Na’ankuse, Namibia 2026

Day 1 - Hello from Harnas

We got up bright and early in the morning, around 7 am, and ate breakfast alongside volunteers from all around the world. While socializing and enjoying breakfast, we were able to identify and explore different parts of the main camp of Na‘ankuse. We saw plenty of baboons, meerkats, and birds. After getting some nutrients in us, we packed up our stuff for a 5 hour drive east of Namibia's capital, Windhoek. Before heading to our camp for the week, Harnas, we went to the airport to pick up our last member!

After we picked up Naja, we started our drive east. We ate packed lunches in the van and made a stop for gas in a city called Gobabis. It was a very interesting and humbling experience to see the city and all of the people in the area. We then continued east and eventually arrived at the Harnas Wildlife Sanctuary, our home for the next week. After we arrived, we had a snack that they prepared for us and got a brief tour of the main facilities and our cabin area. We were able to see monkeys, crocodiles, and peacocks right away. 

We showered up and began our first activity, a game drive. Our guide, Yolo, drove us around the parts of the property and showed us many animals including rhinos, cheetahs, springboks, wildebeests, impalas, and oryxes. It was really cool to see the property, learn more about the animals, and understand about the human-wildlife conflict which is the primary reason why many of these animals are here.

After the game drive, we headed to dinner and had some delicious chicken, potatoes, and carrots. After dinner we played some games and did our journaling. We’re all looking forward to getting our hands dirty for the first time tomorrow!

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Day 2 - First Day Volunteering

To start day two it is important to note that day one ended with a card draw that was used to split the volunteers into two groups: Group A and Group B.We woke up bright and early and started the day off at 7am. We ate yogurt, croissants, eggs, bread, guava juice, and pineapple juice to fuel up for our first day of volunteering. 

Group B (consisting of Ayushi, Felix, Sophia, Joe, and Luca) headed out at 8 am to do a morning patrol and visited the Lifeline reserve to check the status of different watering holes. On this drive they saw impalas, meerkats, lions, leopards, oryxes, and wildebeests, and they got to ask their guide, Joolo, more questions about her life and journey to Harnas. Joolo studied to be a vet tech and started at Harnas as an intern 9 months ago. Then, Group B visited the K9 and poaching training site and met Utara and Charlie. Utara and Charlie have been working in this area for 7-10 years and are incredibly experienced and have a very close bond with their dogs, Trigger and Senki. The group was able to learn about 3 different types of poaching and understand how serious and devastating it can be to Harnas, which emphasized the importance of the protection they do with nightly patrols. They are proud to report that poaching has not been a problem in a few years. 

Group A left at 8:45 am and met up with Small Boy to engage in large carnivore feeding. To start, they packed frozen horse meat into boxes and loaded the van. Then, they drove from enclosure to enclosure and ended up feeding 7 cheetahs, 12 lions, 5 leopards, a pack of African wild dogs, a hyena, and a caracal. They packed the horse meat with specific nutrients to help with liver and joint health, with extra medicine for older animals or those with an injury. They were able to feed the animals by throwing the meat over the fence, careful to stay 2 meters away from the fence so as not to disturb the animals. On the drive, the group noticed a hole in one of the fences and asked Small Boy if they could patch it up. Small Boy gladly accepted the help and the group ended up saving the maintenance crew about 30 minutes. 

In the afternoon, after a delicious lunch of lasagna, both groups had orientation. Here, Maria told us about the purpose of the organization and their mission and history. We were able to learn about the different volunteering opportunities and how extensive their programs are. We planned out our week and made it clear that we wanted to help as much as possible, which was received well by the staff. 

We ended the night by showering, having a lovely dinner of pork chops, potatoes, and salad, and played mafia. We then journaled and had a nice reflection session before heading off to bed.

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Day 3 - Second Day Volunteering

Our second day of volunteering started out similar to the day before with an early breakfast to fuel up for the rest of the day. 

Group A left in the morning to a nearby watering hole that animals such as impalas, rhinos, elands and more usually drink from. Cleaning the watering hole consisted of moving surrounding rocks, removing the water with buckets and then scrubbing the watering hole to remove mud, sand and dirt that had accumulated there. Once that was done, we were able to refill the watering hole with fresh water and move the rocks back near the watering hole! Group A also noticed a nearby underground teepee that ranger and patrol use as a station to stay the night which had a mix of dirt, animal feces and termite mounds. We volunteered to clear all of that before we headed to the next destination. Following the early volunteering, Group A also headed to the Cheetah experience. Here we learned a lot about cheetahs, their habitats and got to be up close with them inside their enclosures which was an amazing experience!

