Episode 7 Safari 8

This is the South African bush,

a massively diverse landscape,

home to some of the biggest, fastest and deadliest animals on Earth.

CBBC have brought four British and four South African kids here

to train as game rangers.

In four weeks, they must discover all they can about the animals here

and master the skills to track and care for them.

But can these eight kids make the grade and learn enough

to lead a safari in search of the big five?

This is the challenge for the Safari 8.

Last time, the Safari 8 learned how to deal with a medical emergency.

You've been bitten by a black mamba, Tomas. Don't move.

And their big cat mission to study lions was a roaring success.

I don't get scared very easily.

Today, the team hit the road and the beach

to take a break at the coast.

Our rookie rangers are all at sea on a whale-watching mission.

-There's the fin.

-I think I'm going to be sick.

And everyone has to face up to some hard truths in their midway reports.

-I'll reprimand you a bit now.

-I won't like this.

It's early in Kruger National Park

and everyone is already up and about, ready for ranger training,

but mentors Rudi and Frankie have something different in mind.

What we've got in store today, we're going down to the Natal coastline.

KwaZulu-Natal is a region of South Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean

and the Safari 8 are heading for Rocktail Bay.

Guys, you've got five minutes to pack your bags,

so we can pack the stuff in the vehicles and get off. Off you go!

So it's straight to the business of packing

everything a ranger could need down by the sea.

Head torch, water bottle, back pack.

Has everyone got a head torch?

-What's fourth on the list?

-Underwear and socks.

-For how long?

-Four days.

-OK, thanks.

But there's been a mix-up with the laundry.

-Ella, I've got your trousers.

-Whose are these?

It isn't just the large, it's also their smalls.

They're bigger than me. Tomas!

No, don't empty your stuff out. That's mine.

That's mine!

I have one.

All my washing is in all of these bags.

I've got Tomas's really cool boxers and he's got my bras and my knickers.

These are cool!

I am just so happy to get out of this bug-infested place.

They should be travelling light, but by packing with emergencies in mind,

Noma has ended up with excess baggage.

You never know when someone might spill juice on your jeans,

so I've packed my things as a girl.

They've told me "no" and now I have to go and put it back.

Eventually, the team are ready to hit the highway,

a bottom-numbing seven-hour drive.

On the journey, the dry and dusty Kruger savannah

gives way to the lush landscape and coastal forest of KwaZulu-Natal.

When our rookie rangers get to Rocktail Bay,

their new surroundings are different to anything they've experienced,

which makes their drawn-out drive well worth the wait.

Sea, sand, surf and a seriously excited Safari 8.

EXCITED SHOUTS AND SCREAMS

But one member of the team doesn't like to be beside the seaside.

It seems Tomas has a phobia of wet sand.

If I went in the water and my feet were soaking, they would stick.

Look at this now. If I put a little bit there...

It sticks like tarmac.

It's really annoying and I'd rather miss out going in the sea.

-Tomas, do you want to come and touch the water with me?

-Yeah.

-Come.

In a bid to help, Ella tries some fear-facing therapy.

-SCREAMS

-Come on, Tomas!

But her good intentions only make things worse.

Tomas doesn't like the sea and the beach very much.

The sand gets in his feet. We're trying to get him more adventurous.

Aagh! As time goes... As time goes by.

Everything about this place is lovely apart from the sand.

With 40 kilometres of beach along the Rocktail Bay coastline,

that could be a problem,

but the team can't let a soaking dampen their spirits

because they're at the Indian Ocean to do more than just paddle.

-OK, guys, are you enjoying your holiday at the sea?

-Yeah!

You also need to get involved in conservation of marine animals.

Frankie is going to give you a clue as to what your next task will be.

There's good reason for lying down on the job

because Rudi and Frankie have a sandy puzzle for the Safari 8.

Head to toe like this, our rookie rangers stretch 13 metres,

the same length as a blubbery creature living in the sea.

