SANParks.org Forums

They must stay.
Gives u something to look forward to the next day
U might see the lion or cheetah
And a tradition which must be kept

I'm also a fan of the sightings board, & make it a point to look at them when i reach the camp (& to watch the reaction of others, as I put up the lion pin! )
But I never had much luck with other tourists' leopard/cheetah/wild dog sightings. In fact, when i recently took a road with cheetah sightings, I never anticipated seeing it for myself - but ended up seeing both cheetah sightings!
As for the cork-boards & bent pins - how about an electronic sighting board! I think it has been implemented in another game park, but not sure how successful it is.

I too would be bedazzled if I saw u doing that infront of me. Really?

Hi Hassim
The idea has been on the table for some time. There are however some constraints which are mainly budgetary and infrastructure (network)

The idea is that all the sighting boards are linked via the network to enable a guest at Letaba to view what the sightings around Skukuza are by selecting it via a touch screen.

When it is implemented in the future, we hope that no pins will be pushed into the touch sensitive screens!

It can even go further and the sightings can be published on our web page every few minutes (automatically) and...database of animal sightings can grow (not scientific though!) and......and.....the ideas and possibilities are endless with technology these days!

I think th sightings boards should be used in conjunction with a written sightings book - this means that if there is a static sighting like lion on a kill you immediately know whether it is worth going to.

The thing that really gets me about the sightings boards is the colour coding - surely this should be consistant and should not differ from camp to camp.

When the sightings boards were introduced they were "manned" by honorary rangers so there was no indiscriminate placing of pins and certainly it stopped hoaxers from operating. I know that the honorary rangers are really only in evidence during peak seasons, namely in school holidays but I am sure that some attempt could be made to control the boards.

Insofar as the condition of the boards are concerned here I must agree - they are in a shocking condition and no attempt is made to replace lost (or stolen) pins. The one board that is a shining example to others is that at Orpen. It is always kept immaculate and is a pleasure to view.

Please reintroduce the books though, alongside the sightings boards.

Boards are very useful in planning your route and seeing what was seen on the various routes. Always check boards at the camps.

Suffice to say that the sightings boards will always be inaccurate to a certain degree.
The nature of people will see to this, whether its fooling around or getting the exact location wrong.
I certainly only have a look for interests sake and I must be honest either speak to people directly or use the sightings books as they provide a more reliable reference.

I must say I like the "interactive touch screen" idea that's looking for funding and power.
The possibilities are truly endless.
Think of it, even mini-videos and pics of the sightings could be loaded by those who saw them, ie. click on a sighting and a 3D map tracks showing you the route to the sighting from where you are and then opens a video clip showing you the sighting.
I am sure this would get the purists up in arms, but really the implementation of technology is endless and so much fun.

It does not need to be complicated. What about something like one of those pen-thingies they use with PDAs. Use it to click on the colour representing the animal you want to note and then use the pen-thingy to click on the spot on the digital map. I'll leave the technical details of accomplishing it to the more IT minded.

Think I remember seeing the white board at Satara.
If memory serves, there is a general info book in reception at Satara but very few sighting get written in it, as its not by the maps.
A sightings book in conjunction with the sightings map would be very useful - here's hoping that the other camps do as Punda Maria and Shingwedzi.

We've had manic luck with the boards - some brilliant, some very dissapointing. I'm with you Loams - I like the audiance but we are always honest. No fudging on the boards

The boards must stay - if nothing else they give us something to dream about

I do love the sightings boards for two reasons

first, even if you will not always find the game at the spots indicated on the board, it can give you a general idea where to go, in particular if you are staying in a area for a certain time
if - let's say a leopard - is sighted in a particular area every morning - chances could be worse than going there and check successfully

second, as mentioned by most of you guys, what a feeling to push in that leopard pin with other people watching

According to me, they're all more or less the same! We enjoy the one at Satara because there's always something interesting to see around that area . It's also very conveniently located, right next to the shop

Pretoriuskop, as it includes rare antelope sightings.