Volunteering at The Darwin Primate Group: Photos by Leanne Barnes, Johanna Andreasson, Molly Mouland, Cheryl Foster and Karin Saks.
Activities
DARWIN PRIMATE GROUP:
Volunteer information:
REGISTERED NON PROFIT ORGANISATION - 059-587-NPO
http://www.darwinprimategroup.blogspot.com/
We have two volunteer programs. One of them is for one week and includes an educational view on primate behaviour, a visit to our local community, video material, slide shows, anti-poaching hikes and beautiful scenic walks to a seal colony, The Salt river, a lunch at a restaurant overlooking the sea and rocks where dolphins and whales frequent and a visit to our local beaches.
See the volunteer photos to get an idea of the exquisite landscapes in this area which you will visit. For this one week program, please contact us for more info at: primates.south.africa@gmail.com.
The long program is outlined below:
As a volunteer you are a part of our organization. By working you will have a learning experience with all daily routines at a sanctuary.
Our Accommodation: 2 rooms in a rustic farmhouse (shared with us) with one bathroom, kitchen, workshops etc. Situated on 17 hectares of indigenous forest - and a gorge leading to the Salt River - in The Crags near Plettenberg Bay - one of South Africa's most sought after tourist destinations.
- At the moment this means room for 4 volunteers maximum.
- Bedding can be provided but would prefer volunteers to bring a sleeping bag if possible.
- Laundry will be done once a week:
- Meals. We include one communal meal - breakfast - in the program costs. Luxury food items you will need to buy yourself. Volunteers will need to buy their own food for lunch and dinner if this is wanted as well. Volunteers have full access to the kitchen to help themselves when needed. Meals around the fireplace in the forest at night on request and when weather permits.
- Internet access 6 pm - 7 pm every night – this is dependant on airtime which is bought by volunteers. We have no landline.
- We will fetch volunteers from George airport which is a 2 hour drive from us. We will take them back on their departure too. Petrol expenses will be considered as extra costs. If you arrive at Port Elizabeth airport, please catch the coach to Plettenberg Bay where we will fetch you.
- We will take volunteers into Plett to shop once a week.
- Car hire available in Plett and George . This includes 100km - 200km free per day.
ELECTRICITY: Due to the risk of our monkeys being electrocuted on the pylon here, we have cut off our traditional electricity supply and rely on two solar panels to fuel the computer and gas to cook with. We have boiler to cook water for bathing.
SUMMARY:-Chopping food- Cleaning enclosures- Acting as human enemies to show what humans are capable of. - Collecting branches and insects for monkey food. - Observing integration/socializing from a fair distance while attempting to remain passively non-communicative (to encourage monkeys to mingle with their own kind). - Observing the behaviour of the monkeys here - noting hierarchy changes, vocalizations and their context, the working out of new relationships, each individual’s particular personality and how s/he interacts with everyone else etc.- When monkey mothers are not available, a volunteer may be required to act as surrogate mother for at least 3 months. But it is always in the best interest of the monkeys to choose a surrogate monkey first if possible. - Fetching food from Plettenberg Bay- Monitoring wild troops for male/female ratios, behaviour etc. - Researching what the vervet monkey and chacma baboon eat naturally in this area. - Anti-poaching patrols. - Hikes - The Garden Route where we are based has spectacular scenery and world renowned hikes like the otter trail. We are a few minutes away from various animal awareness exhibition centres for those who seek a hands- on experience with captive wildlife. - Building/maintaining enclosures- Blogging about your activities for our website. - Writing awareness articles about the plight of non human primates in this province - your experiences as a visitor to this country - for our local newspaper. - Fundraising ideas/activities; for example holding an awareness stall at a local flea market every Saturday Morning.
An Average Day during the baby season/summer:
6.00/7.00 am - Babies get bottles first thing after they have been sterilised. (October to February when there may be infants here during the baby season - this is not always the case). Cutting branches and looking for insects to put into monkey enclosures for juveniles, sub adults and adults.
07h00 - 10 am (depending on time of year) Cleaning cages of faeces, dishes and food. (Check faeces for diarrhoea, worms etc. Preparing food , putting out clean water (to be done two/three times a day), and feeding of other animals. - If monitoring baboon troops, it may be necessary to go and look for them early on sunny mornings (6-7am when it is not baby season). This means that someone needs to be at home to care for the monkeys who need to know there is a protector around in the absence of a functional monkey adult and to exhibit a warning when/if any predators/enemies arrive. The appearance of an eagle, snake, strange dog or strange human offers an opportunity to show the monkeys that these are potential enemies.
