SOUTH AFRICA FIELD GUIDE COURSE - 28 DAYS
NEAR KRUGER NATIONAL PARK

A 28 day course designed to produce high calibre trained field guides. This month long course is also the perfect opportunity for those with a passion for the bush to learn everything they want to know about the dramatic African environment. The backdrop to this African adventure will be the Riverside Camp, set in its own 9,000 hectare reserve near the Kruger National Park

	Location:	NEAR KRUGER NATIONAL PARK	Dates:	2010 Start Dates: 11 Aug - 7 Sep, 20 Oct - 16 Nov, 24 Nov - 21 Dec. 2011 Start Dates: 14 Jan - 10 Feb, 30 March - 26 April, 25 June - 22 July, 26 Aug - 22 Sept, 10 Nov - 7 Dec
	Fees:	£1,695 - 28 days 2010 rates £2,085 - 28 days 2011 rates	Payment:	30% of course fee is required as a deposit at time of booking – the balance is due 12 weeks before departure
	Reference:	AA009

General Information

This Field Guide Course provides students with everything they need in order to gain the FGASA Level 1 qualification (FGASA is the Field Guide Association of Southern Africa). This is the first step for those wishing to embark on a career as a guide or an ideal way for the enthusiast to expand their knowledge and experience of the African bush. The course is structured to allow students to get the maximum possible practical exposure to their new environment to make the bush their home.  Their time in the bush will be divided between walking and driving based activities. There is a daily lecture and self study time in the evening to provide students with the knowledge base required to make the most of their African adventure.

What is covered during the course:

• Welcome and introduction
• Introduction to guiding in nature
• Creating a guided nature experience
• Geology and soils
• Astronomy
• Weather and climate
• Ecology
• Taxonomy
• Introduction to the biomes of southern Africa
• Botany and grasses
• Vegetation identification
• Arthropods (Insects and relatives)
• Amphibians
• Reptiles
• Fish
• Birds
• Mammals
• Animal behaviour
• Tracks and tracking
• Radio procedures
• Conservation management and historical human habitation
• Habitat management
• Bush camps

Additional Activities

• Basic 4x4 driving skills [not driving lessons, but an opportunity to drive the game viewing vehicle]
• Sleep out in the bush
• Fire Arm theory and practical shooting

Tests, Presentations and Evaluations

• 3 x Written tests
• 2 x Oral presentations
• 2 x Practical evaluations: Walk evaluation, Game drive evaluation

Please note:  A 28-day FGASA Trails Guide Course is also offered for those who have already completed a Level 1 qualification.
Please click on the link below for further information:
Trail Guide FGASA – 28 days 

Those joining this course will gain in-depth knowledge about nature, ecology and wildlife but that is only one aspect of the course.  It is about absorbing nature, learning how to interact with the environment, and tuning yourself into the ecosystems.  It’s about becoming intertwined with the natural environment that sustains us.  Along with learning about wildlife and nature… it is also a cultural interchange for our learners.  The inter-human benefit of living and learning together in the outdoors for 28 days tests one’s social and emotional intelligence skills and provides you with a holistic life experience. It is a bonding experience - in 28 days learners learn about the natural environment, themselves and each other.

Learners who have attended this courses have returned to the “real world” with a different outlook on life.  Some have taken this new outlook into their day-to-day lives and others, inspired by their time, have completely changed their lives and careers.

Typical Daily Itinerary

A typical daily programme at the camp follows a routine of rising early, usually before sunrise, enjoying hot coffee while you listen to the bush waking up and then leaving the camp for an outing into the wilderness.

The outings are extremely flexible and determined by the unpredictability of what is found during the outing in combination with the subjects that have to be covered.  The outing could be a game drive following up on the roar of a lion heard during the night or a walk learning about the plant species occurring in the area.  It could be a walk following fresh elephant tracks, learning how to track the animal and finding it or it could be a game drive to a waterhole where animals come to drink.
  
Learners return to camp in the late morning for a hearty brunch which is followed by a lecture on the subject of the day.  Study and rest time is then followed by afternoon tea and another outing into the wilderness until sunset, if walking, or until well after dark if doing a game drive.

Afternoon outings could include night drives looking for nocturnal animals such as owls, bushbabies and leopards or it could be a walk looking for and learning how to identify interesting birds.  It could be time spent studying the night skies or it could be a time for learners to test their 4x4 driving skills.

It is then back to the camp for dinner, stories around the campfire, discussing the day’s experiences and wondering about tomorrow’s adventures.

The emphasis is on practical day-to-day experiences in the bush.  The daily outings are flexible and may focus on specific subjects such as animal tracks and tracking, birds, plant identification or animal behaviour, or may involve game viewing and learning about the ecosystem in general.

Certification and Accreditation

The following accreditation is optional and is more relevant to those who wish to pursue a career in guiding and become a Safari Guide in Southern Africa.