What do you think you are now?

-The length of a whale!

-Well done.

So whales are the next animal on the Safari 8 checklist.

These underwater giants are the largest creatures on the planet

and can live as long as 80 years.

Humpback whales are off the Rocktail Bay coast six months of the year,

first heading north to breed and give birth in warmer waters,

then swimming back south to feed in the nutrient-rich Antarctic Ocean.

Time for our rookie rangers to leave dry land behind

and take to the high seas in search of some massive mammals.

I really can't wait to be on the ocean

because this is my first time on a boat and I'm really excited.

I'm excited about going on the boat, but I also feel scared and nervous.

The sea's quite choppy today and I'm not very good on a choppy sea.

I love the sea, so I'm really excited.

I don't think there'll be any screaming on the way out there.

-SCREAMING

-But Ashleigh couldn't be more wrong.

Launching from the beach in blustery conditions means a bumpy

and noisy ride.

'The sea looks so calm.'

You see these little waves coming to us.

When you're out there, these big things are like monsters.

Sadly, there's one person who's missed the boat.

Ella's not feeling well, so she's staying ashore.

It's nautical novice Noma who finds her sea legs first.

It was so cool. As we hit the waves and the water splashed your face

and you tasted the salt water, I loved every single bit of it.

And on the boys' boat, Sifiso is also having a whale of a time.

It was like I was flying in the air

and it was very exciting driving fast on the water.

Of all the kids on that boat, he enjoyed it the most.

Me, on the other hand, didn't.

All right, we're in the middle of the ocean now.

It's not the best conditions to find whales, but keep your eyes open.

One of them might surface close by.

The fool that I am, I'd taken my glasses off.

I didn't want them to get wet.

We were going whale spotting and I took my glasses off!

We're looking for their blowholes. They need to breathe air.

They come up and throw these sprays

of water out of the ocean, so look out for that.

Whales breathe air just like we do,

but instead of nostrils, they have a blowhole.

When a whale surfaces and breathes out,

it throws a spout of vapour and water high above the sea.

It's a sign that whales are nearby

and it's not long before Noma scores the first sighting.

I can see a dolphin.

There's a whale.

I saw a dolphin. Whoo!

In her excitement, Noma's mistaken a whale for a dolphin.

With all eyes peeled, next to spot a spout is Tomas.

Right up there. It was blowing the water.

With whales breaching nearby,

our rookie rangers are going to try and listen to them.

You saw whales breaching down there, so we'll put in this hydrophone,

an underwater microphone, to try and pick up some whale sounds.

Tomas, Manya, let me know when you hear something.

HIGH-PITCHED CRIES

Yeah, can you hear something?

Tomas can't believe his ears and wants Frankie to listen too.

FAINT CRIES

Even a ranger can be impressed by the sound of whales.

Humpbacks are well known for their mysterious songs.

It's only the males who sing

and they make these sounds to attract a female mate.

Oh, there's the fin!

Weighing in at 40 tons, the same as three double-decker buses,

an adult humpback is hard to miss.

And their songs can be heard over 100 kilometres away.

DISTANT WHALE SONG

Such a beautiful sound and so much fun listening to them.

They're like... MIMICS WHALE SOUNDS

DISTANT WHALE SONG

Whales swim in groups called pods.

The girls are very close to one and Noma is taking it all in her stride.

It's kind of scary, but when you look how beautiful it is,

it's just that thing of, "Oh, this is so cool!"

My dad is never the person at the ocean.

He's always the one who says,

"Stay away from the ocean. It's dangerous!"

So I can't wait to tell him about this

and to tell him, "Dad, I was on the ocean and it was 80 metres deep!"

But Caroline isn't coping with the motion of the ocean.

I love it, but I'm feeling sick.

'It was really fun on the way there,'

but once we stopped and were floating in the water, it was quite sickening.

We've been out here for a while. The conditions are not too great.

At least we heard them and Tomas saw one.