08h00/9 - Breakfast continental style. If all are up and willing, it is nice to discuss the day's activities during a communal breakfast.
10h00 - 13h00 Continue with feeding if not complete, check for injuries or any discomfort with casualties if there are any here needing nursing. Karin checks for any signs of illness amongst the troop every morning. Washing blankets. While some of us clean cages, the monkeys are taken out to socialize by the full time caretakers of the troop where we will supervise and observe them while bearing the dehumanizing process in mind as much as is possible.
We require volunteers to be passive, turn away and walk away when approached by a monkey so that human/monkey friendships amongst newcomers are discouraged as far as possible. When the wild baboons arrived during the first few months of us forming the rescue monkey troop here, we showed allegiance to our group by giving a warning signal - when necessary - to illustrate to both the baboons and the monkeys that our allegiance lies with the primates here and that "strangers" of any species pose a potential threat to our group. This is the kind of occurrence – a working out of relationships - that could occur in the wild when these two species find themselves in the same territory. The relationship between our monkeys and the wild baboons has developed over the last few years resulting in a reciprocal relationship whereby the baboons have respect for this territory as one that the monkeys have first access to. This process has been carefully, methodically worked out over the years and is exceptional. Documenting behaviour in the troop - who grooms who, who plays with who, who gives the most warning signals, who is aggressive most often, hierarchy, female/male interactions, etc. We have witnessed monkeys and baboons touch many people's lives and have come to understand that the reason for this is our common primate inheritance. Discussing this process – what it means to us, our place within the rest of nature and the species we fight for, is one aspect we will explore. New arrivals need to be carefully integrated into the troop. This can take many months before acceptance by all has been achieved. Ex-pets are particularly difficult and require much observation. (The orphans and injured at home need to be monitored 24 hours a day and are always the first priority.)
13h00 - 14h00 Lunch prepared by volunteers if hungry. The kitchen is yours to use whenever you please. Because many have individual eating habits we have found it more practical to work this way.14h00 - 17h00 Afternoon programmes vary from building new enclosures, maintaining old ones, vegetables (for animals), checking animals in various stages of rehabilitation programme, collecting food, or sometimes having some time off to go on excursions or just personal time to do whatever volunteers want to do. Depending on the animals needs, socializing and integration may take up much of the afternoon. - Volunteers with ideas on how to dehumanize monkeys/baboons could help by showing the monkeys to be scared of strange humans. I usually do this by using strong body language and making a vervet or baboon warning call.
- Anti-poaching in The Crags area is another option for volunteers to get involved in at this time. The growing snaring problem is claiming lives of much of our local wildlife. - Camping in the forest in tents in Summer; the experience of watching fireflies, listening to the monkeys in the treetops, crickets and other wild ones is unforgettable. Lifts to Nature's Valley beach, Plettenberg Bay, nearby backpackers social gatherings, surrounding animal centers or hikes will be arranged when needed and are an added petrol cost. Hiking at Robberg Nature Reserve where a colony of seals live and caves are found and canoeing down the Keurbooms River are especially rewarding experiences.
19h00 - Dinner around the fire (summer) in the picnic area made by all.
COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES:Visit a family in Kurland Village and see the real South Africa - our environmental problems cannot be separated from S.A politics where poverty and unemployment is rife. Creating incentives for our local community to get involved in our work towards a healthier habitat is one of our goals. One example is for volunteers to donate towards a special day where we take a few of the local children to the beach or forest for a few hours. Although these children live close to the sea, many have never seen it before.
TALKS AT LOCAL SCHOOLS:Volunteers able to give talks using our prepared material are much appreciated. Taking local children for a hike through the forest while offering an environmental talk along the way is one way this can be done.
MONITORING WILD TROOPS:- One concern in this program is monitoring what is happening to our wild troops in the area. To get a clear picture of this it would take years of observation but when every volunteer adds their collected data to our information base we can to some extent work out what is happening to local troop structures. Volunteers wanting to concentrate on this activity for more than two days a week will probably need to hire a car and add additional petrol costs to their program budget. Alternatively, we have the monkey troop here undergoing rehabilitation as well as the wild troop of baboons who visit regularly. The interaction between these two species makes is compelling to observe.
