue on with studies, giving them additional time to reinforce what they’ve learned and allowing them to delve deeper into the information they were taught in the first two months.  Either way, these guys are in for a challenge, but with such able instructors at all the camps, these students are, as always, in good hands. 

This new group’s keen interest and desire to be here and to learn are apparent right from the get go.  They are mostly South African, with a few students from the UK and Ireland.  While they already share a common interest in the bush, many also bonded immediately through sport.

On their first day here they dug out the volleyball net from where it had been buried in the riverbed during the last storm.  Even though the waters haven’t fully receded, the group is already out hitting the ball around, diving into the shallow water and keeping cool in the heat of the South African sun.  

Within their first week, the group also had a few special encounters, from bumping into the female lions while parked at the watering hole, to tracking an elephant breeding herd.  A recent afternoon drive brought fresh sightings of genet, spotted hyena, and African civet.  A few days ago, several students took a morning off to accompany an instructor on a fishing excursion at the weir, where they were treated to an unofficial fish lecture on site. 

All in all, the new group seems to be settling in just fine. Come back regularly to read about the latest happenings and adventures from Selati!