Meet Thapelo - a guiding great
Working for Feline Fields is where he belongs
When the wilderness is in your blood it's impossible to shake it. It will keep calling you back, which is why Thapelo Malatsi wakes up every day and feels like he's home and living his best life. Let's find out more about Feline Fields Vintage Camp's wonderful guide and why he loves what he does so much...
Thapelo Malatsi is something of a guiding legend in Botswana safari circles. Born in 1966 and raised in the Okavango Delta, he grew up surrounded by this legendary wilderness. "My family followed a traditional gatherer lifestyle, fishing and finding our food from the wild. There was no tourism around in those days, so I followed my father, assisting him and learning bush skills from him," Thapelo explains.
When tourism started in Botswana the mid 1970s things began to change and opportunities began to present themselves for those with wilderness experience. "In 1985 I got my first job in the Delta and began training in tourism, taking guests into the bush," says Thapelo. "Eventually the government introduced a formal guiding qualification - a guiding license - and I passed all of the exams easily because I had learned so much since I had been a child.
"I did boat activities, canoeing, and walking safaris for 10 years in the Delta and then got my driver's license and began doing game drives as well. In 2006 I joined &Beyond and went through their training programme, becoming a fully fledged professional guide," says Thapelo.
"After three years I was selected to go for further training in South Africa and returned to Maun, continuing my work until I met Raphael and Marjan del Sarte - the founders of Feline Fields - and I joined Feline Fields at the very beginning, helping them to establish Feline Fields Lodge and the Feline Fields Trust."
Meeting the Del Sartes and helping them to build the Feline Fields we know today was a turning point in Thapelo's career and his life.
"I felt as if I had come home and found my true calling," he says. "I spent time teaching kids in the schools the Feline Fields Trust supports, telling them about conservation and the importance of looking after our wilderness areas. When the lodge opened, I moved to the Kalahari and learned everything I could about the ecosystem there and guiding guests.
"When Feline Fields Vintage Camp began, I moved to Khwai to take over the guiding - returning to the Delta once more! It was like my life had come full circle. Every day here is special, and I consider myself blessed to be working in such a beautiful environment."
Thapelo has two sons, but they are town boys, he says, and don't have any inclination to work in the bush. Yet. "Perhaps I will persuade them one day! For now, I love what I am doing and am where I belong."
