MORE ABOUT ME
Born in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, I spent most of my childhood moving back and forth between Durban and the family private game reserve in northern Zululand, where my passion for the outdoors and wildlife was nurtured at a young age. My mum would always struggle to get me inside the house at the end of the day, when all I wanted to do was be in the in the outdoors, exploring and learning.
After high school I gained practical knowledge to support my passion for nature at the University of KwaZulu Natal, where I earned a bachelor’s degree in ecological sciences with a focus on wildlife management and conservation. Field trips into the bush occupied much of my studies and during school holidays I often assisted post-graduate students with research and field work. Following graduation, I trained as a game ranger at the world-famous MalaMala Game Reserve adjacent to Kruger National Park. This spectacular reserve is where I was based for almost a decade and where my guiding career began, ultimately holding the positions of head ranger and head photographic ranger.
In 2016 it was time for me to leave MalaMala and begin my career as a private guide, but not until I’d done something completely insane.. Cycling down the entire west coast of the USA while pulling a life sized replica of a Black Rhino named “Lunar” to raise money for Rhino conservation. The initiative was named, The Long Ride to Free Them, or Rhino Ride for short. Rhino Ride was not only a fundraising campaign for my favorite creatures, the Rhino, but an awareness pilgrimage to tell the unfortunate story of our poor rhinos and to try shed some light on how we can save them. It took me along some 2000 miles of hilly coastline and 2 months to complete and it ultimately led to me meeting (and marrying) my now wife who was the rhino keeper at one of the zoos I presented at.
Over the course of my career I have had the privilege of traveling Africa extensively and have visited many of the regions “bucket list” destinations, from Madagascar to Uganda, the Namib desert to the Okavango delta, the Masai Mara to the MalaMala, and beyond! I have been incredibly fortunate to work with some of the best companies and conservation organizations in the world and consider myself one of the lucky few who truly love what I do and can’t wait to go to work on a Monday.
