Spot the (two-tonne) rhino on Schofe's South African Adventure
Last week we arrived at Founders Lodge Game Reserve and our lovely hosts Vicky and Wayne Nel, and their ranger Phillip, made a dream come true by taking my wife, Steph and I to see giraffes in the wild.
How could we top that? Well, knowing my fascination for another African animal - the rhino - Wayne took us to the Amakhala Game reserve to meet a remarkable man, Dr Will Fowlds.
Will is a vet and rhino expert and took us out on a game drive to try and find rhinos. So began a game of cat and mouse, although in this case the mouse was a two-tonne rhino.
Part 1: Schofe goes diving with sharks and Behind the scenes of Schofe's shark diving adventure
Part 2: Schofe abseils down Table Mountain
Part 3: Schofe meets the real-life Crocodile Dundee
Part 4: Spot the two-tonne rhino, Schofe!
You might be thinking, how difficult can it be to find a two-tonne rhino? Well the answer is, more difficult than you might think because Amakhala is the size of ten thousand football pitches.
Steph and I were stunned when Will spotted the rhinos (without binoculars) from a moving vehicle at a distance of miles; but that was the easy part. Getting close was to prove difficult as the rhino were wary of us, even with Will’s expertise to guide us.
Whilst it is a nuisance for the tourist, that wariness of humans is well deserved as in 2014 and 2015 alone – two thousand three hundred and ninety rhinos - were killed in South Africa for their horns. In some countries rhino horn is ‘thought’ to have medicinal properties or simply coveted as a status symbol – so sad for something that is basically made of the same stuff as human hair. Especially sad was when Will told us that even the babies aren’t safe with their tiny horns also being prized by poachers.
Will explained that unless poaching is curbed, the rhino faces extinction.
It was a horrifying thought, made moreso by seeing the adorable baby playing with its family. However, I am pleased to say that Steph and I were able to do our part to help when Will asked us to take part in an anti-poaching rhino-tagging operation. I can honestly say that in a lifetime of amazing adventures, this was a highlight, seeing this huge operation including, helicopters, guards with guns, and a team of vets all giving their very best to protect these magnificent creatures.
I am delighted that you can see this incredible story when Schofield’s South African adventure moves to prime time starting on Friday February 17th at 8pm.
If you liked watching my adventures on This Morning you will love these new prime time shows, which gives us the chance to show so much amazing footage that we simply couldn’t fit into the This Morning episodes.
All the bestPhillip
With thanks to
Vicky and Wayne, Paul and Adrian Gardiner and all the team at Founders Lodge