qanda-with-guides
-
Electric Mountain Bike Adventures with Renae Blackshaw
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Interest in cycling tourism has undergone a sharp increase in recent years, and touring companies like Australian Coastal Safaris are leading the way. "A day out on our electric mountain bikes is memorable and rewarding," says Renae Blackshaw who, together with Australian Coastal Safaris founder David Doudle, launched the e-bike...
-
At the Helm of the Alison Maree with Paul Cross
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Naturaliste Charters owners Paul and Alison Cross have always felt connected to their home ground in Western Australia's South West, and in 2009 they purchased Naturaliste Charters with the aim of offering guests an opportunity to experience the awe-inspiring whales of the region while maintaining a strong commitment to responsible...
-
The Wonder of Wellness with Sarah Hayes
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Responsible nature-based tourism helps keep the environment clean, supports wild animals in their natural habitat, and involves local communities. For Sarah Hayes, it also provides a unique opportunity to educate visitors on the benefits of connecting with nature. "We evolved in nature but, because modern-day living is technical, disconnected and...
-
Recounting the History of Australia’s Indian Ocean Islands with Chris Carr
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
When Chris Carr recounts a story, everyone listens. There's something about the way he begins, his tone of voice, and the location he chooses. "I tell my stories throughout the tour. If I'm near a location where one of the events took place, I'll start there. Other times I'll talk...
-
In Search of Tasmania’s Endemics with Elise Tardieu
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Elise Tardieu knows a thing or two about Tasmania's rich ecology, history and culture, and loves to share her knowledge with Premier Travel Tasmania guests. "I switched from teaching to guiding nearly 18 years ago and haven't looked back," she says. Originally from France, Elise was drawn to Australia's largest...
-
Nursing Bats Back to Health with Jenny Mclean
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Jenny Mclean has extensive knowledge about bats and has dedicated the last two decades of her life to their wellbeing and conservation. "We started Tolga Bat Hospital in 1990, and now we're the largest bat rehabilitation and tourism facility in Australia, caring for up to 1,000 bats each year," she...
-
Researching the Whales of WA with Jennah Tucker
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Marine biologist Jennah Tucker has been in and around water since growing up in Broome, and has long been passionate about whales. "The Humpbacks come up to the Kimberley each winter to breed and calf, so I've always had Humpbacks in my backyard," she says. "And I started working in...
-
Embracing the Unexpected with Leigh Dalton
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Leigh Dalton loves the great outdoors, so to take guests around his backyard is a dream come true. "A great destination makes for great holidays, and as a guide I am able to enhance a place with cultural stories, history and point out rock art and other features that people...
-
River Therapy with Cathy Schier
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
There's something special about the symphony of nature's whispers. The crunch of feet on the leaf litter. Birdsong in the distance. Rustling in the reeds. Although there's plenty to talk about, there's also a right time to talk. "It's not about filling the gaps," explains Murray River Trails guide Cathy...
-
An East Gippsland Education with Hayley Forster
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
All Echidna Walkabout tours focus quite heavily on wildlife spotting so, for Hayley Forster, joining the guiding team was a natural fit. "I majored in Wildlife and Conservation Biology in my Environmental Science degree, and am very passionate about Victorian wildlife and ensuring that our native forests stay put," she...
-
Storyteller Series: Georgia Currant from The Maria Island Walk
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
There are so many wombats on Maria Island, "they're a tripping hazard", Georgia Currant jokes. The young guide has spent countless family holidays on the isle off the east coast of Tasmania, so she's got firsthand experience. In keeping, she makes a point of introducing people to the particularly docile...
-
Storyteller Series: David Doudle from Australian Coastal Safaris
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
To spend time with Australian Coastal Safaris' David Doudle is to get a window into the fourth-generation farmer's enchantingly free-range childhood. David grew up on a sheep and grain farm on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula, by the cliffy edges of the Great Australian Bight. Spare time was spent exploring rock...
-
Storyteller Series: James Boettcher from FNQ Nature Tours
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
When James Boettcher was a kid, he thought everyone swung through the trees, slid down rapids and fashioned fish traps from spiky rainforest vines. Growing up in Cairns, the World Heritage-listed Daintree Rainforest was at his fingertips. After finishing high school, he spotted an advertisement in a newspaper about guiding....
-
Storyteller Series: Tony Sharley from Murray River Trails
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Growing up in the Riverland town of Renmark, Tony Sharley saw first-hand the dramatic effects of the Murray River in flood when he was a student in high school - he even did a geography project on it. An environmental science degree followed, and a career as a field biologist...
