Biography
ENLARGE
For Jonny, Africa is the scene of many childhood bedtime stories and has therefore always conjured up very exciting, vivid imagery of pioneer explorers and exotic unknown cultures. Modern maps may as well say "Terra Incognita" to Jonny and his over active imagination and interest eventually led him to pursue a dream and travel to Africa.
In 2008 he set out on his own to South Africa and being so keen on wildlife he gained work as a guide come fishing gillie and bar manager at a small private game reserve in Mpumalanga, near Nelspruit, where he worked for a year or so. During this time his passion and knowledge for the indigenous wildlife in southern Africa grew enormously and he also made some superb life long friendships with South African people throughout the country. He also spent time in Cape Town where his personal highlight was paragliding off Lion's Head and landing in between sunbathers on Camps Bay beach!
He maintains that Africa is addictive and gets under your skin, that once you have been you'll always want to go back. To him there is a buzz about the place that is extremely difficult to describe and he recommends that everyone goes there at least once in their life to experience this special feeling only Africa provides!
My Most Memorable Experience
My favourite experience in South Africa was being able to spend about 45 minutes with a male leopard early one morning whilst he tracked a pack of Impala not far ahead of us.
To see a leopard was something I had always wanted to do but to be able to get as close as we did and spend so long with one was a real privilege I was not expecting.
Eventually the bush became too thick to take the Land Rover's through but we were no more than five metres away at times from one of natures most impressive predators in the midst of a thrilling hunt.
My Favourite Destination
The Greater Kruger Park is without doubt my favourite destination as a nature lover. It is an all out assault on the senses, from pungent foreign smells, new exotic sounds and utterly unique sights this part of South Africa will be hard pushed to disappoint.
At approximately the same size as Wales in the UK the wildlife here is allowed to totally bloom away from mans often destructive hands. You can barely go more than a few minutes here without craning your neck to see something of interest.
My Favourite Accommodation
Nthambo Tree Camp set in the Klaserie Private Game Reserve (part of The Greater Kruger) is a unique experience and somewhere etched into my mind forever now.
The camp itself is extremely eco-friendly running mainly on their own solar power panels and you'll notice the lack of man made background noise. This is replaced instead by a cacophony of natural sound, an orchestra of insects, birds and mammals all playing their part. The thatched roofed, canvas walled suites set on stilts well spaced from one another help to allow for not only total privacy but also complete peace and quiet as you look at across what is quintessential South African bushveld. In the distance you can pick out the tail end of the impressive Drakensberg mountain range but if you're lucky you may spot something more interesting passing not far away in the foreground.
I enjoyed sitting around the warming fire in the BOMA long into evening at the end of the day chatting to my fellow guests and ranger about what we had seen during the day, the awe inspiring southern hemisphere constellations above us and just life in general.