I spent 24 hours with the world’s first all female anti-pouching unit

My bush walk with Africa’s most highly trained – and high-profile – women wildlife rangers takes place in Olifants West Nature Reserve, a 15,000-hectare protected zone within the Greater Kruger ecosystem, bordering the legendary Kruger National Park.

Home to the Black Mambas’ HQ, the unit is now welcoming guests to stay overnight at its bush camp – an exclusive highlight of three exciting South African small-group tours offered by responsible adventure company, Intrepid Travel.

‘We’re excited to have people visit us and find out more about our work,’ says Black Mambas supervisor Leitah Mkhabela.

I started my day a world away in South Africa’s gleaming financial hub of Johannesburg.

After a night at the Maslow Hotel in the upmarket district of Sandton, a six-hour drive north-east through farmlands, rolling hills and spectacular mountains brings me to the frontline of anti-poaching operations in South Africa.

In 2023 alone, the Black Mambas covered an astonishing 44,051 kilometres (27,400 miles) over 2,224 patrols. Every morning, they walk 14 kilometres of fence line looking for signs of poaching. Night drives with spotlights show the reserve is protected, while car checks deter illegal activity.

The Mambas have also cleared more than 1,400 wire snares in the past six years, illegally laid by poachers to catch game. Many of them are now stacked at HQ, next to ghostly white skulls of rhinos, lost to poachers.

‘The snares are set to target smaller animals for bushmeat,’ explains Leitah, ‘but they can kill anything, including lions, leopards and even elephants and rhinos.’

Crucially – and uniquely for a frontline anti-poaching unit – the Black Mambas have never carried weapons, although there is an armed response unit nearby ready to provide backup if needed. And while they’ve been chased by poachers in the past, thankfully nobody has ever been injured.

From the control centre, it’s a short drive to the camp – a collection of roomy tents pitched along a dry sandy riverbed, shaded by trees.

With outdoor showers and toilets, light from solar lamps and no hot water, the unfenced camp offers a truly wild experience in the heart of the African bush.

‘We camp, go for wildlife walks, eat and share stories around the fire – and of course, the Black Mambas are here to make sure guests are safe,’ smiles Leitah, as we chat on the shady deck overlooking the riverbed.

The idea of a less combative, community-focused approach to wildlife protection led Craig Spence, founder of non-governmental organisation Transfrontier Africa, to establish the Black Mambas in 2013. Recruiting six women from the surrounding villages and putting them through three months of intensive training to become rangers was met with scepticism at first but just over a decade later, 
the results speak for themselves.

The initiative has also had an empowering social impact too: women are now given employment opportunities, and economic independence.

With funding from UK charity Helping Rhinos – one of 40 global organisations supported by Intrepid Travel’s non-profit Intrepid Foundation – Black Mambas now employs 36 trained rangers and also runs educational projects with schools though its Bush Babies programme, inspiring the conservationists of tomorrow.

Since the Black Mambas first put their boots on the ground, there has been a 63% reduction in poaching incidents and no rhinos have been killed in the regions where they patrol.

‘The job we are doing used to be labelled a man’s job in our communities. I joined to try and change that mindset and show that women can do this,’ says Collet, as I head to my tent, where I drift off to the soothing backbeat of bugs.