South Africa 2025

The South Africa expeditions started in 2016 and this was our fourth trip over to South Africa with Les and Jeremy our guides.

After two and a bit years of fundraising and regular meetings with the young people, the time came to travel to South Africa in August 2025.

As a group of 9 young people and 5 leaders we all boarded a minibus to take us to Heathrow upon arriving at Heathrow we went to find out about checking in only to be encountered by Russell from Virgin Atlantic (Flights with Virgin Atlantic) who initially was helpful and was going to check us all in as a group but then caused a lot of stress by saying we needed a letter from the headmaster as he thought we we a school despite being in Scout uniform!

A few hours later we were then checking in once he had confirmed with the South African embassy in South Africa that we could travel without the letter from the headmaster despite countless comments that we are not a school!

Landing in South Africa

After our overnight flight we landed in Johannesburg airport and we were collected by a minibus driver from Glen Afric reserve that we would be spending the next two weeks at.

When we arrived at Glen Afric, on the way to our camp for the next two weeks we saw many animals including Giraffe and Zebras.

We met with our Guides, Les, Jeremy and Michael (new guide this year).

We then sorted ourselves into our tents and had free time for the rest of the afternoon into the evening.

Two Weeks in South Africa

The structure of the day for the two weeks mainly consisted of getting up, breakfast, lesson, activity, lunch, free time/showers, lesson, dinnertime, campfire and then bed.

The lessons were on many different things over the two weeks that included Ecology, plants/trees, animals, birds, history, Anti poaching, firearms, information about the reserve layout and activities.

Activities across the two weeks were

- Safari walks

- Safari drives

- Elephant encounter

- Daily fire making for hot water!

- Snare patrols along the boundary fence

- Zebra stroking

- Catapult competition

- Walk around the lions, tigers, leopards, cheetahs and Hyena enclosures

- Anti poaching drives

- Bird watching

- Fishing competition

- Shooting competition

- Hike in the Magaliesburg mountains region

- Snake handling

- Cultural education centre - We learnt how to use Djembe drums, watch traditional dances and learnt about African tribes in a recreated village

- Met with South African Scouts 

- Poaching crime scene (recreated) investigation.

An afternoon with the South African Scouts

Les arranged for some South African Scouts and leaders to join the Ashford District Scouts for a braai at the bush school camp. He had connected with them through a contact in the tent hire company he used. Leone from the South Africa Regional Team arranged for an equal number of scouts and adults to the Ashford scouts for the visit, although she could have brought more along.
Before the South African scouts arrived, the Ashford scouts were apprehensive about meeting them. However, they soon started mixing and chatting in groups and there was a buzz of conversation as young people and adults introduced themselves and found out about scouting in the diff erent countries. Two young people from each country were chosen to help with the braai. The South African adults were Gary Pienaar (the Chief Commissioner of Scouts South Africa); Leone, Regional Team; Dieter, Group Scout Leader and two female scout leaders. The scouts were from the 1st Midrand and 1st Morningside groups in the Gauteng District, the 1st Kinray and the Spring Central Air Group.
Les arranged for the mahouts to bring the elephants through the camp during the afternoon so that the guests could see them. He would like to present his course to a joint cohort of South African and English scouts if it could be organised.
All the participants were given a commemorative badge made by Dieter. A South African scout presented Bill with a copy of their handbook and talked about the intense patrol leader training they do. Donations were collected from the South African scouts to go towards supplementary winter feed for the animals.
The barbecue food was followed by Debbie’s legendary brownies made by a scout parent and they were really good!
Neckerchiefs and badges were swapped and phone numbers exchanged so hopefully contact will be maintained and the possibility of joining up in the future is strong. The South Africans seemed keen to host a visit with suggestions of things they could show us and it would be an exciting way for the South African trip to evolve in the future.

Overall another brilliant trip and plans are under way for 2028!!

Bill, Brian, Brenda, Dave and Morag,

Expedition leaders