At Sunway Safari we offer disadvantaged children the opportunity to spend 3 days on an educational camping safari in Pilanesberg National Park. This is all made possible through PEN, a non profit company providing basic needs to vulnerable children, adults and the elderly in the Tshwane/Pretoria area of South Africa. The objective of the PEN Pilanesberg trip is to expose disadvantaged children between the ages of 14 and 19 to South Africa’s wildlife, conservation efforts, growing tourism industry and possible career opportunities in guiding, resort management and conservation.
This tour in particular was guided by Sfiso, Joe, Wayne and Mike. We aren’t sure who enjoyed the experience more, them or the children. From the feedback the tour was an all round success with smiles from all parties as these children left the park with incredible wildlife sightings, and more insight surrounding conservation in South Africa.
Mike has shared his experience of the 2020 PEN tour which not only benefits the children but exposes our guides to reality of disadvantaged children and gives them the opportunity to make a small difference.
It was a beautiful Friday morning on the 10th of January 2020 and we were preparing for a PEN educational camping safari, a very good start to the New Year I would say. The PEN trip to Pilanesberg National Park is one of a number of tours that Sunway Operates into the National Parks of South Africa. PEN is an organisation based in Pretoria, South Africa and ensures disadvantaged children, adults and the elderly are provided with their basic needs. The day began with a very warm welcome from the children as we loaded up the Sunway Safari trucks to start our tour. The aim of this tour is to bring these kids closer to nature, educating them about the conservation of our wildlife and environment as well as the importance that tourism provides to conservation and its contribution to the economy of South Africa.
After all the introductions were done it was time to leave the city walls and head to Pilanesberg National Park for our safari tour. We had to drive just over two and a half hours to get there; we passed by mining towns where mainly platinum is mined. We arrived at the national park in the afternoon and in no time we were at our campsite. We were greeted by the calls of starlings and the fury sight of the Chacma baboons. We immediately felt warmly welcomed in the bush. We enjoyed a hearty lunch together and spent some time in the pool, relaxing after the long drive. Just after 4, we ventured off further into the bush to enjoy a long anticipated afternoon game drive that could possibly promise anything from the small animals to the big five. Everyone was excited and all eyes and ears were alert and looking for any form of wildlife.
The kids were enjoying the guided experience provided by Sfiso, Joe, Wayne and myself Mike, they learned a lot about nature as well as the ethics and enjoyment of being a guide. We were spoiled by the majestic sightings of elephants, it still remains fascinating how the largest land mammal can blend into the bush and be so easily overlooked by the untrained eye. Sharing our knowledge with these children we could see the enjoyment they were getting from learning new things. They asked so many questions and the more we answered the more they understood the environment around them. Plants also proved of interest, Mountain Aloe, Cape Chestnut and many more were on the list, some even new to us guides. Later on into our drive we were fortunate enough to see a male lion walking in the road, right in front of us, the kids couldn’t believe their eyes. A herd of wildebeest roughly 400m away caught the smell of the lion and not long after spotted him. It shows the advantage prey have over predator as the wildebeest made sure to create some distance. Our first day came to an end at a lovely waterhole while watching hippo emerge to go on their nightly graze. After dinner everyone faded to their tents for a well-deserved rest.
Our second day started with an early wake up and light breakfast followed by a game drive as we greeted the sun on the horizon. We were in awe when we spotted our third member of the big five, the much appreciated white Rhino. This brought us too many more topics of nature and conservation. Making an effort to explain the reasons and impact of poaching especially on rhinoceros and the dangers it holds for the populations and for the people who protect them intensively. We had loads of fun trying to distinguishing the differences between black and white rhino. We continued our game drive near the dam which was the main attraction for predators. A pride of lions revealed themselves which consisted of 4 females and 2 cubs. The kid’s excitement grew the more they learned about these cats and their activity during night and day.
We finished the day off with motivational and informative talks that kept the kids captivated and hopefully drawing them in to pursue a career in guiding or conservation one day. While we had our talks we were taken aback to see how many questions were asked and the enthusiasm they showed toward the tourism industry and its positive contribution towards conservation. Guiding is more than just creating a guided experience it is showing responsibility towards conservation and making the guests who visit our conservation areas aware of the different impacts and involvement people have on nature.
Our last day was really exciting for everyone when one of the park’s leading conservationists invited us to a lecture, to explain and share with us the day to day running of the park. He explained how they identify and control alien plant species. He touched on the topic of the negative effects poaching has on the park and how they try to control it, however it is a difficult topic to keep short and sweet. He also explained the importance of preserving what we have especially our endangered species, impacts of pollution on our water systems and mass littering in our oceans. He elaborated on the quarantine area where animals that come in are monitored and rehabilitated before they are released into the park.
After our lecture we headed back to camp and we started our journey back home. We ended our tour safely where it all began in Pretoria. The kids were sad to see us leave but grateful for the experience they had.