DAYS OFF: Let us know in advance which days you would like to have off every week so we can work around that and if you want more than 2 days off, please let us know in advance so we can arrange our duties accordingly. With wildlife and this wild lifestyle, life is often unpredictable and we find ourselves needing to place our focus on whatever is necessary at the time - this is therefore a rough outline at how things are likely to operate in general - anything can happen, for example being called out to speak to a resident with "primate" problems or rescue a vervet from the side of the road, and then the entire day's planning changes!
Questions you may ask:
Is it safe?We live in an area that has an extremely low crime rate, do not lock our cars and have never had any problems here.
What other attractions are there?We live along the Garden Route, one of South Africa's most sought after tourist areas where a great variety of activities are offered. Stormsriver is 25 kilometres away.Plettenberg Bay is 20kms away. Knysna is 50 kms away from us. To find out more about the Garden Route and its many attractions, we advise you to look up "garden route" on Google.
What you will need: You will need to provide your South African embassy with :1. A cover letter from the D.P.G2. Birth Certificate3. Medical Certificate4. Valid passport5. Police Clearance – dependant on your country; you can ask your embassy whether this is necessary. (in the UK, this requires asking your local police station to access information held about you on their computer - this certificate acts a substitute for a police clearance certificate.) VACCINATIONS: updated tetanus and polio injections are the only ones required. Please ask your doctor about covering any eventualities before you travel here. MALARIA: Most of South Africa is malaria free and unless you are planning to travel into a malaria zone you are unlikely to need malaria medication. Anti Malaria medicines are freely available here - as are many effective mosquito repellents - for anyone wanting them. INSURANCE: We do ask that our volunteers take out a policy that covers repatriation in the event of a medical emergency.
CONTACT US FOR COSTS AT: primates.south.africa@gmail.com
Included are accommodation, laundry, lift once a week to Plettenberg Bay and continental breakfast.Extra costs - eg. petrol costs, visits to restaurants, sanctuaries, Kurland Village or any other attraction you may want a lift to.
SPECIAL REDUCED COSTS are available - contact us to enquire.
Please don't hesitate to email and ask any questions at all…
DARWIN PRIMATE GROUP:
Volunteer information:
REGISTERED NON PROFIT ORGANISATION - 059-587-NPO
http://www.darwinprimategroup.blogspot.com/
We have two volunteer programs. One of them is for one week and includes an educational view on primate behaviour, a visit to our local community, video material, slide shows, anti-poaching hikes and beautiful scenic walks to a seal colony, The Salt river, a lunch at a restaurant overlooking the sea and rocks where dolphins and whales frequent and a visit to our local beaches.
See the volunteer photos to get an idea of the exquisite landscapes in this area which you will visit. For this one week program, please contact us for more info at: primates.south.africa@gmail.com.
The long program is outlined below:
As a volunteer you are a part of our organization. By working you will have a learning experience with all daily routines at a sanctuary.
Our Accommodation: 2 rooms in a rustic farmhouse (shared with us) with one bathroom, kitchen, workshops etc. Situated on 17 hectares of indigenous forest - and a gorge leading to the Salt River - in The Crags near Plettenberg Bay - one of South Africa's most sought after tourist destinations.
- At the moment this means room for 4 volunteers maximum.
- Bedding can be provided but would prefer volunteers to bring a sleeping bag if possible.
- Laundry will be done once a week:
- Meals. We include one communal meal - breakfast - in the program costs. Luxury food items you will need to buy yourself. Volunteers will need to buy their own food for lunch and dinner if this is wanted as well. Volunteers have full access to the kitchen to help themselves when needed. Meals around the fireplace in the forest at night on request and when weather permits.
- Internet access 6 pm - 7 pm every night – this is dependant on airtime which is bought by volunteers. We have no landline.
- We will fetch volunteers from George airport which is a 2 hour drive from us. We will take them back on their departure too. Petrol expenses will be considered as extra costs. If you arrive at Port Elizabeth airport, please catch the coach to Plettenberg Bay where we will fetch you.
- We will take volunteers into Plett to shop once a week.
- Car hire available in Plett and George . This includes 100km - 200km free per day.
ELECTRICITY: Due to the risk of our monkeys being electrocuted on the pylon here, we have cut off our traditional electricity supply and rely on two solar panels to fuel the computer and gas to cook with. We have boiler to cook water for bathing.
