My journey at the Okkie Jooste Camp at Stelenbosch

On the 31st of August 2015, I went on a journey with my classmates in the LFS 152 course. We left the University of the Western Cape at 10 and arrived at the camp site of Okkie Jooste at 11:30. We were a bit behind schedule due to certain delays, therefore our daily activities had to be shifted around which was quite unorganized. Our accommodations were quite extreme due to the tight and narrow rooms which were overcrowded with the bunk beds and mattresses that were provided. The cold water was not welcome since the weather conditions were quite cold and in some cases rain. The room we occupied was comprised of 8 ladies including myself, which was a bit overcrowded, but as the days passed we started getting along and accepting the environment we were brought into.

The entire class was split into 3 groups and provided with a schedule for the four days we were at the camp. There was barely any free time to actually enjoy the scenery or to socialize on the camp since our schedule started at 6 am (if I had kitchen duty) and ended at 11 pm, sometimes at 12 am. Everyday was a new experience, the camp comprised of hiking, mammal trapping, insect catching, presentations and group assignments. There were an uproar in the room due to people's belongings disappearing and reappearing. Everybody blamed each other, it was hilarious when it was discovered among person who lost it's possession. The facilitators were quite helpful in certain events, but excluded themselves when help was required when compiling a group presentation. 

Majority of the presentations that were done on this camp was related to Biodiversity and Conservation Biology. As a Biotechnology student, I was not sure what the purpose of this camp was. As the days went by, I came to the realization that familiarizing yourself with the various vegetation could assist in finding certain herbs that could be used in a laboratory. 

Figure 1: The accommodations, kitchen
                and hall of Okkie Jooste






Figure 2: The beds provided at the camp

My discovery at the Cape Point Nature Reserve

Tuesday, the 23rd of September 2014, Group 1 and 2 of the Life Science 151 course went on an excursion to the Cape Point Nature Reserve. At 8:30 am, we met our lecturer in the Life Science Auditorium for a brief period to warn us about the dangers of certain animals and handed out the practical that we had to complete at the reserve. We left campus at 9:00 am and reached the reserve at 11:30 am.

The Lighthouse:

 The first place/area we were taken to was the lighthouse.  In order to view the lighthouse, we had to walk up a series of stairs.

 

 Figure 1: The view of the Lighthouse from the shop.             

Figure 2: The shops and the toilets

At the lighthouse, I observed the amount of vegetation and the ocean shores of the nature reserve. The lighthouse area was quiet busy with tourists that were touring the area. The first Lighthouse was built too high therefore the ships could not see the light beams of the lighthouse, since they were above the clouds. Due to this, a second lighthouse was built a bit lower in order for the ships to see the light beams and therefore the first lighthouse was now made a tourist attraction. We were only given 30 minutes to walk up the stairway, fill in the answers to our practical, take pictures and then return to the bus.

The Marine Protected Area (MPA):

 Our next destination was the Marine Protected Area (MPA). This area was located at the see shore where it strictly prohibits anyone from swimming or fishing in order to protect the marine organisms that lived there. We only had from 12:30 pm until 13:30 pm to take pictures, climb the mini mountain and fill out the necessary questions that needed to be answered.

Above are pictures taken at CPNR.

 The Visitor’s centre/ Buffel’s Fontein: Once we were done viewing both The Lighthouse and the MPA area, we returned to the visitor’s centre where we filled out the rest of our practical and enjoyed our lunch. The visitor’s centre had tables and benches to sit on and complete our practical, a café and a small museum displaying the animals that lived in the area many years ago and images of the different monuments located in the reserve.