Itinerary

The itinerary is split between the Wildlife Sanctuary based just out side of Windhoek where you will start the programme with a full induction and learn the basics of animal tracking, and then the final weeks on location at either of these sites:

• 1) NamibRand Nature Reserve  -  track collared free-roaming cheetahs and leopards who we have released back into the wild
• 2) Sandfontein Nature Game Reserve  -  track collared free-roaming cheetahs and leopards who we have released back into the wild and monitor cheetahs in soft release boma
• 3) Solitaire Namib Conservation Centre - track collared free-roaming cheetahs who we have released back into the wild and monitor cheetahs in soft release boma

At the Sanctuary

Mornings

The mornings tend to evolve around maintenance. This might be doing enclosure patrols, checking on fences under the guidance of the staff there. There are always groups of around 15 people so you will be split in to small groups to go about your duties.

While you have to get your hands dirty it is alot of fun and and of course the animals are always a good laugh while you work.

After lunch and a little break, you’ll head back out into the reserve for the exciting afternoon game drive activities which can include Leopard and Cheetah tracking!

You generally volunteer for a six-day week during your time on the programme, with Saturdays being your day off to hang around the pool, relax with a good book or head out on walking trails in and around camp.

• Some activities you could be involved with include:
• Dismantling of old cattle farming fence lines.
• Bush clearing tasks
• Repairing waterholes and old water troughs
• Clearing the land of debris

There will also be opportunities to work at the foundation on the reserve which is responsible for rehabilitating the big cats in the area; activities at the foundation will involve bone collecting within the cheetah camps, putting up new fences, repairing existing fences and installing netting to enclosures.

Afternoons

Afternoons vary but some of the activities you will be involved with include:

Cheetah welfare programme This puts you into direct contact with the Cheetahs at the reserve, and will envolve you entering the rehabilitation enclosures. Naturally you will be supervised at all times and the guide will also teach you about the fantastic work that the foundation does. Every Cheetah is different and they all have individual stories, giving a good insight into what the foundation is looking to achieve. Cheetah tracking and monitoring on foot This involves heading out for game wals with a guide  and the telemetry equipment to locate cheetahs in the area. You’ll walk through the bush for up to 1 hour at a time- every time you do this it is a different experience from the last time so you never really know what you will encounter! The main aim of the walks are to check the cheetahs are in good health and you will have to report your findings.

Feeding the Big Cats This activity involves joining the staff of the foundation on a ‘feeding run’, feeding over 90 of the big cats in the welfare programme. Heading out with the vehicles, you will encounter all sorts of big cats; cheetahs, leopards and lions. Make sure you have your camera with you, because the feeding run will be one of your highlights, gettign really close to some huge cats in the Namibian bush.

Hyena tracking and monitoring on foot - You will head out with a guide and the telemetry equipment to locate hyenas in the area. You’ll walk through the bush for up to 1 hour at a time - every time you venture out is different to the next! The main aim of the walks are to check the hyenas are in good health and to report your findings.

Bushman walk - This activity gives you the chance to learn all about the daily lives, culture and traditions of the disappearing bushman tribes. These people live in harmony with nature so you will be able to master skills such as making rope from plants, lighting a fire with sticks and the innovative man made traps used for hunting.

Tracking the wild dogs - There is also the opportunity for you to get within a close range of a pack of hunting dogs in the reserve. The pack were rescued as puppies when they were only a few days old so they have grown up at the foundation and since released into their 16,000h rehabilitation park.

Sleeping out under the stars! – A unique and very beautiful way to spend a night sleeping out under the stars in one of the dry riverbeds. Weather permitting, you will get to experience this once every 2 weeks - a great way to feel totally at one with nature and will no doubt leave you with memories that last a life time!

The itinerary is flexible dependent upon the needs of the animals and therefore subject to change, but we can promise you plenty of interactions with African Wildlife

Then onto the Carnivore tracking location:

Situated at the edge of the Namib Desert and only 80 km away from Sossusvlei, NamibRand Nature Reserve is a visual and biological gemstone. The 224,000ha reserve is home to an incredible diversity of desert and semi-desert dwelling wildlife and plants and borders both the Namib Naukluft National Park and Kulala Wilderness Reserve. Habitats on the reserve include red sand dunes, rough mountain chains and inselbergs (koppies), opengrasslands and riverines. The latest game censuses indicated an abundance of approximately 3,200 oryx and 12,400 springbok on the reserve.

Research on site may include:

•  VHF and GPS tracking of released cheetah and leopard
•  Sightings database project
•  Scat collection project
•  Night observations
•  Bird (raptor) monitoring
•  Road kill survey
•  Data entry and analysis

What a Typical day looks like

On most days volunteers will get up at dawn for a quick breakfast; to increase the chance of observing the carnivores in the field it is crucial toget started as early as possible. Based on the carnivores’ movements, the specific monitoring needs and prevailing weather conditions, a decision will be made as to which cheetahs or leopards will be tracked during the day. Usually lunch is taken in the field (sandwiches) but depending on the day’s events the group may return to base around noon for cooking. Field work is resumed in the afternoons and then the group returns to camp in the late afternoon/early evening for cooking, resting and showering. 

Sample Itinerary

• Day 1: Arrival at the Wildlife Sanctuary and induction programme
• Day 2-8: Wildlife Sanctuary research programme, as a detailed above

Introduction to conservation in Namibia, research techniques and large carnivore management

• Day 9: Transfer off site to one of the 3 locations.
• Day 10-19:Research programme, including:

•     VHF and GPS tracking of released cheetah and leopard
•     Night observations
•     Sightings database project
•     Scat collection project
•     Bird (raptor) monitoring
•     Road kill survey
•     Data collection, entry, analysis and interpretation
• Day 20: Transfer to Wildlife Sanctuary
• Day 21: Departure or transfer to other project programme