SUMMARY:-Chopping food- Cleaning enclosures- Acting as human enemies to show what humans are capable of. - Collecting branches and insects for monkey food. - Observing integration/socializing from a fair distance while attempting to remain passively non-communicative (to encourage monkeys to mingle with their own kind). - Observing the behaviour of the monkeys here - noting hierarchy changes, vocalizations and their context, the working out of new relationships, each individual’s particular personality and how s/he interacts with everyone else etc.- When monkey mothers are not available, a volunteer may be required to act as surrogate mother for at least 3 months. But it is always in the best interest of the monkeys to choose a surrogate monkey first if possible. - Fetching food from Plettenberg Bay- Monitoring wild troops for male/female ratios, behaviour etc. - Researching what the vervet monkey and chacma baboon eat naturally in this area. - Anti-poaching patrols. - Hikes - The Garden Route where we are based has spectacular scenery and world renowned hikes like the otter trail. We are a few minutes away from various animal awareness exhibition centres for those who seek a hands- on experience with captive wildlife. - Building/maintaining enclosures- Blogging about your activities for our website. - Writing awareness articles about the plight of non human primates in this province - your experiences as a visitor to this country - for our local newspaper. - Fundraising ideas/activities; for example holding an awareness stall at a local flea market every Saturday Morning.
An Average Day during the baby season/summer:
6.00/7.00 am - Babies get bottles first thing after they have been sterilised. (October to February when there may be infants here during the baby season - this is not always the case). Cutting branches and looking for insects to put into monkey enclosures for juveniles, sub adults and adults.
07h00 - 10 am (depending on time of year) Cleaning cages of faeces, dishes and food. (Check faeces for diarrhoea, worms etc. Preparing food , putting out clean water (to be done two/three times a day), and feeding of other animals. - If monitoring baboon troops, it may be necessary to go and look for them early on sunny mornings (6-7am when it is not baby season). This means that someone needs to be at home to care for the monkeys who need to know there is a protector around in the absence of a functional monkey adult and to exhibit a warning when/if any predators/enemies arrive. The appearance of an eagle, snake, strange dog or strange human offers an opportunity to show the monkeys that these are potential enemies.
08h00/9 - Breakfast continental style. If all are up and willing, it is nice to discuss the day's activities during a communal breakfast.
10h00 - 13h00 Continue with feeding if not complete, check for injuries or any discomfort with casualties if there are any here needing nursing. Karin checks for any signs of illness amongst the troop every morning. Washing blankets. While some of us clean cages, the monkeys are taken out to socialize by the full time caretakers of the troop where we will supervise and observe them while bearing the dehumanizing process in mind as much as is possible.
We require volunteers to be passive, turn away and walk away when approached by a monkey so that human/monkey friendships amongst newcomers are discouraged as far as possible. When the wild baboons arrived during the first few months of us forming the rescue monkey troop here, we showed allegiance to our group by giving a warning signal - when necessary - to illustrate to both the baboons and the monkeys that our allegiance lies with the primates here and that "strangers" of any species pose a potential threat to our group. This is the kind of occurrence – a working out of relationships - that could occur in the wild when these two species find themselves in the same territory. The relationship between our monkeys and the wild baboons has developed over the last few years resulting in a reciprocal relationship whereby the baboons have respect for this territory as one that the monkeys have first access to. This process has been carefully, methodically worked out over the years and is exceptional. Documenting behaviour in the troop - who grooms who, who plays with who, who gives the most warning signals, who is aggressive most often, hierarchy, female/male interactions, etc. We have witnessed monkeys and baboons touch many people's lives and have come to understand that the reason for this is our common primate inheritance. Discussing this process – what it means to us, our place within the rest of nature and the species we fight for, is one aspect we will explore. New arrivals need to be carefully integrated into the troop. This can take many months before acceptance by all has been achieved. Ex-pets are particularly difficult and require much observation. (The orphans and injured at home need to be monitored 24 hours a day and are always the first priority.)