-
Storyteller Series: Roger Smith from Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Roger Smith remembers clearly, when he was a child, seeing a mob of kangaroos hop into a grove of trees in the middle of a paddock. "I thought I'd sneak out straight across the paddock," he says. "And if they ran away, I'd see them. But when I got there,...
-
Storyteller Series: Lisa Preston from Indian Ocean Experiences
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Lisa Preston first went to Christmas Island on holiday in 1996. Her visit happened to be right in the middle of one of the world's greatest natural spectacles: the red crab migration, in which millions of crabs march toward the ocean to spawn. "It was just this crazy thing going...
-
Storyteller Series: Craig Wickham from Exceptional Kangaroo Island
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
When Craig Wickham spots a goanna scuttling across the road, he doesn't tell his guests to get out of the way. Instead, he invites them into the bush to see where it has come from. He knows that more often than not, the reptile is slinking away from a termite...
-
Storyteller Series: Andrew Ellis from Pacific Whale Foundation Eco-Adventures Australia
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Since he was a 15-year-old crewing on a tug boat on Sydney Harbour, Andrew Ellis has spent his career on the water. He ended up in tourism, working on floating restaurants and cruise ships. Then, 32 years ago, he took a catamaran from Sydney to Hervey Bay with the idea...
-
Storyteller Series: Daniel Schoedler from Premier Travel Tasmania
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
When travel agent Daniel Schoedler flew from Switzerland to Tasmania for a trade show in 2015, it didn't take long for the Apple Isle to make an impression. "I was invited on a seven-day tour and I was fascinated from the first minute," he says. "You get into Hobart and...
-
Storyteller Series: Paul Cross from Naturaliste Charters
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
Paul Cross has travelled more than 52 countries, but if you ask him to pick the most beautiful place in the world, it's his ocean-lapped backyard every time. Growing up near Bunbury, south of Perth, Paul and his brothers spent every spare minute fishing, surfing and diving along the Western...
-
Storyteller Series: Debbie Ferguson from Exmouth Dive & Whalesharks Ningaloo
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
The first time Debbie Ferguson saw a whaleshark was on her honeymoon. She and husband Mark wanted something to remember their special occasion with, and the enormity of the gentle, spotted giant - a filter-feeder that bears a vacuum-like mouth filled with 300 tiny teeth - definitely fit the bill....
-
Storyteller Series: Peter Clutterbuck from Australian Coastal Safaris
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
More than 30 years ago, when Peter Clutterbuck was a teacher, he was posted to the town of Port Lincoln, on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula. He spent some time driving around, looking for a place to call home. "Luckily, I found a spot which was exactly where I wanted to...
-
Storyteller Series: Sab Lord from Lords Kakadu & Arnhemland Safaris
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
You'd expect a man raised on a Kakadu buffalo and crocodile-hunting station to be a character, and Sab Lord doesn't disappoint. He also knows everything - and everyone - there is to know in the outback, enabling him to unlock places and people that few others have access to. Sporting...
-
Tracking Marine Debris with Andrew Ellis
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
A recent study of marine life found that flexible plastics are responsible for the largest proportion of marine life deaths. In the case of whales, once ingested the plastics can accumulate in the stomach, the mass eventually becoming so big that it obstructs the bowels and the whale starves to...
-
Explore the Botanical Ark with Alan Carle
Posted by Australian Wildlife Journeys
A mini rainforest of useful plants awaits FNQ Nature Tours guests visiting Botanical Ark, a private sanctuary owned and managed by husband-and-wife team Alan and Susan Carle. “Botanical Ark is my wife and I attempting to leave a green footprint on the planet – and at the same time educate...
Subscribe to blog
Archive
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023
- May 2023
- April 2023
- March 2023
- February 2023
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- October 2021
- September 2021
- August 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- May 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- December 2020
- November 2020
- October 2020
- September 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
- February 2020
- January 2020
- December 2019
- November 2019
- October 2019
- September 2019
- July 2019
- June 2019
- May 2019
- April 2019
- March 2019
- February 2019
- January 2019
- November 2018
- October 2018
- September 2018
- August 2018
- July 2018
- June 2018
- May 2018
- March 2018
- January 2018
- December 2017
- November 2017
- October 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- June 2017
- May 2017
- April 2017
- February 2017
- December 2016
- November 2016