The Cederberg Mountains meet with the Wolsey kids
By Hilda Chishamba, Cape Leopard Trust 2016 Intern

As part of the environmental education done by the Cape Leopard Trust, we hosted 16 Witzenberg primary school kids at Majtiesrivier Nature Reserve. The group arrived and set up camp at the Tok Tokkie Campsite. It was the first time camping for most, if not all the kids. The kids were full of energy and excited for the fun filled activities that were lined up for the camp.

We started camp with a visit to Stadsaal heritage site. The group was treated to an informative but fun lesson on the rock art and the history of the area by Catherine (environmental educator). To top that we hiked to Eikboom the next day and were fortunate to spot two black eagles on our way, and this pitched up the excitement. Between stops, the group learned about the Cedar trees and the fynbos. On reaching the swimming ponds, the boys proved to be better swimming nymps than the girls who were a little shy at the beginning. Because of how energetic the group was, we went on to hike up to the beautiful waterfall. After the eventful hike plus resting, the group enjoyed an educational presentation on animals as well as the Cape Leopard Trust. One thing that stood about these kids is that they were very keen and eager to learn, explore and enjoy nature. We proceeded to Truitjieskraal for some rock exploration and cave crawling. The group sang their heart out in the bus, on our way back to the campsite. To put the icing to that camp day, we had a night walk and the kids learnt about astronomy and searched for scorpions.

As they say all good things must come to an end, we ended camp by setting up a camera trap along a footpath. The kids pretended to be different animals and were captured on the camera. The group left only their footprints but took with them with experience of exploring the Cederberg Mountains and knowledge about nature.