-Let's head back to shore.

-Yes!

For Caroline, they're not heading back soon enough.

I think I'm going to be sick.

'After I was sick, I felt a lot better.'

And I could enjoy it more.

So it was a lot of fun, but quite minging.

And for landlubber Ashleigh,

getting back to solid ground is a genuine relief.

Yes! Yes! LAUGHTER

This definitely wasn't my best Safari 8 experience.

I couldn't enjoy myself.

I don't even think I saw a whale because I was holding on so tight.

I didn't think we would do anything like this in the beginning.

There's no sea in Kruger, so this is a great surprise.

It was wicked. I had so much fun.

It was such a good experience, especially hearing the whales.

Coming up, the Safari 8 head inland in search of a hefty inhabitant.

-Whoa!

-And halfway through ranger training,

our rookies are told to pull their socks up.

Being a ranger, you need to take everything seriously.

# Let's go surfing now, everybody's learning how

# Come on a safari with me... #

The Safari 8 are back on dry land.

Rudi and Frankie are keen to focus on teamwork.

We've got an interesting challenge for you. We are dune-boarding.

-Oh, yes!

-Are you up for the challenge?

-Yes!

-Excellent.

We'll split up in two teams. One guy surfs to the bottom.

He runs up to the top, grabs the board and slides down.

Then your team member goes up again.

Working together will be vital for our rookies' final safari challenge.

Tomas provides an immediate chance for the team to hone their skills.

He's got a sore leg and can't run uphill.

-How are you going to sort this out?

-You should start at the top.

-The fastest runner is probably Manya. Would that be OK?

-Yeah.

Manya could run up two times on your behalf, then you could slide down.

-OK?

-Yeah.

-Excellent.

With a plan in place and Tomas in position for Team Rudi,

there's only one thing left to do - dune-board!

This coastal dune has taken 25,000 years to form,

but Manya's demolished it in seconds.

And with a heroic dive, he tags team-mate Tomas.

ALL SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT

On the downhill, dune-boarding is all about technique.

Ella's unorthodox paddling puts her past Tomas

and takes Team Frankie into the lead.

And while Tomas struggles, Sifiso is off to a flyer.

Caroline gives chase, but she's got a lot of ground to make up.

Amazingly and with super-human effort,

Caroline draws level with Sifiso

and it's neck and neck on the way down.

The highest dune on this stretch of coastline is taller

than Blackpool Tower, but this is no donkey ride.

SHOUTING CONTINUES

Ashleigh and Noma give it everything they've got and turn in tandem.

But as Noma falters, Ashleigh crawls out in front for Team Frankie.

And she releases Kushal to make the final run.

Come on, Kushal!

So it's left to Manya on his second breathtaking ascent

to try and steal Team Rudi a victory.

That's a huge task and too big an ask

because Kushal is scrambling closer and closer to the finish line.

CHEERING

A valiant effort by Manya, but too late as Team Frankie triumph.

-Well done, guys.

-It was tough going twice. I was tired the second time.

But we did well as a team. They were just a bit faster.

It was amazing. The adrenaline was like, "Whoa!"

I had to do it. You've got to have a laugh and everything.

So I just went with it and I felt really good.

After the excitement of the dunes, the Safari 8 are venturing inland

to the tranquillity of Lake Sibaya.

This is the largest freshwater lake in South Africa

and is five times the size of Lake Windermere.

We decided to come down to Lake Sibaya today

to show the kids a massive inland lake.

It's quite rich in birdlife. For us, this was our highlight so far.

Lake Sibaya holds the richest birdlife in all of Africa.

Some 279 bird species have been recorded here.

Also hippos and crocs.

Just to show the kids that you get them not just in the park,

but also all through South Africa.

The Wetland Park around Lake Sibaya and Rocktail Bay

has a greater diversity of animal species than Kruger

and it's the perfect place for our rookies to glimpse a hippopotamus.

-Manya!

-Yeah.

