Cape Town - When Bradley Wana was a young boy growing up in Nyanga, he often looked up at Table Mountain and imagined what it was like to be there.
“It was so beautiful. I always loved the mountain but never dreamt I would work there one day.
“I was going to be a reverend but this is so much better.”
After joining Table Mountain National Park in 2004 as part of the Expanded Public Works Programme, Wana got a full-time position two years later.
He has since worked his way up to section ranger for the northern section of the park, and is in charge of operations.
One of the challenges of the job is dealing with visitor safety.
Any mugging or attack on the world-famous mountain chain receives far more publicity than anywhere else in the city.
“When something happens on the mountain it gets reported all over the world and there is always criticism,” Wana says.
But he is confident they are making headway with anti-crime initiatives on the mountain.
Wana said most criminals were locals who often dressed like hikers and carried backpacks while looking for easy targets.
“We’ve had about five attacks this year but we have made some arrests as well.”
He said they had arrested a syndicate from Philippi in connection with the armed robberies on Lion’s Head recently.
“We arrested the same guys last year but they were under-age and released.”
And he was recently in court for the sentencing of two Zimbabwean men to eight years, two of which were suspended, for the mugging of a woman at the Noon Gun.
The rangers also assist people who get lost or fall on the mountain and have to deal with suicides as well.
Wana was among those celebrating World Ranger’s Day at Buffels Bay at Cape Point on Friday. It was held to honour and remember the 49 rangers worldwide who lost their lives in the line of duty in the past year.
One of those who regularly puts his life on the line is Bongani Myana, who is part of the small marine unit that patrols a section of coast from Muizenberg to the Oceana Power Boat Club near the Waterfront.
He said armed poachers, mostly from Hout Bay and Hermanus, were their biggest challenge: “The poachers go out prepared and they often have more powerful boats than us.
“And they are expanding operations. Cape Point is one of the hotspots.”
He said they often relied on tip-offs from the public: “It’s a dangerous job but I love it.
“I want future generations to see what an abalone looks like in real life, not just in a museum.”
Park manager, Paddy Gordon, speaking at the event said rangers were critical to nature conservation and their roles would become ever more demanding as the onslaught for land increased.
He said that while South Africa had 22 national parks and hundreds of municipal parks, these protected areas comprised only 7.4 percent of the land - a figure that hadn’t changed in years even as the population soared.
George Smith, who represented the Honorary Rangers, said rangers had to deal with dangerous criminals – who were often armed with knives or guns - poachers and visitors who wouldn’t behave.
There were also action and pressure groups that were often very critical.
But he added that the majority of people appreciated the work being done.
Cape Argus