For course attendees who do not plan to take up field guiding as a career (which is the case for most international learners), then writing and passing the course tests and practical evaluations listed above is sufficient in order to complete the course and recieve a certificate from the course provider.  

For those attendees who do wish to take the officially recognised FGASA certification aspect of the course, they will need to become a paid up annual member of a Southern African association and register for the exam.  If attendees choose this option they must be willing to work hard during their free time and will then, in addition to the tests and evaluations above write the FGASA Level 1 theory exam and do the practical evaluation while on course.  The pass mark for the FGASA theory exam is 75%.

With the Field Guide Courses being accredited by FGASA who have THETA accreditation, this means that the courses meet THETA standards. THETA is the Tourism and Hospitality and Sport Education Training Authority of the South African Government. These are the two bodies responsible for regulating standards within the guide training industry in southern Africa.

For more information regarding further FGASA membership, registration and certification, please contact us for a separate detailed document that you will need.

Location and Environment

The training programmes take place in  a South African bush camp that has access to 9,000 hectares of untamed and stunning African bush. Students will have the opportunity to view and interact with elephant, rhino, lion, cheetah and leopard as well as a huge variety of antelope and bird life.

The accommodation camps are designed to allow students to get up close and personal with their environment. The camps are of uncluttered and authentic game reserve style, and as it is completely unfenced there are occasional nocturnal visitors, especially hyena - hence the sounds of the bush are literally right outside the accommodation!   It also provides a perfect opportunity to practice tracking skills through and around the camp each morning.

Summers in this part of Africa are warm with temperatures ranging from the mid 20's C on cloudy days to the high 30's C on clear days. Occasionally peak temperatures can exceed 40 C.  Rain in the summer tends to be either heavy with short-lived thunder storms or more gentle frontal rain over a longer period.  The winters tend to be dry and mild but with occasional winter showers.

Support

Support and advice is available from the Course Leaders whilst in Africa and from the UK Amanzi Travel Team.
Find out more about Amanzi Travel support.

Orientation

A comprehensive information pack will be sent to all students upon booking their course and further advice and information will be provided via telephone and email before departure. A full orientation will be provided on arrival.

Accommodation and Meals

The training programmes take place in South African bush camps that collectively have access to 66000 hectares of untamed and stunning African bush. The accommodation camps are designed to allow you to get up close and personal with your environment. The camps are uncluttered and authentic game reserve camps. The camps are unfenced allowing the occasional nocturnal visitor. This means the sounds of the bush will literally be right outside your accommodation, it also provides a perfect opportunity to practice your tracking skills through and around the camp each morning.

River Side Camp

The River side Camp is situated on the banks of the Karongwe River in the 9 000 hectare (22 239 acre) Karongwe Game Reserve, to the south-west of the Kruger National Park.  Accommodation is in walk-in safari style tents with shared bathroom facilities.  This camp is a good place for viewing leopard, lion and cheetah as well as elephant and white rhino.

As the camp itself is unfenced, we often have four-legged guests in the camp.  Hyena make nightly patrols of the camp and are often seen by learners who choose to make one of the viewing decks their home for the duration of the course.  Elephant, cheetah and lion have also made appearances on occasion.

Accommodation is in shared walk-in style tents with twin beds.  There are shared washing facilities and a central communal area surrounded by the open decks.  Students have the option to sleep out on the open decks if they are feeling adventurous.  Single room occupancy is supplied on a double rate basis and men and women do not share a tent unless booked as a couple.

Meals

Early morning wake-up     Tea, coffee, biscuits and fresh fruit
Brunch after activity       Cooked breakfast, cereals and fruit
Afternoon tea                 Light snacks
Dinner                           A balanced, warm plated meal (Meat, vegetables and salad)

Getting There

Students should arrange to fly into Johannesburg (OR Tambo) Airport.  From here onward transfer can be made either by road or air. 

Flights from Johannesburg to Eastgate Airport in Hoedspruit are offered by South African Airways with a flight time of approximately one and a quarter hours.  Transfer from Eastgate Airport to the camp by road is about forty-five minutes. 

Road transfers can be arranged from Johannesburg (OR Tambo) Airport to the camp if preferred, the transfer time being five and a half hours.  Transfers to and from Johannesburg Airport can be arranged at a cost of £120 return (subject to change).

Please note that Amanzi travel can arrange the transfers from both Eastgate and Johannesburg airports if requested.

Fees

What is included

• Full support by the teaching staff and guides
• Accommodation and meals
• Lectures, game drives and walks
• Tea, coffee and cordials

What is excluded

• International and domestic flights
• Transfers/transport to and from the camp, before and after the course
• Travel insurance to cover the period of the course (to include cover for repatriation)
• Tourist visas
• Any accommodation before and after the course
• Beverages (beer, ciders, bottled water)
• Personal items, clothes, travel goods etc
• Spending money – for drinks etc
• Laundry (R45 per week, R50 in 2010)
• Kruger National Park Entrance Fee (if applicable)
• FGASA registration, examination and moderation fees (optional)