A Typical Afternoon in the ‘Office’
11:00am: I take the research car and go and upload pictures from the cameras. I’m unsettled at this stage because I’m alone. I get to the first camera station. I get out of the car, pick up the stones that lay right next to the car and throw them in to the nearest thickets and wait. At this point I’m standing at the door in the Nakedi’s Ready Position: “if something so much as growls from that thicket, I will dive in to the open door and lock myself in,” I make a mental note.
Nothing growls and nothing moves, so I take the laptop, walk towards the camera and start uploading pictures. Sometimes I find ungulates grazing next to the camera station, and then I get relieved that they probably moved as far away from predators as possible. This should have happened in the early morning or during the night. I don’t rule out the possibility of an unsuccessful hunter from the previous night though. However, the sight of ungulates in the vicinity still puts me at ease. I hope that I will not be seen as a prey when the familiar staple food is around.
3:00pm: It is almost time for the Singita Lodge guests to go on the afternoon drive. I must get out of the concession so I’m not in the way.
3:30pm: I arrive at the lodge, get myself some water and head back to Shishangane (aka Shish).
4:30pm: Arrive at Shish and start sorting leopard droppings of the day and analysing the leopard pictures that were uploaded. I have avoided the lion areas. I’ll check those the following day, only if!
5:00pm: Play some football at Shish.
6:15pm: Shower!
6:45pm: Dinner!
7:15pm: I read a scientific paper. When it stops making sense (calculus!), I get grumpy and read a novel. Sometimes I go and have a beer or two with the guys at the bar. After a beer or two I try again. Now it is the beer and me against calculus and stats…. sometimes I win. On such an evening I go to bed with a smile on my face!
10:00pm: Snooze… with a smile on my face.
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August 20th, 2008 at 3:42 am
Hi Nakedi,
Great to read your stuff man. Shame to miss you in Joburg. Hope to see you next time.
Cheers,
Bram
August 21st, 2008 at 5:48 am
What a wonderful blog! Lov reading it and following your foot
steps. Your stories are great and I can just immagine
the “Nakedi pose”…
How is Kenya?
August 23rd, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Hi Nakedi,
I was really happy to find your blog. I do enjoy reading what you are upto and I think AWF are very lucky to have you there.
I worked on a conservation project close to PE last year in December and I think that was the best thing I ever have done. I do love SA.
I have started to study on Wildlife Campus website and I hope that one day I will have a opportunity to work in some research project in southern Africa (and of course photography which is another of my passions.).
Looking forward to more postings from you.
Be careful out ther
Gina
August 25th, 2008 at 4:18 pm
Can’t wait to hear your next!
Thats if you don’t choose to be on the Menu!!
You better be careful or friendly with the Leopards.
Moralo
August 27th, 2008 at 12:53 am
Thanks Gina,
I’m glad you find the blog informative. I will do my best to keep posting.
Kind regards,
Nakedi
August 27th, 2008 at 12:56 am
Hi Leana,
Thanks for your comment. I’ll write about Kenya in the next posting.
Regards,
Nakedi
September 9th, 2008 at 4:43 pm
Hello there
Now its my time to tell you a story
I was at green apple hill trying to set up a dinner table for
the Travel magazine crew, going wild with my creativity using
rocks and dead logs for decoration, then i picked a beautifully
naturally crafted rock, under it was a scorpion, i picked it
up nicely placed it nicely on top of the white table cloth, but
my mind told me that its not positioned right then i picked
it up again……..
September 9th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
The pain ran through my nervous system like an electric
shock i wanted to scream but there was this trainee girl that was
helpin me out, i didn’t wanna scare her, believe you me all i
could say MMMMmmm!!!
after a while i though of looking to see what got me to
nearly damage my pans, It was a scorpion, all the first aid that has been done on me i can not remember it was just too much but hey
i am the one thats telling this story thanks god i’m alive.!!
September 10th, 2008 at 7:06 am
Hi Bram,
Thanks for visiting the blog and thanks for your comment. Sorry I missed you when you visited S.A. I hope you had a great time.
Regards,
Nakedi
September 10th, 2008 at 7:15 am
Greetings Dikobe,
Firstly, thank you very much for visiting the AWF blog. Secondly, thank you for your comment and thirdly thank you for your great story. I am so sorry to hear about your unfortunate encounter with the scorpion. Did you manage to find out what species it was? I am happy that you managed to pull through. I hope you will be more careful next time when you pick up rocks. I also hope you did not do anything to the scorpion.
Cheers,
Nakedi
September 10th, 2008 at 7:18 am
To Gina,
Following your comment on AWF being lucky to have me…
I think I’m the one who’s lucky to be working in an organization of AWF’s caliber. But thanks anyway.
Kind regards,
Nakedi