Practical Maintenance in Wilderness Nature Park

YOUR WORK

You will help the Rangers in the maintenance of waterways, wetlands and beaches, as well as repairing and maintaining the tourist accommodation. There are several invasive alien plant species that need to be removed regularly and this is done manually with rare use of herbicides.
You'll go on regular patrols to check the park property condition - this is mainly done at weekends and you may be required to work 2 or 3 weekends in a 3-month period, taking days off during the week in lieu.
Maintenance and replacement of fences around dune systems to encourage rehabilitation, as well as around Park boundaries and dwellings.
Help will also be required with administration as well as with other aspects of the many facilities on site.
Other miscellaneous tasks may include sea-horse rescue in the lagoons after breaching of the river mouths into the ocean.
Observing and helping the Rangers combat illegal fishing, whether accidental or through poaching, and the effects that it has on the Nature Park habitats.
You would also help to ensure that the waterways and trails remain free of litter and alien vegetation along the shoreline and on public picnic sites.
And generally helping the Wardens in their day-to-day work and in educating the public on the importance of protecting the environment.
The Wilderness plays host to groups of children from over 60 schools who come to the Park on field trips to learn about the environment. Some of your work will including planning, structuring and implementing the children's day out, making it an interesting and exciting learning experience for them. On these days, you may take the children out in Indian-type canoes on the waterways, telling them about the marine life and flora that they encounter. Other aspects of their field trip will include guiding the children on walks and hikes, with the help of the Park Rangers, and again telling them about the different species of flora along the way.

This placement ideals suits practically-minded people who enjoy working outdoors and have a love of the natural environment. Volunteers with general handyman skills are encouraged, and good teamplayers who don't mind getting their hands dirty. This is an all-round placement and would not suit people looking for specific conservation experience or who want to work regularly with flora and fauna.

Tourist facilities in The Wilderness which need care and protection include:

Kingfisher Trails and the Malachite Kingfish Hide
The Mole Rat Trail
The Rondevlei Bird Hide
Trekking and hiking trails
Boating facilities

Camping out - note the stone barbecue pit in the bottom left of the photo!

YOUR ACCOMMODATION

Your accommodation will depend on what is available at the time of your placement. You could stay on-site in the Wilderness National Park itself, or your could stay in a house in Rondvlei, which is about 20 or 25 km from the Wilderness. You may have a room to yourself or you may share with other volunteers. This accommodation is remote and previous volunteers have hired a car for periods of time in order to enable them to get into town to socialize and generally to have their independence.

Transport to and from the Wilderness Park will be provided daily.

Food is not provided in this placement so you will need to fend and cook for yourself; however, you will be a given a budget, i.e. money for pay for supplies. You will have regular opportunities to shop for food to replenish your stocks and you can experiment with the different South African brands and types of food that are available.

Quality of food in South Africa is extremely high and very varied and you'll be pleasantly surprised at the wide range of choice on the shelves.

Sitting around a barbecue in peace and quiet while eating, drinking wine and listening to music is a very typical South African pastime and will be one of the things you remember most about your time in South Africa.

TRAVEL:
You have the option to arrange your own flights or we can assist you with your flight arrangements. If you would like us to do this for you, we will liaise with you regarding available flights and dates to suit you. All arrangements for your flight bookings/payments will be fulfilled by Murray Rogers Travel Ltd., ATOL No. 6856. (Read more about Murray Rogers Travel Ltd.) Where possible, we arrange for two or more people to travel on the same flight and we will let you have the names and telephone numbers of other volunteers on your flight, so that you can chat to each other or even meet up before leaving for your placement.
We can also arrange your flight dates to give you additional time at the end of your project for travelling around and sightseeing - this is a fascinating and wondrous country!
Where possible, all flights we arrange for you have changeable return tickets because many of our volunteers choose to extend their stay once they are in their destination country. Changeable return tickets enable you to do so, within the limits of your visa and the level of your air ticket, of course. If you choose to book your own flights, you should endeavour to get a changeable ticket. We meet you at the airport regardless of whether you make your own travel arrangements or not.
VISAS:. In countries where visas or immigration documents are required, we'll send you all the necessary forms and information and make the process very easy for you. You will fly into the Airport in Johannesburg where, stopover time permitting, you will be welcomed by a Travellers representative. She will ensure that your transfer to a flight taking you to George, near Cape Town, is smooth and hassle-free.		In George you will be met by our Manager, Bill terrogate you on English prices, latest UK weather - and Chelsea Football team!