ABOUT OGS
OUR TRAINERS
ABOUT OGS
// GUIDE COURSES
Mokoro & Motor Boating
Navigation & Tracking
Wilderness Sleep Outs
Game Walks
Theory Lectures
Game Drive Skills
Stargazing
NATURE GUIDE COURSE
This nature guide course is a wonderful mix of gaining a deep theoretical insight to the ecology of this fascinating wilderness and learning the skills of guiding on foot, boat, mokoro, or in a 4WD vehicle. The course is modular, enabling you to join the course for two or four weeks, but many choose to do the full four weeks over time due to leave constraints.
A unique, once-in-a-lifetime expericence...
...awaits you in the unforgettable Okavango wilderness when you become a FGASA or BQA-registered field guide (FGASA Level 1/ BQA Level 2) through our value-for-money nature guiding courses.
Imagine approaching Big Five game on foot and observing them at close quarters. Tracking buffalo herds from island to island. Motorboating or canoe-paddling through wild delta channels. Navigating deep water crossings and heavy sand by 4×4. Swapping campfire stories under the African stars.
We do all this and more on our FGASA or BQA field guide training (FGASA Level 1/ BQA Level 2) that caters not just for experienced and aspiring nature/safari/field guides, but also ‘adventure tourists’ seeking a unique, life-changing bush experience in a remote African wilderness that’s teeming with wildlife.
Nature Guide Course
Students
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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
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Seasoned safari goers who now seek a deeper, more holistic, African wilderness experience
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School- and/or university-leavers who are looking for a life-changing gap-year experience
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People with a spirit of adventure who are looking beyond a typical back-packing experience
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Aspiring guides
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Experienced guides wishing to further enrich their knowledge and skills
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Important: also as an enrichment student you have to complete a minimum of exams and game drives. This is not a cheap safari, it is a guide school.
Learn & Experience
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Practical, hands-on experience of navigation in the African wilderness, bush survival skills, the ancient art of tracking, weapons handling, bird and mammal identification and so much more
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Mokoro (dug-out canoe) expeditions (seasonal)
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Wilderness walks and sleep-outs
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Motor boating excursions (seasonal)
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4×4 vehicle game drives
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Game walk safaris
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Stargazing and astronomy
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Theory lectures and presentations from qualified and knowledgeable trainers on diverse topics ranging from local geology, ecology, and hydrology, to astronomy and weather/climate
OUR VALUE. DELIVERED.
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Through our pre-course study programme, we offer the FGASA Nature Guide course in just 28 days!
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We’re situated in a World heritage site throbbing with birdlife and Big 5 game.
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Our trainers are some of the most qualified guides in the industry.
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We offer both FGASA and BQA qualifications.
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We sponsor one local guide for every four-week course we conduct.
General
Course length:
14 or 28 days
Qualifications:
no prior experience is required.
There is no minimum group size. Maximum group size is 8 exclusive of the one sponsored local student.
Access:
Maun Airport or self-drive into Maun
Inclusive
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Tented accommodation
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All meals at Kwapa Camp
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Drinking water, tea and coffee
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All training and activities
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One scheduled transfer from Maun to Kwapa Camp and return
exclusive
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Unscheduled transfers to/from Kwapa Camp
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Travel Insurance
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All flights
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Personal effects, including toiletries
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Staff gratuities
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Drinks other than those mentioned above can be purchased in Maun before leaving for Kwapa Camp
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FGASA/ BQA registration and exam fees
Qualifications
AGA Certificate
This is for students seeking to do the course for personal enrichment rather than pursuing a formal qualification to become a guide. Upon course completion, they will receive an African Guide Academy certificate for participation in the course.
However, for those seeking it, there are two formal qualifications available:
BQA-Level 2
This is the Botswana Training Authority exam which is the national guiding qualification for Botswana.
FGASA NQF2 (Previously known as Level 1)
This is the Field Guide Association of Southern Africa exam and the national guiding qualification used in South Africa. However, to enter FGASA level 1, you must complete our pre-course workbooks and prepare the required lecture material. In addition, to qualify for the FGASA certificate you must do the full 28 days of training but this does not have to be done in one session, but rather when your leave permits.
For every four-week course we conduct, we sponsor one local guide
To preserve our unique habitat for future generations, we give something back to local communities by sponsoring one deserving local guide for every four-week course we run for international students. Last year we donated more than USD 50 000 in training to local communities who are ultimately the custodians of one of Africa’s last remaining true wilderness areas.
