Training Day

As the first day of spring has passed, Zealandia is gearing up for the summer season. This is unlikely to be as busy as last summer’s touring and guiding, as there are unlikely to be a huge number of tourists visiting from abroad, and there is still a total ban on cruise ships entering New Zealand waters. However, there will probably be more people about the sanctuary in the summer, and so, in common with previous years, a new cohort of volunteer guides has been recruited and is in the process of being trained. That’s where I come in.

As an experienced volunteer and guide, I have been co-opted on to the Visitor Experience team to help with training these “newbies”. Last Saturday, I turned up at the sanctuary at 8:45am, in time to start welcoming the new volunteers to the sanctuary. The first week is a general introduction to the valley, and a walk around the “Red Route” – a misnomer as it’s no longer marked red on the maps – which is the main route where we walk and interact with visitors. Before setting out, I thought I’d gauge how familiar they were with the valley.

Volunteer #1: “I’m a foundation member”

Volunteer #2: “My parents are foundation members”

Volunteer #3: “I’ve been coming here for several years”

Et cetera. All were from Wellington. This is to be expected, but is different to previous years as obviously some people were here from abroad on working or temporary visas, looking to gain experience by just working the summer. There’ll be none of that this year, methinks.

Out we went into the valley, and walked along the main Lake Road, observing the wildlife and generally familiarising them with what we need to point out, where the signs are kept, how to spot a tuatara, that kind of thing. The two hours flew by, but fortunately my experience last summer as a tour guide came in handy as I’m used to being able to get people back to the Visitor Centre in time for the bus, so we were back pretty well on the button at 11:00. The next stage of their day was to listen to Jim Lynch’s presentation about the founding of the sanctuary, which I stayed on for to hear.

In the afternoon, I was on duty as usual as a volunteer guide, so I had my lunch then signed in to do my shift.

Next week: Health and Safety.