13h00 - 14h00 Lunch prepared by volunteers if hungry. The kitchen is yours to use whenever you please. Because many have individual eating habits we have found it more practical to work this way.14h00 - 17h00 Afternoon programmes vary from building new enclosures, maintaining old ones, vegetables (for animals), checking animals in various stages of rehabilitation programme, collecting food, or sometimes having some time off to go on excursions or just personal time to do whatever volunteers want to do. Depending on the animals needs, socializing and integration may take up much of the afternoon. - Volunteers with ideas on how to dehumanize monkeys/baboons could help by showing the monkeys to be scared of strange humans. I usually do this by using strong body language and making a vervet or baboon warning call.
- Anti-poaching in The Crags area is another option for volunteers to get involved in at this time. The growing snaring problem is claiming lives of much of our local wildlife. - Camping in the forest in tents in Summer; the experience of watching fireflies, listening to the monkeys in the treetops, crickets and other wild ones is unforgettable. Lifts to Nature's Valley beach, Plettenberg Bay, nearby backpackers social gatherings, surrounding animal centers or hikes will be arranged when needed and are an added petrol cost. Hiking at Robberg Nature Reserve where a colony of seals live and caves are found and canoeing down the Keurbooms River are especially rewarding experiences.
19h00 - Dinner around the fire (summer) in the picnic area made by all.
COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES:Visit a family in Kurland Village and see the real South Africa - our environmental problems cannot be separated from S.A politics where poverty and unemployment is rife. Creating incentives for our local community to get involved in our work towards a healthier habitat is one of our goals. One example is for volunteers to donate towards a special day where we take a few of the local children to the beach or forest for a few hours. Although these children live close to the sea, many have never seen it before.
TALKS AT LOCAL SCHOOLS:Volunteers able to give talks using our prepared material are much appreciated. Taking local children for a hike through the forest while offering an environmental talk along the way is one way this can be done.
MONITORING WILD TROOPS:- One concern in this program is monitoring what is happening to our wild troops in the area. To get a clear picture of this it would take years of observation but when every volunteer adds their collected data to our information base we can to some extent work out what is happening to local troop structures. Volunteers wanting to concentrate on this activity for more than two days a week will probably need to hire a car and add additional petrol costs to their program budget. Alternatively, we have the monkey troop here undergoing rehabilitation as well as the wild troop of baboons who visit regularly. The interaction between these two species makes is compelling to observe.
DAYS OFF: Let us know in advance which days you would like to have off every week so we can work around that and if you want more than 2 days off, please let us know in advance so we can arrange our duties accordingly. With wildlife and this wild lifestyle, life is often unpredictable and we find ourselves needing to place our focus on whatever is necessary at the time - this is therefore a rough outline at how things are likely to operate in general - anything can happen, for example being called out to speak to a resident with "primate" problems or rescue a vervet from the side of the road, and then the entire day's planning changes!
Questions you may ask:
Is it safe?We live in an area that has an extremely low crime rate, do not lock our cars and have never had any problems here.
What other attractions are there?We live along the Garden Route, one of South Africa's most sought after tourist areas where a great variety of activities are offered. Stormsriver is 25 kilometres away.Plettenberg Bay is 20kms away. Knysna is 50 kms away from us. To find out more about the Garden Route and its many attractions, we advise you to look up "garden route" on Google.
What you will need: You will need to provide your South African embassy with :1. A cover letter from the D.P.G2. Birth Certificate3. Medical Certificate4. Valid passport5. Police Clearance – dependant on your country; you can ask your embassy whether this is necessary. (in the UK, this requires asking your local police station to access information held about you on their computer - this certificate acts a substitute for a police clearance certificate.) VACCINATIONS: updated tetanus and polio injections are the only ones required. Please ask your doctor about covering any eventualities before you travel here. MALARIA: Most of South Africa is malaria free and unless you are planning to travel into a malaria zone you are unlikely to need malaria medication. Anti Malaria medicines are freely available here - as are many effective mosquito repellents - for anyone wanting them. INSURANCE: We do ask that our volunteers take out a policy that covers repatriation in the event of a medical emergency.
CONTACT US FOR COSTS AT: primates.south.africa@gmail.com
Included are accommodation, laundry, lift once a week to Plettenberg Bay and continental breakfast.Extra costs - eg. petrol costs, visits to restaurants, sanctuaries, Kurland Village or any other attraction you may want a lift to.
SPECIAL REDUCED COSTS are available - contact us to enquire.
Please don't hesitate to email and ask any questions at all…
Our rehab monkeys watching the wild baboons arrive - below.
