Elephants, giraffes, lions, hippopotamuses are some animals you might see in a zoo. A group of students, alumni and staff from The Bright School got to see those animals and more in their natural habitats in South Africa this summer. This experience of a lifetime is one way Bright helps develop children into “wise and compassionate citizens of the world,” as the school’s mission states.
"To take children to South Africa is truly a great privilege. Like few other places on earth, a land with such a diversity of wildlife gives children a sense of our world's beauty as well as our obligation to treat it well. I hope that our Bright School travelers returned with expanded horizons and a new appreciation life elsewhere. I know I did,” said Head of School O.J. Morgan.
In recent years, Mr. Morgan and Nicole Smith, the school’s counselor and community service coordinator, have led overseas trips to Germany and Japan. Mrs. Smith planned the nine-day trip to South Africa through a company called Outdoor Africa. She said the experience of seeing South Africa and animals in the wild was surreal and amazing. At Bright, students learn about Africa and native animals in first grade, and students on the trip discussed what they remembered learning. “The trip came together perfectly. The students were curious and well-behaved. Every place we visited was wonderful and beautiful,” she said. “It was magical.”
The group of 11 students and young alumni and three adults arrived in Johannesburg, South Africa on July 5. The next day, they set off into the South African bush in Pilanesberg National Park. “Before we entered the main gates of the park, we were met by a herd of impala and a congress if baboons, playing and eating just outside the park entrance. Hayden Elliott, our guide, gave us wonderfully informed descriptions of the different animals, their habits and behavior. From then on our cameras and binoculars were out, and we found ourselves glued to the windows of our bus, searching with eager eyes the tall elephant grass and acacia trees for sign of animals. Our searches didn’t disappoint,” Mr. Morgan wrote in his travel blog.
“We saw elephants, giraffes, a white rhinoceros, wildebeest, kudu, all sorts of birds, and zebra. At each sighting we’d stop the bus and sit quietly to observe and take pictures. We knew we were in the animals’ world, and we made sure we didn’t disturb their normal lives and routines. By far, the highlight of the day was the slow approach of a white rhinoceros, who approached our vehicle and seemed to look at us through the back window. We all looked in amazement as the rhino came closer and closer. Never had any of use seen a wild animal so large and fascinating. We were so close that we could see every detail on his body and sense his power. It was a beautiful sight we’ll always remember.”
The next day, the group returned to the park and had breakfast on a picnic site atop a large kopje, which is a rocky hill with views of the bush all around. The afternoon included a pontoon boat ride on Finfoot Lake.
The group visited the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, which is home to “40 percent of the world’s human ancestor fossils,” according to its website. “South Africa is home to some of the oldest and most unique hominid fossils ever discovered. This specific discovery location is very nearby and a wonderful interactive museum is there to teach the history of humanity. The group had a great time viewing hominid fossils, taking a boat ride through the ages of the earth, and learning more about humanity’s common ancestry. It was a fantastic little stop-off along the way and made for an enlightening and educational understanding of our place in the history of the world, and our ties to the great continent of Africa,” wrote Mr. Morgan and guide Toby Brown in the group’s travel blog.
The group flew to Durban and drove to the small coastal town of St. Lucia on the Indian Ocean. The family of another guide joined the group here. His two sons are the same age as the Bright students. “Watching the children hit it off with such immediacy exemplified the beauty of youth! It was like old friends seeing each other for the first time in many years,” according to the blog. The group spent the morning at the beach, and now everyone can say they have touched the Indian Ocean.
The next two nights were spent in tents at the Somkhanda Game Reserve, and the group had a Zulu guide named Themba. “Somkhanda is a wild African park on old community land. It is owned by the local Gumbi tribe, but they allow operators to take care of the reserve with the agreement that they will train and employ members of the local community in the operations and management of the property and wildlife. We arrived just as the sun was setting, and offloaded ourselves from the van into Open Safari Vehicles. It was a 7km drive into the heart of the park on the OSVs to reach our campsite, where tents and a warm braai (traditional South African barbeque) was awaiting us, expertly prepared by our camp cook, Xolani. We ate dinner and told stories around the campfire and under the South African night sky. It was the perfect way to end a day!” according to the blog.
“The next morning, we woke up to evidence of elephant and leopard in our camp. The spoor, dung, and broken branches painted the picture that we had all had in our heads that prior evening when listening to the snapping of branches in the near distance.”
