Short Course

Wilderness Trails Course in the Okavango Delta

„This course offers an unparalleled time on foot in the real wilderness of the Okavango Delta.”

Price 2,579 USD * (See price tab)

Course Type

Short Course

Country

Botswana

Duration

7 Nights

Location

Okavango Delta

The Wilderness Trails Course is an exciting new addition to African Guide Academy Courses and developed for those seeking a complete immersion in the Okavango. This 7-night course in the southern Okavango delta offers unrivalled time on foot in true wilderness. You leave behind the hustle and bustle of the world around you, the comforts of home and reconnect with the wilderness. If you are a trails guide wanting to log lots of hours on foot or a nature enthusiast wanting to spend more time looking at the little things we miss on vehicles, this is a course you don’t want to miss.

general information about the school course content start dates camps transfers qualifications price

general information

Typical week

First day: the African Guide Academy trainer meets all students at the Duck Cafe across the road from Maun Airport at 14h00. This allows students to arrive on international flights on the first day of the course (these flights usually land at around 13h15). In order to get to Kwapa Training Camp with sufficient time to settle in while it is light and do an orientation, we can only allow a grace period until 15h30 for delayed flights. We strongly suggest that you have travel insurance to cover your overnight accommodation and unscheduled transfer to camp should your flight be drastically delayed.

Daily activities: Every morning we wake-up early and have a light breakfast and head out into the wilderness on foot. We will return to our camp for lunch and have a rest period. In the afternoon we set out on foot in a different direction.

We will spend a maximum of 3 nights in our wilderness camp before moving to another location on foot. Depending on water levels we will load our equipment in mokoros (dug-out canoes) or the equipment will be moved by vehicle while we carry our supplies for the day.

Last day: We walk or mokoro back to Kwapa Training Camp where a vehicle will be waiting to transfer us back to Maun for an 11am arrival at the Duck Café.

Please note: The above is just a broad outline so it can and will change depending on the guests needs, external factors and on some days, it has been known to not be followed at all! We allow the wilderness to dictate the best possible experiences.

The course requires a minimum of 2 people and has a maximum of 8.

about the school

The African Guide Academy (former Okavango Guiding school) is owned and operated by the Reed family. The well known Reed brothers, Grant and Brent who starred in “Safari Brothers” which aired internationally on National Geographic Wild.

The academy is the first private guide training school registered in Botswana to provide training for guides on both the Field Guide Association of Southern Africa (FGASA) and the Botswana Qualifications Authority (BQA) platforms.

The training courses are conducted in the Okavango Delta which has been declared a World Heritage site because of it’s pristine ecosystems, it’s scenic beauty and abundance of wildlife. The Okavango is one of the most scenically spectacular wildlife areas anywhere in the world. The myriad of crystal clear channels and wildlife rich islands is a habitat unlike any other.

The learning experience is influenced by the natural beauty of the area and the habitat diversity. Kwapa has a combination of river channel’s, floodplains, lagoons as well as riparian woodland, savannah, mopane scrub, climax mopane woodland and grasslands.

Possibly the most amazing thing about the area is the fact that it is part of a wilderness that stretches unfenced for hundreds of thousands of square kilometres through Moremi Game Reserve, Chobe National Park, the Caprivi Strip of Namibia, southern Angola and southern Zambia.

course content

Game walks – including approaching big game on foot
Navigation and tracking skills
Stargazing/ astronomy
Mokoro (dugout canoe) excursions – depending on water levels

Who is it for?

People looking to reconnect with themselves, who are searching for a back-to-basics bush skills experience that will help them recharge, renew, and reboot
Seasoned safari goers who now seek a deeper, more holistic, African wilderness experience
School- and/or university-leavers who are looking for a life-changing gap-year experience
People with a spirit of adventure who are looking beyond a typical back-packing experience
Survivalists wanting to gain the skills required to thrive in the wilderness.
Guides wishing to learn many of the practical aspects that are often only discussed in theory.

start dates

4 October 2024 - 11 October 2024

29 November 2024 - 6 December 2024

30 May 2025 - 6 June 2025

27 June 2025 - 4 July 2025

8 August 2025 - 15 August 2025

camps

A lightweight 2-person hiking tent with a mattress, sleeping bag, sleeping bag inner, and pillow. There is no single supplement.

transfers

The transfer is included in the course price and takes place on the first day of the course. The African Guide Academy trainer meets all students at the Duck Cafe across the road from Maun Airport at 14h00. The transfer to camp takes approximately 2-2.5 hours.

qualifications

This course is not a stand-alone qualification. Students will receive a certificate of attendance. All the hours on trail can be logged for a current or later Trails Guide qualification.