Elephants are the focus of today's blog and we are delighted to be able to bring you an update from a project site from the volunteers themselves! The Deserts Elephants In Namibia project is a popular trip and it allows you to search for and see the Elephant in its natural home of the sparse deserts of Namibia, whilst helping to ensure the local communities can live alongside the animals in harmony. However you don’t have to take our word for it! Take a look at the testimonials from previous volunteers on the project below!
“We start the day in bed with coffee which I obviously want to drink. Building a wall seems simple but collecting the heavy rocks is not as easy, especially in the African sun. However it made me realize how we take things for granted. It also opened a window to experience the life people in Africa live, especially when it’s very hot and there is only little water.
It’s good to experience why everything in Africa is Hakuna matata(no problems) when the vehicle broke, our popular Adolf drove back to drove back to the base camp to get parts and fixed it all on the same day.”
Dr Rajesh Dasi
“Today was our second day of patrol. So far we’ve seen elephants on both patrol days and it has been AMAZING! Yesterday afternoon we saw Tsaurab, one of the bulls in one herd. He was so close we heard the water sloshing as he was drinking!
So far the trip has been brilliant with a great group of people, although a bit much some of the time!!! Waking up as the sun rises with tea and going to bed under the stars is beautiful.
This afternoon we went to find the herd again because one of the babies had fallen in a septic tank. Thankfully it was just a bit smelly. We tracked the herd for a while. I watched them wander off to find more water with the Brandberg Mountain as the background. It was so beautiful! This trip has been such an awesome experience. I wish I could stay for longer but I will definitely be back.”
Hannah
“I expected to see stunning landscapes. And yes, I did. I expected to work pretty hard. And it was actually even harder than I expected it to be, but I liked it. I expected to track wildlife and have the time to observe elephants in the desert, and yes we did. And with a guide like Chris, you get answers to questions you never dared to ask. What I honestly did not expect is that this is also a stunning wild and interesting experience in sharing time (24/7) with people who were total strangers only 10 days ago. You eat with them, cook with them, sleep next to them and get to know them in a way that usually takes weeks or months – here it all happens within a couple days.”
Tina
“Today is Wednesday of “patrol week”. We got up early to head out and drove for 6+ hours to get to our final campsite – seeing kudu, oryx, Meerkat and herds of Zebra on the way. (Sadly no elephants or Rhino today - yet) Incredible changing landscapes kept us occupied the rest of the day.
Yesterday near the White Lady Lodge we saw and tracked the “Mama Africa” herd, which had just had a scare when one of the young calves had fallen into a drain. After finding and following the herd we determined that it was okay and back with the herd.(Thank goodness!)
I’ve really enjoyed my time thus far. I wasn’t really sure what to expect coming from Australia, much of the info I received beforehand was second hand. I was a little worried about the heat, working outside and also being much older than the other participants (i.e. /not being able to relate to each other). But the experience has been amazing and exceeded all expectations! The work was hard (physical) and it was hot – but I could have expected that. The group has been a blast – a real mix of ages, gender and nationalities, including the hilarious “swiss boys” on their gap year. Between us we’ve stayed motivated during build week and comradely in patrol week. Hopefully I’ve made some lifelong friends and made a difference to the Desert elephant population in Namibia!!”
Alison
