There are several hundred miles of rough terrain between Kruger National Park and the release site in Limpopo National Park. Along the way, the trailer may break down, get stuck or have trouble summitting hills because of its heavy cargo. It often takes half the day or more to transport an elephant.

Before the elephant is released into the park, it spends 24 to 36 hours in a "boma," a specially built enclosure bordered by electric fence. This allows elephants to learn about electric fences before they're released into the park; that way they won't attempt to cross the perimeter fence into neighboring farmland.

To get from the transport crate to the boma, the elephant travels down an earthen ramp inside a funnel-shaped framework that's built with canvas and wooden poles. The idea is to prevent the elephant from seeing or venturing sideways when released into the boma.

After a brief stay in the boma, the elephant with its radio collar is released into the wild. Occasionally the elephant will attempt to return to Kruger National Park, but most elephants take to their new home in Limpopo, where there's little competition for abundant resources. The "Great Elephant Rescue" has so far been an enormous success.

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