Group B started off the morning at 8:30 AM and went out to the leopard enclosures to help clean their animal camps. For the first camp the leopard was moved into a smaller cage within the enclosure so we could enter, and then we began cleaning out the watering hole and dead grass around the gate of the camp. We were doing this cleaning so the leopard could have clean water to drink and so the caretakers could keep an eye on the leopards movements! We then went to clean out another leopard enclosure, but this was one was a bit different as the Veterinary team needed to do a yearly health check on this leopard, so while we were cleaning the watering hole and picking up bones/poop, the Vet team darted the animal and was doing multiple health checks on it which was incredible to see! We then moved to the bone pit to drop off our bones and then decided to join in and help the other volunteers in condensing the bone pit into one smaller pile.

After the morning, we all got an amazing lunch before heading to the lifeline clinic, which is a place meant for the San people and their families. It provides schooling for children ages 5-10 years old, food for the elderly, and a hospital. We volunteered by dishing out food, washing clothes, and helping wash the children’s hair. We also played soccer with them! We loved the lifeline clinic so much that we made plans to return and help more the next day. 

After a drive back to Harnas and dinner, Group B also got the chance to go on a night patrol with the Anti-Poaching Unit! On this patrol we patrolled the grounds of the game camp and the fences bordering it, looking for footprints, talking, lights or tampering of the fences which all could be signs of poachers. We also got the chance to climb into their watch tower and get a great view of the surrounding farms. In the meantime, Group A had an amazing time dancing around the bonfire with staff and volunteers at Harnas to celebrate a birthday!

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Day 4 - Hard Work at the Watering Hole!

We woke up bright and early to start another day of volunteering! With a great breakfast, we began the day splitting off into our groups in the morning.

Group A started off with the same anti-poaching activity that Group B had done earlier in the week. They started by visiting the K9 and poaching training site and met Utara and Charlie as well as their dogs, Senki and Trigger. They were able to learn a lot about the different poaching methods, their lives, and how wildlife conservation is a crucial part of Harnas and the foundation. They were then able to see how the dogs train by going through a rhino horn tracking activity and simulating how they may attack poachers. Group B spent their morning cleaning out and sweeping and mopping a meat locker that was very disorganized and had blood all over it. They then grabbed some meat from this same locker and fed large carnivores such as cheetahs, leopards, and lions. It was incredible to see the bond that Small Boy has with these animals, and how he even has routines with some of them before feeding, having one of the leopards catch their meat six feet off the ground!

We then all came together to clean a large waterhole similar to what Group A had done before. With all 11 of us we were able to remove the dirty water, scrub the waterhole of mud and dirt and finally refill it with fresh water. After a great morning of volunteering, we headed back for a quick lunch before splitting of into groups again for the rest of the day!

Group A first headed out with machetes to clear thorny branches and shrubbery that was disrupting game drives. Following that, Group A also helped with the research they do at the sanctuary. Everyday, Serafina (a staff member) goes through over 1000 photos from the cameras they have around the sanctuary and classifies the animals were seen in order to better estimate the population numbers within their grounds. Group B spent the afternoon feeding some of the smaller animals like monkeys, pigs, foxes, and vultures. After that, Group B found a storage closet that had a ton of junk and trash in it, and they got to work! They grabbed wheelbarrows and took all unnecessary materials to the junkyard, while storing all of the materials the Harnas team wanted to keep. Finally, they made hundreds of balls of cornmeal to feed to the baboons.

We all came back together for a great dinner before Group A headed out again for night patrol! Similar to Group B the night before, we patrolled the camp for around 3 hours while we understood more about the anti-poaching unit and looked for any issues. We also climbed the watch tower to see how they spot poachers in the distance! Finally, we all headed to bed for an early start tomorrow!