-It looks a bit like a rock.

-Yeah.

-But it's moving.

-It's going down.

-It's a moving rock.

A hippo can hold its breath under water for six minutes.

Their name means "river horse",

but their closest living cousin is the whale.

He's so wrinkly. He reminds me of my gran!

They swim up to their nose under the water,

then they'll lift up and go back down again. It's fascinating.

There was a baby and it was opening its mouth!

We've learnt that they've got a gland that lets out like pink sunscreen,

so it protects them from the sun.

A group of hippos is called a bloat,

but they're not the only aquatic animals found at Lake Sibaya.

There are also some fearsome reptile residents.

If it's deep and dark water, you don't see crocodiles,

-so you don't go in it. There's a crocodile.

-Yeah.

-Oh, wow!

-Whoa!

-Crocodiles have the strongest bite of any animal

and from his own ranger experience of this snappy species,

Rudi has a gripping fact.

You can hold a crocodile's mouth closed

because the muscles going out are very, very weak. OK?

The muscles going down are very, very strong.

-How long do you think crocodiles existed on Earth?

-4 million years?

-Since dinosaurs maybe?

-2 million years?

The correct answer is... 200 million years.

That's why they're so clever. When you walk through a river,

a crocodile will not take you the first time

because he knows humans are creatures of habit.

If you go through a river and you end up on the other side safe,

nothing bit you, and you have to cross the river again,

where will you cross? The same place because the first time it was safe.

Crocodiles also know that.

-If you cross a river, you should cross in a different place?

-Yes.

-Why cross a river with crocodiles in it?

-To get to the other side.

LAUGHTER

Yes, fun and joke!

Out of the Safari 8 group, Ashleigh is quite interested.

Oh, my gosh! What type of crocodile is that?

'She wants to borrow my binoculars all the time.'

I think Noma as well. Noma is quite interested in this lake, yeah.

And visiting Lake Sibaya has helped Ella overcome a fear

that's been troubling her.

I'm less scared of crocodiles. I was a bit nervous about seeing them.

But I'm a bit more relaxed now.

-ALL: The Safari 8!

-A giraffe!

-I don't like spiders.

The Safari 8 are halfway through their month-long adventure.

So far, the team have pregnancy-tested buffalo,

given lions a health check, tracked elephant and rhino,

entered into some friendly competition

and picked up plenty of poo.

Our rookies have racked up the ranger experience,

training for one final mission -

to lead a two-day safari in search of South Africa's big five.

It's a challenge for which every team member must be 100% prepared,

but Rudi and Frankie aren't convinced that anyone's ready.

We'll have to wait a couple of weeks and see if they'll gel like a team.

So, from here on in, ranger training is going to get a whole lot tougher,

starting with some brutally honest midway reports.

And first to face the music is Tomas.

Tomas, first of all, put your shirt in.

OK, Tomas, you're definitely the joker of the group.

You always keep the team laughing and you're great with the team.

We think you need to take this a bit more seriously.

You are the scruffiest of all the eight kids.

As a ranger, when you get your uniform, it's a pride thing.

My proudest moment was my first uniform as a guide.

You need to start accepting that.

I'm not used to tucking shirts in cos it just looks geeky.

But I suppose you have to do it with this job.

You've got a bubbling personality.

Very willing, very keen to help others.

But there's a downside to it as well.

You need to find your inner strength.

A ranger's job is tough at certain times.

With the rhino, that didn't help my appearance of being strong.

You might have a client that feels the same way like you.

He or she might break down in tears and you need to be the stronger one.

I really understood why they said I have to be strong for other people.

I need to be strong for them and for myself too.

Manya, you started off with a bang.

-Well done.

-Who saw that first?

-I did.

You ask questions. There's a lot of potential in you to be a leader.

Manya, take us back, please.

But as the week's gone, you've slowly faded away in the background.

You are distracted by the jokers in the group.