The group visited lions that were going to be released into the park and enjoyed the visit of elephants near the camp in the afternoon. “A few of us sat in the shadows as the bulls made their way across the road, a mere 25 yards from us, like silent house-sized phantoms floating through the bush. It was invigorating!” Brown wrote.
“An afternoon walk through the bush with the local reserve manager had the kids enthralled, spotting spoor (animal tracks) and learning about plant-life, insects, mammals, and more as we traipsed down well-worn animal trails. There is nothing like a bush-walk to bring us closer to nature and the living intricate world of Africa. Finally, we ended the evening with another amazing braai and roasting marshmallows around the fire.”
After the camping experience, the group visited the Zamimpilo Community Market, which is where local women sell crafts and produce. “There was excitement pouring from everyone as we walked through the property, admiring trinkets and fruits and baskets, and picking out small keepsakes to take home for ourselves or our loved ones. Bright colors, beautiful jewelry, intricate weaving, and traditional indigenous craftwork made our choices difficult, as there was so much to love! The children navigated the narrow passageways in delight, before making their final choices and piling back into the van, all awash in the sharing of their newfound riches,” Brown wrote.
The last two nights were spent at the Emdoneni Lodge in Hluhluwe, which is more inland than St. Lucia, and it has a cat rehabilitation center on site. “There was African wildcat (which looks like a domestic cat, but is genetically better adapted to living in the wild), caracal, serval cat, and cheetah! We stopped by each enclosure as the local staff taught us about the animals inside, telling us their stories and their activities in the wild. The serval cat was a particularly exciting visit, as the group was able to go into the enclosure and pet one of the cats! Seeing all these cats up close truly made for a memorable experience! The children made haste to ask questions and listen intently as they learned more about the different species, and they have many photographs to cherish when they return home,” Brown wrote.
On the final day, the group took a last game drive in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Game Reserve and had lunch at Hilltop Camp. “Once in the gates, we were immediately greeted by a family of warthogs and the unmistakable backsides of white rhino. The sky was overcast and the breeze chilly, but the wildlife teemed throughout the park, though most at a distance to leave us scouting the landscape with our binoculars in order to specify. A passing motorist gave our driver, Alpheus, a nod of lion just up the road, and so we directed ourselves to the area. Much to our delight, we found the lions halfway up a distant hillside, lazing in the grass and soaking up the morning sun. The van burst in delight, as children clamored for binoculars and window space to catch a glimpse of the beautiful beasts. The distance made binoculars necessary, but nonetheless we were excited to see wild lions in their natural habitat,” Brown wrote.
“We had lunch at Hilltop Camp, which is located on the highest hilltop in the game reserve and boasts magnificent views from every angle! Here, we ate a great meal and gave the children time to burn off some energy on a small playground…all the while dodging vervet and samango monkeys as they flew from tree to ground to the tops of vehicles around the camp. The kids were in heaven, snapping photos of monkeys and playing games and making the most of their final day!”
The afternoon ended with closed encounters with elephants: “We came upon a huge herd of elephant drinking and bathing in a roadside watering hole. A hush fell over the van as we hit the brakes when a big elephant crossed our path. As we looked to our sides, we quickly realized we were flanked by a huge breeding herd. Adults and babies alike were drinking and bathing mere yards from our vehicle, and the excitement of the group was palpable. The sounds of whispered giggles and clicking cameras mixed with the trumpeting of wrestling elephants and spraying of water. It was a sound unique to Africa. It was a sound we will remember forever. Hearts and souls full, we meandered our way back through the park towards the exit. We stopped for rhino, Cape buffalo, nyala, and birds. We waited patiently for a troop of baboons, babies clinging to mothers’ backs in unmistakable comfort, to decide to stop blocking the road. We even saw a small journey of giraffe, who seemed to come out only at the end of our day as if to wish us a fond farewell from this wild and enchanting place they call home.”
The travelers were current students Prescott Hampton, Luciana Hemphill, Andrew Kreek, Soleigh Kueter, and Maddie Marsh, and former students Sonny Ravinder ’15, Hailey Kreek, Abby Millwood ’17, Avery Hampton ’17, Lily Rhyne ’17, and Kistler Hampton ’14. Mr. Morgan and Mrs. Smith were joined by parent Jenny Kueter.
Stay tuned for next year's adventure that will be offered to our upper grade students.