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Day 5 - Lifeline Clinic Visit Part Two 

We woke up around 6:30 am to get ready for breakfast and our visit to the Lifeline Clinic. Around 7 am, we headed to the main area to eat a delicious breakfast. At 7:30 am, we loaded the cars and took a 40 minute drive to the clinic. When we arrived, we unloaded our tools–machetes, shovels, and rakes. We met up with Shirley, our main contact at the Lifeline Clinic, to start off the day. Many women and a few children from the local community joined us, and we started to get rid of the thorny bushes and weeds behind the garden. Shirley wanted to clear the area to make space to plant apple and orange trees and build a playground. We created a system to efficiently rip out the weeds, and we sang and danced while doing it. Everyone was busting out their best moves while getting work done. It was incredible to work so closely with the community and to find so much joy in it.

After this, we helped Shirley make fat cakes, or “vetkoeks”, as known in the community. These are fried pieces of dough (flour, water, and yeast) that are served with tea after church services on Sunday. We kneaded the dough, let it rise, and scooped the dough into little balls for frying. We even got to try one with powdered sugar, and it tasted similar to an elephant ear–it was delicious! We also served lunch to the community simultaneously. Throughout all of this, we sang, danced, and laughed. The San culture was present in every moment with the joy and optimism exuded. 

After our hard work, we watched a local soccer tournament. With the World Cup just finishing up and watching a familiar game in an unfamiliar location, this event reminded us of the joy of sports and how it brings people together. Soccer is a universal game that spans across people, communities, and cultures. 

Next, we returned to Harnas to eat lunch and relax. A few of us even played volleyball with some locals. After a restorative afternoon, we fancied up for “Braai Night”. This was a social gathering with all of the volunteers at the sanctuary where we ate various types of meat. Maria, our coordinator at Harnas, was cooking pork, lamb, and sausages over a fire, and she allowed us to help. The food was delicious and we enjoyed our time with each other. Afterwards, we danced the night away doing the Macarina, Cupid Shuffle, and Cotton-Eyed Joe. Everyone was feeling groovy and electric. We had so much fun showing each other our best moves and breaking it down. This was an opportunity for us to let loose and take in the moment. To end the night off, we played some games with other volunteers and Maria. Overall, it was an incredible day where we not only worked hard, but also got to enjoy ourselves and feel proud of our work.

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Day 6 - Rhino Tracking, Soccer, and the San Experience 

Today started off bright and early at 6:30 am with a familiar breakfast of bread, peanut butter, yogurt, and granola. 

Then, both groups A and B stayed together and headed out to the car park to meet two APUs (members of the Anti-Poaching Unit) with the goal of learning how to track rhinos. They learned how to read different animals’ footprints in the sand, how to tell how fresh the prints were, and how to tell the direction of an animal’s (or human’s) motion. After an hour and a half of tracking they successfully located two rhinos - a mother and her baby. 

Next was arguably the most anticipated event of the week: the soccer tournament against the locals. The EGL team was chosen to play in the first round against the youth local to Harnas, whose ages ranged from 10-25. After a hard fought battle in regulation time, the EGL team squeaked out a win in penalties. Then, the EGL team faced a team comprising the older workers at Harnas in the ‘final’, where they overcame an early deficit to tie the game 2-2. Eventually, they won again in penalties and were crowned the champions of Harnas! This was many people’s favorite memory of the entire trip because it was such an immersive experience and truly showed that sports are a universal language and a great equalizer. One thing to note was the incredible sportsmanship displayed by the opposition. They were high-fiving us and just as happy that we won as they would have been had they won. It was also a number of EGLers first time ever playing in an organized soccer match, a ‘first’ they will look back fondly on for the rest of their lives.

Then, after a nutritious lunch of Oryx meat, carrots, and potatoes, the EGL group boarded a van and drove out into the bush to meet with the San people who still practice hunting and gathering. Here, we got to see their traditional housing and learn all about how they track and hunt animals, and what roots and plants they use for medicinal or nutritional purposes. The leader was wearing a crown made out of Zebra hide and was the only member of the tribe to speak to us. When he spoke, all of the other members of the tribe listened. After demonstrating their skills, they allowed us to try to make a fire. Here, Ayushi demonstrated that she was the most well-equipped to survive in the bush, as she was the only member to successfully get a fire going. At the end, they performed a variety of dances for us. The beat was comprised of syncopated claps and ankle shakers and their rhythm was reflective of the Namibian culture/way of life. It was beautiful to see and amazing to learn about such a different way of life than we are used to. 

In the end, although not a day filled with very much volunteering, this was an incredibly impactful day and one that everyone on the trip will remember for the rest of their lives.

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