Do you think he had diarrhoea? LAUGHTER

We need you to channel your energies more into the training

and stop mucking about.

I think it was really tough, hearing what they were saying.

It was quite a blow, but I think they're absolutely right

and I understand what they're saying.

-Thank you.

-Thanks, Manya.

Hello.

Well, Noma, we have summed you up as an extremely bright girl.

Things you do, questions you ask are really in depth and intellectual.

If the female is bigger than the male,

is it going to be much deeper or just wider?

You're very quiet most of the time

and we're worried actually that you're not enjoying it.

So I'm going to reprimand you a bit now

because I know that you're part of a debating team.

This is not only according to South Africa, but other countries as well.

So we need you to come out a bit.

We need you to show it to us.

I think I should accept the environment I'm in and get used to it

and be this happy person when I am happy.

-Hello, Ashleigh.

-I'm really scared.

You've studied a lot. Your knowledge is incredible.

It's an elephant because the toenails are stuck on the side of the foot.

You're probably the strongest of the girl team.

Your enthusiasm is there for certain things, but you seem bored.

You can't follow pathways, so teamwork is important.

A ranger needs to take everything seriously. Even the smallest insect.

There is a colossal amount of things that allow the big five to be here.

We feel you're taking those things for granted.

I am interested in other animals. I've made myself a checklist.

So I was a bit confused about that.

Hi, Sifiso. Your enthusiasm is great.

Oh, yeah, that was amazing!

I can see you've got questions, but you're worried about asking them.

Something that feeds on grass. It's much darker.

I had a teacher that said to me,

"If you ask a question, you're only stupid for a short while.

"If you don't ask a question, you'll stay stupid."

So that enthusiasm, we need that to come out in being a ranger.

I want to see it.

You've got what it takes. We just need to work on your confidence.

Giving goals and motivations,

that was very encouraging to me and it builds me up.

-Hello, Caroline.

-Hi.

You're really a bubbly personality.

You have got a lot of energy.

Yes, whoo-hoo! Five!

But in turn also you're distracting the group through that.

-I won't like this.

-Sometimes you're Caroline.

Is it the leopard shelter?

Yes, so you learnt.

And sometimes you're someone that you're not.

They're in my sleeping bag and I'm not sleeping here. I don't like it.

This is Africa. You must realise this is not Scotland.

Insects and creepy-crawlies are all around us.

-You can't scream every time you see an ant.

-Aaaagh!

Aaagh, there's a tick!

I know I'm scared of bugs and I can't help that.

I know sometimes I am over-dramatic, but I just don't like bugs.

Right, Kushal, we feel that you're really keen.

You are asking a lot of questions.

Can I ask a question?

You do, however, vocalise too quickly what you think.

The whole thing should be flat like that, but it's just a bundle.

Life is not just about winning. If you lose, bite the bullet.

I could be heading to Sundown right now.

There's a lot of disappointments being a ranger. Deal with it.

I've got to knuckle down and listen to what they're saying.

I need to really try my hardest

because I've got so much more to give.

Rudi and Frankie just want to help us constantly to be better rangers.

It feels like we've known each other for ten years.

We're comfortable with each other.

-What do you say for something that's not super-cool?

-Mingin'.

Yeah. Minging or "manging"? Is it minging or "manging"?

-Check out my head torch.

-You say, "Och, aye, the noo."

Och, aye, noo-noo.

What is that? What is that?

No, Caroline, don't laugh!

The noise of the whales, they go... MAKES HIGH-PITCHED SOUNDS

-What is it?

-"Och, aye, noo-noo"?

I said, "Och, aye, the noo."

Wait. Och, aye, noo-noo.

Next time, the Safari 8 get right back to basics, Zulu-style.

I find it a bit unfair that the boys had to do basically nothing

and we had to do all the work.

The team bust their best moves in a traditional dance-off.

-We still want this.

-And there are plenty of tears before bedtime.

When I first saw my mum, I was in tears.