CANINE COMPANIONS AT THE DPG:
Our three resident rescue canines love having volunteers visit for more often than not they receive lots of love and beach walks. The huskies were rescued from being euthanased when their people immigrated and were unable to find homes for them. Huskies have a high prey drive and if not kept confined are likely to run and may not return. They are also unsuitably designed for our South African climate, with all these factors making them difficult to look after. We are committed to giving these two huskies as much attention as we can which included long beach walks, grooming, feeding and playing.
Tawny is a cross breed and is also a rescue dog with severe health problems. She has an exceptionally gentle friendly disposition.
These three wonderful canines are pictured below with volunteers Leanne and Molly.
photos: Jo Andreasson, Cheryl Foster and Karin Saks.
Tawny is a cross breed and is also a rescue dog with severe health problems. She has an exceptionally gentle friendly disposition.
These three wonderful canines are pictured below with volunteers Leanne and Molly.
photos: Jo Andreasson, Cheryl Foster and Karin Saks.
What our Volunteers have to say:
I recently spent 1 month at DPG and it was by far one of the best ones of my life. Whilst living at DPG I became a proud surrogate mother to a baby baboon ‘Bean’ while he found his feet. This allowed me to get a close look at the social behaviour and close family bonds that both the vervet monkeys and baboons form. Whilst observing and feeding the resident group and observing the local wild group of baboons I was also able to get an insight into primate husbandry and the differing personalities each different individual posses.
Whilst there we also went on an anti-snaring patrol and this allowed me to appreciate how haphazardly snares are created and placed, making them not only deadly to the wildlife it is 'designed' for but also deadly to all wildlife in general.
Due to the location of DPG getting out to take part in different activities and visits including a trip to Addo elephant park and Cape Town was exceptionally easy. We also got to visit the local township to see how the local people live. It was apparent that the people live off exceptionally little and with a bit of education and opportunity they could come to respect, love and help their wildlife.
Living at the DPG opened my eyes to the plight of the primates and other species in South Africa and with little effort there could be a big change as to how some of the country’s most beautiful species are viewed, not as pests but as animals to be treasured.
Getting to know all of the residents of DPG was an honour and I fully intend on returning in the future (if they will have me!). I would definitely recommend volunteering or even showing support however you can, your help could not be more needed or appreciated.
Leanne Barnes
I recently spent a month as a volunteer with the Darwin Primate Group (June 2010). It was an amazing experience to be able to observe the behaviour and interactions of the resident troop of vervets. I was soon able to recognize individual monkeys and their different personalities, and learnt about the troop hierarchy, how they communicate, some of the natural foods they eat, and how newcomers integrate, including how some adult females readily adopt orphan babies.
A wild baboon troop would often visit the farm which also gave the opportunity to study them.
The parallels between primate and human behaviour was fascinating, and it is obvious there is still much to learn about these beautiful, inquisitive, and clever creatures.
I went out on anti-snaring patrols and observed firsthand how the snares can not discriminate between any species of wildlife and/or domestic animals.
We also had the opportunity to visit Kurland village to meet some of the residents, it is clear there is alot of poverty and unemployment, and that to overcome environmental problems the local community needs to be involved, the development of more projects that create incentives and benefits for all need to be investigated.
I would definitely recommend Darwin Primate Project and would love to return some time in the future. Cheryl Foster - New Zealand.
I had a fantastic time staying in the middle of indigenous forest and always surrounded by the troop of Vervet monkies. Whilst at the DPG I spent the majority of my stay watching and observing the monkies, learning about their hierarchical system, how to identify individuals and learning to speak their language. As well as this, there was also feeding, collecting branches, looking for snares and going for some beautiful walks. All in all my four weeks was spent with some amazing animals in a very beautiful country, I just wish I could have stayed longer and would love to go back as soon as I can. Molly Mouland, UK. .
Helping out at the DPG is an experience I will always remember. The staff/ helpers are so welcoming and friendly and you can see how much passion they have for the rescued animals. The baboons and monkeys display their troop instincts, if it wasn't for the work of the DPG this would soon be lost as troops are split up and individuals killed to keep them away from human habitats. I got to experience 'real' South Africa and help a worthy cause. South Africa is a great place to explore and when I visited with my friend we were able to visit various places and the exchange rate was good, meaning that we got real value for money on food, trips and car hire. I would recommend a visit to DPG to volunteer. Nichola Theakstone, UK.
