Volunteering on a horse farm in South Africa

Lodging

The accommodation is simple, basic, but enough. There are two rooms, each with two beds, a small lounge with a kettle and fridge, and a bathroom with a large shower.

daily routine

When I arrived at the project, a volunteer was already there. Our day started at 06:00 and ended in the afternoon between 15:30 and 17:00 at the latest. Around 06:15 we walked the 10 minutes to the house where the two team members in charge of us lived and had breakfast.

She mainly looked after the horses and the guided rides and was our main contact during working hours. He was very concerned about our well-being and organized a safari tour in the Kruger National Park for us.

In the mornings he would herd the wild horses into the paddock with the boss when they were needed for guided rides and did various jobs in the stable and on the yard.

At 06:45 we drove to the barn. Once there, we fed and watered the two stallions, who, in contrast to the geldings, were on different pastures and, if necessary, the horses that were in the paddock overnight or were already waiting for us (or rather the food) in the paddock in the morning.

As soon as we heard motorcycles and hoofbeats, we went to the paddock and waited for the wild horses. Once everyone had been herded in for the day's action, we closed the gate and trapped those who were trusting and rideable. We fed them, cleaned them and they saddled the horses. We prepared the horses we were supposed to ride that day ourselves. Each volunteer is assigned a saddle at the beginning, which avoids having to constantly adjust the stirrups. 

Riding with guests

As soon as the guests are there, we help them with the riding helmet and with boarding. Depending on the level of performance of the guests, we ride a slow or a faster lap. One of us volunteers rode in the back and the other behind a more comfortable horse to spur it on when needed. The routes were beautiful. At noon we went back to the house for 1-2 hours to have lunch. In the afternoons, the horses are usually only fed, since most of the guests ride in the mornings, when it is a little cooler.

If there was no ride, we could ride for ourselves or work with the horses in the dressage arena or with the young horses. The only thing that could bother you is that you're pretty far off the beaten track, the site is in the mountains, you're in a fix without a car. From Nelspruit you need another half an hour by car to get to the accommodation. When he went shopping and there was nothing important to do, he would often take us down to Neslpruit and drop us off at a mall.

It's just been a very nice time which I would love to repeat should the opportunity arise!

Report from the volunteer project on a horse farm in South Africa by Manjana S., August 2019