Some images in this article were taken pre-COVID-19.

BY: Patrick Loam

Camp manager blogs are written by our students who each get a chance to lead and manage a group (of their fellow students) for a period of one week.

I got to be the camp manager after a month of being at the Bushwise campus. It’s been an exciting adventure with lots of ups and downs, but most of all, it’s been a massive learning experience. 

As a camp manager, some of my duties involved taking everyone’s temperatures as per Bushwise’s COVID-19 protocols, and ensuring that all teams completed their tasks, including completing general maintenance of the campus. 

My duties also coincided with the semester ending. The atmosphere on campus was of pure excitement! We’d all put in so much hard work over the past few weeks, and we were ready for a break. 

On the last day of the semester, we took part in the “Bushwise challenge”, which involves a series of games and team building exercises. We woke with anticipation as we were unsure what the day would bring. The group leaders were given instructions by our Head Trainer, Vaughn. 

We had an hour for each team to get ready before our presentation to the trainers. We needed to create team names, a team banner, team chants, and even paint our faces. After that, we played a ton of different games. 

As teammates, we bonded, learned, and had loads of fun and laughter. 

That afternoon, we received our feedback, which is an important part of our development and progress on the course. Then we got to have a braai (barbeque) and a dance party by the bonfire.

I really enjoyed being a camp manager, I learned a lot from my responsibilities and acquired leadership and management skills that I will use in my future career as a Field Guide.

Interested in joining a Bushwise Field Guides course like Patrick? Get in touch with us.