After climbing at Silvermine this weekend I was chatting the the car guard and he was telling me that he only made money from tips. This seems crazy to as it costs R25 to access the reserve (if you dont have a wild card), surely SAN Parks should be paying the car guards, as people already pay good money to use the area.

True, just confirmed this with a phone call to the Table Mountain National Park Head Office.

Another little gripe is their 'week-long campaign, giving free access to the national parks' which gave South Africans with valid Identity Documents free entry from Monday 10th to Friday 14th September.
It's a nice gesture but I do wonder why they did not include the weekend!?

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Climb ZA - Administrator

I don't usually tip every chancer in a bright vest, but I was at Silvermine last weekend and the carguard was really helpful and knowledgeable about the climbing areas. I asked him to give a friend of mine directions to the area we were climbing at and he actually ran after the guy after spotting him to make sure he knew where to go. Considering the posts about break-ins into cars at Silvermine lately I really think this guy is making a positive difference. He's got the right attitude and deserves our support. He also deserves some cash from the park though.

I doubt very much that SANS Park actually employs this car guard; I say so because SANS Park probably has a wage remuneration policy and standard HR provisions that would make employment on the basis of earning tips not only irregular but also inconsistent with their standard conditions of service. He is probably permitted by SANS Park to act as a car guard – much like many of the informal Table Mountain car guards.

So where does that leave you, the user – pay those tips and write a letter every few months to SANS Park thanking them for recognising and accepting responsibility for the parking areas (in a restricted reserve) by ensuring that a car guard is always present to protect the property of those that utilise their facilities.

Yip, true.

As we have seen with numerous other issues, san parks is slow to react on anything, if they even bother to react.

Solution: Get the best pricing you can with a wild card.... OR hide your mate in the boot and you can each pay half price!