Volunteer
A dream come true for horse and horse riding enthusiasts!
If living, working and breathing horses is on your bucket list, find out more about our exciting volunteer programme.
As a volunteer with Pearly Beach Horse Trails, you will work hand-in-hand with the owners and trail assistant, accompanying and assisting on the daily riding tours for tourists along paradise-like white sandy beaches, through dune forests and the typical fynbos landscapes and mountains of Africa’s southern coast. In addition, you will work daily at the horse farm, feeding, grooming and caring for the horses and ponies, and helping with everything that needs to be done on the farm. You will live in the cosy volunteer house of high standards right on the farm. If you love horses, this volunteer placement is for you!
What will you do as a volunteer?
Some of the everyday tasks include:
- Feeding, grooming, cleaning and caring for the horses
- Preparations for the trails
- Saddling, off-saddling, tack cleaning
- Meet & greet with guests, giving briefings about the trails (also using foreign languages)
- Accompanying trails
- Riding
- Swimming with horses
- Mucking out
- Paddock cleaning
- Beach & trail clean-ups
- Small maintenance and repair works on the farm
- There might be the chance to train ride new and young horses at off-times
A typical day will include:
- Breakfast
- Check horses, groom, clean hooves, turnout
- Preparation for trail – includes tack check, equipment preparation, tacking up horses
- Meet & greet with guests
- Trail – assist on horseback or on the ground (leading horse by foot on trails for novices)
- Return from trail – off-saddle, clean tack, check horses, turnout
- Break for lunch
- Training, farm tasks, excursions or activities
- Possible Sundowner Trail
- Supper
As tourists sometimes book the trails last-minute and the trails also depend on the weather and tidal situation, the daily schedule can change and tasks can vary. Your working hours will therefore be variable – you will be busy 5 to 7 days a week but will get plenty of time to rest, relax and explore the area. Please bear in mind that, depending on your experience level, it might take a few days until you can accompany the trails. Your help at the ranch is however needed from your very first day!
In your free time, you might like to participate in activities, such as mountain biking & hiking, swimming, astronomy evenings, Penguin Sanctuary educational tours, dog walking at a nearby rescue centre, and sea trips. For every three week volunteering period, your hosts offer two excursions, included in your costs, such as visiting the southernmost tip of Africa, a cave & sandstone beach walk, a visit to the Platbos indigenous forest or the Hermanus cliff walk. Any further excursions are possible of course, but on your own expense.
Program Details
Start dates: Every Monday. Starting is not possible during the month of December.
Minimum duration: 3 weeks.
Maximum duration: 3 weeks plus
Minimum age: 18 years
Language skills required: English
Expected qualification volunteers: Horseriding skills are of advantage, but not a requirement
We expect: Professional work and attitude
Accommodation: Volunteer house on the horse ranch. You will share a twin room with another volunteer; incl. breakfast and lunch.
Price: on request.
You should bring: Suitable clothing for riding, including leggings, aqua shoes and a warm jacket. Your own riding hat if you have one, otherwise one will be provided. Personal items, such as toiletries and sunscreen.
You should be physically fit enough for this job and open to new experiences. You should love horses and nature. Ideally you already have experience in riding and with horses, but this is not absolutely necessary. Please note, if you weigh over 75kg, you will not be able to ride all the horses.