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Dante Durdych and his father Rene will be trekking the Mountains of Nepal withthe aim of reaching Everest Base Camp. During thier trek they will be highlighting the plight of the rhino in our country and will be proudly supporting the Unite against Poaching trust.  Follow their expedition!!! We will update their progress as we receive updates from them.

Below is their proposed Trek... We wish Dante and Rene sucess and safe travels.

Rene talks about the expedition... We can’t believe that  we will be trekking the Himalayas and be surrounded by the highest mountains in the world. This will be a dream come true for us. Views of the four over 8000m mountains Lhotse 8516m, Makalu 8463m, Choyo 8201m and of course Everest 8848m.

Can’t wait to see magnificent views of Ama Dablam, Gokyo valley, glacier lakes and Buddhist Monasteries … There is just so much to be exited about. This is a place with such beauty and so much history. So many heroes that we read about and admire in the books walked the same paths what we will. Base camp will be packed with expeditions from all over the world that will be attempting to reach the summit of the highest mountain in the world.

There we will be in the presence of many great mountaineers and legends like Apa Sherpa, 21 times Everest summiteer who will be directing  The Eco Everest Expedition 2012 and of course this is the same place from where Sir Edmund Hilary and Tensing Norgay made the first successful summit attempt of Mt. Everest 29^th May 1953.

The other destination we are looking forward to is at the foot of the Pumori Mountain and is called Kala Pattar (Black Rock). This is from here where you get the amazing views of Mt. Everest, the surrounding massif, Everest Base Camp, the Khumbu Glacier and finally the deadly Khumbu Ice Fall.

Read more: Everest Trek for Unite against Poaching

1 April 2012

I wondered how it got to this. The giant of grey lay panting and snorting on the ground, in the midst of vegetation he flatted as he went down, a young bull, still to reach his prime. He was recently chased away by his mother, forced to find his own way in this rhino-world – a changed world, a world where his survival was far less likely. He was already being hunted for his horn, and his survival instincts were pitted against Man, for Man was employing his finest technology in combination with an age-old savagery, honed by greed. It was a one-sided battle.

Yet, I look at the men and women about me. Bush people – conservationists to the core, yet ordinary people. I am proud to be a part of them. A rhino necklace flashes; I notice a Stop-Rhino-Poaching bracelet. Everyone doing what they can to stop the senseless slaughter of the magnificent animal at our feet.

We work together, people from all walks of life. The SANParks Conservation Manager, Vet and rangers are in their element – they work quietly and quickly effecting interventions which will ensure that this individual can be monitored for his safety - a highly efficient team, intent on completing their work here and moving on to the next rhino. As SANParks Honorary Rangers, we are proud to be a part of this operation, one which will assist SANParks in their efforts to protect the Black Rhino.

Read more: Standing on the Precipice

Another brutal attack on a rhino cow over the Easter weekend has left us sickened to the core. Images of one of this majestic creatures having its horn hacked off while a defenceless rhino calf flinches in the background has horrified the public. These images portray the viciousness of the attackers and although we are bombarded with these violent images on a regular basis, our humanity has to be touched by the poignancy of a young rhino calf confused that its mother is not able to respond to it plaintive please.

The absolute ruthlessness of the poachers is sickening and makes us wonder what we, the human race, have come to. Greed has reduced the human race to callous and barbaric actions, to satisfy an ever increasing demand for rhino horn. The affluence of the Eastern consumer has seen the demand for rhino horn increase exponentially and the onslaught against these unique creatures is simply unimaginable.

Read more: How can you help save our rhinos?

The Unite against Poaching Trust have had the pleasure of allocating how the R2.738 million, which has been donated to the fund by Unitrans VW & Audi, has been spent in combatting rhino poaching in SANParks.

It is most women’s dream to be able to spend that amount of money as you see fit, but the trust have had some difficult decisions to make in distributing the funds appropriately. Rhino poaching makes the headlines daily and the public outcry over the apparent inability to curb the poaching put even more pressure to ensure that the funding is used effectively and efficiently. As the custodians of the majority of the rhino population in the country, SANParks has to be the major focus of the Trust.

Read more: If you had R2.738 million… How would you spend it?

Rhino lovers around the country have been shaken to the core by the news that the total rhino poached for this year alone stands at an incredible 80!!!   The news that another 2 rhino were poached this week in the Pretoriuskop area of the Kruger National Park brings the total there to a horrific 43 in the Kruger Park already this year.

The carnage MUST be stopped somehow!!!  The further shocking news that 4 SANParks officials have been arrested as a result of the latest poaching leaves one with a true bitter/sweet taste.  How disgusting that the very people we have looked to, to protect our precious rhino have perpetrated this atrocity. Greed eats away the very fabric of our society and to anticipate that the poachers get the full force of the law coming down on them will go some way to making amends to society.

Read more: Devastating rhino attacks… and more