Anti-Poaching Survival Course (SA Bush)

Following the success of our Bush and Arid Environments Courses, during which attendees gained great awareness of the rich diversity of the African ecology, including the wonder and privilege of being out on foot in game reserves with some of the world’s most beautiful animals, Trueways is proud to support and sponsor serious conservation work in Africa by assisting the work of anti-poaching patrols through our new anti-poaching unit courses.

These courses are ideally suited to those with a sense of responsibility and a craving for adventure. The area of operation will be in the game rich Limpopo Province where over the last year poaching has increased considerably, especially on rhino. By participating in these courses attendees will be directly contributing to African wildlife conservation.

This is a serious course teaching about all aspects of poaching from the bush meat trade to the ivory trade and the measures taken to prevent the poachers from killing and mutilating the wildlife.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get up close and personal with the African bush and its wild inhabitants whilst being involved in genuinely useful and important work to conserve and protect some of its most beautiful animals.

No previous experience is required of attendees for this course.

Subjects covered on the course include

Bushcraft and camp craft
Tracking and spoor identification
Animal identification and behaviour
Understanding the poachers and the poaching “industry”
Anti-poaching measures
Anti-poaching patrol procedures
Radio procedures
The art of camouflage
Surveillance (day and night)
Basic and advanced weapons handling
Ambush procedures and layout
Snare identification and removal

Candidates will learn all the basics and then take part in real life anti-poaching operations. Accommodation will be in wilderness rustic tented fly camp during our time on the game reserve, and in comfortable indoor accommodation for the first and last nights.

The Trueways subsidised price for the course is just £1580.00 per person, which includes all transport within South Africa, meals, accommodations, tuition, training, camp equipment, anti-poaching uniform, and certificate on completion.

Flights (not included in the course price) to and from Johannesburg from London on those dates can be found for £350-£450 return.

Course Conduct
Course attendees will be met at Johannesburg International Airport at the start of the course and spend their first night in comfortable accommodation just North of Johannesburg for introductions, orientation, safety briefings, and a welcome social gathering. The following morning, all will be transferred to a wilderness camp on a big game reserve in the foothills of the Waterberg Mountains in Limpopo Province.
The course will have three phases.

Phase One: Course attendees will receive an intensive introduction to the African bush and its wildlife via lectures, game drives and out on foot in the game reserve with a huge variety of wild animals (including leopard, rhino, giraffe, hyena, antelope, jackal, etc).

Phase Two: Understanding the poachers and how they operate, and the various anti-poaching measures taken to combat them. Learning and practising anti-poaching unit skills, including weapons handling and use, camouflage techniques, surveillance procedures, radio use, snare removal, ambush procedures used by anti-poaching patrols, etc.

Phase Three: Anti-poaching work.

1. Forming a highly visible presence by walking the fences of the game reserves and walking out with wild rhinos.
2. Conducting day and night surveillance, logging vehicle movements and reporting any suspicious activities or obvious poaching attempts to full time anti-poaching teams
3. Identifying and removing any traps or snares which may be laid by poachers

At the end of the course, we will transfer back to our accommodation near Johannesburg for the last night for an end of course debrief, and all attendees will receive a certificate of attendance and other items at an end of course social gathering.

Transfers back to Johannesburg International airport will take place on the morning of the last day at a time suitable for the first flights out.

Important Note on the Use of Weapons
Although course attendees will be given training in handling and using a variety of weapons (hand guns, rifles and shotguns) they will not be acting as an armed patrol at any time. The intention is that attendees should be fully familiar with a variety of weapons for confident and safe handling purposes.

At no time will course attendees be intentionally placed in danger or attempt to undertake the armed response work of full-time and armed anti-poaching units. Nevertheless, we will contribute very meaningfully to their work.

Kit List
Weather Note: During the time of the course, temperatures in Limpopo Province average 30°C during the day, down to around 15°C by night. However, they can get as high as 40°C. Rain showers in late afternoons are a possibility.

Uniform supplied will be a t-shirt, badged short sleeved bush shirt and badged peaked cap.

Camp equipment supplied will include tents, sleeping mat/mattress, sleeping bag, and all cooking gear and cutlery.

Attendees should have the following minimum personal kit:

- Your own sleeping bag is optional
- Lightweight trousers and shorts in muted green or brown colours
- Durable walking boots
- Waterproofs
- A warm layer (fleece or jumper) for the evenings
- Torch or head torch
- Sun-block
- Personal toiletries
- Insect repellent (DEET recommended)
- Water bottle or water bladder
- Any personal medication (Trueways must be informed of any medication or medical issues)

The kit required for this course is minimal, and we suggest you travel light. We operate in areas where there is no electricity supply, therefore batteries should be charged prior to the commencement of the course or adequate supplies brought along. We do not allow portable radios, CD players or any other electronic equipment on the course other than mobile phones.

Travel Essentials
Attendees are strongly advised to take out standard travel insurances covering, at a minimum, medical expense, loss of baggage, damage to or loss of personal property, flight cancellation, loss of deposit arising from cancellations, personal accident and third party liability.

The course is run in an area where malaria is a possibility. We strongly recommend that precautions be taken prior to and during your course. See your GP for any recommended inoculations and anti-malarial prophylaxis as soon as possible.

Further information can be found in the travel section of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office website. See this link.

There will be opportunities for course attendees to visit souvenir shops at some points during the course.