BRENDON DREDGE

Brendon is a seasoned explorer of Southern, Central and  Eastern Africa. His travels and adventures have fostered an innate connection to the untamed beauty of this vast continent. Brendons' love and passion for Africa is only matched by his absolute professionalism - he undertakes each journey with the utmost care and the most thorough research, ensuring his clients are guaranteed only the best possible experience.

If its off the beaten track - that's where he'll be...

Brendons' journey as an explorer and guide began at an early age as his father moved across the continent for work. As they moved countries they explored the local national parks and reserves, from the Amboseli in Kenya, the vast plains of the Serengeti and crystal clear waters of Lake Malawi.


Home for Brendon however was the family cattle farm in the central parts of Zimbabwe, where he spent most of his time exploring on horseback, birding or engaging with the Matabele People. It is here that his deep appreciation for African Cultures, Customs and Traditions was sparked, a passion that has stood him in tremendous stead as he has worked across the continent.

Brendons quest for constant further learning led him to obtain an Honours degree in Management and later an MSc in Ichthyology (a branch Zoology that deals with fish the layman).



His calling however has always been to explore Africa. Brendon has an impressive list of bucket list destinations ticked off - from the dunes of Sossusvlei, to the magical rainforests of Odzala-Kokoua in the Republic of Congo.  The more remote and wild a region is the happier Brendon is to explore and immerse himself in the area, its people and the wildlife. During his time in Odzala-Kokoua Brendon learned from the local pygmy groups how they survived in this wilderness region living off the forests and alongside wildlife.


Brendon views the world differently to most people, and this carries through to his clients. His ability to fully immerse himself with unbridled passion in a region evokes a deep sense of adventure and often allows you to experience more than you would on an ordinary safari.

After a very successful stint in the Congo, Brendon returned to Southern Africa, the call of the mighty Zambezi River, the grasslands and savannahs of Zimbabwe and the desert terrain of the Green Kalahari were too strong to ignore.


Brendon has worked in some of the best safari lodges, from Tswalu Kalahari, Kwandwe and Mala Mala.


If it is off the beaten track, the chances are it is where you will find Brendon guiding his next great expedition. His absolute enthusiasm to uncovering all wild areas where animals roam freely is contagious.


Brendon is a highly intellectual individual with an incredible passion for conservation, people and these remarkable wilderness regions. He is also a very talented photographer, with his beautiful photographs telling the story of  thrilling adventures and a life lived with a great  love for wild spaces.


He believes that there is no greater privilege than sharing these remote regions with guests, who by the end of their journey together become lifelong friends.

Get to know your Guide - Brendon Dredge

  • If you could have any wild animal as a sidekick on your safaris, which one would it be and why?

    Jane from Tarzan. As a male guide the lens that we view the world and our natural surroundings are so often different to Janes. She brings a different point of view and often adds an invaluable insight to a safari experience.

  • What's your all-time favourite safari destination, and what makes it so special to you?

    Congo, Odzala-Kokuoua NP, this true wilderness in the heart of Africa provides one of the purest immersive safari experiences. The unique animals that inhabit this part of Africa make every excursion all the more exciting in anticipation of something different. The night walks through the Ngaga forests are mesmerizing as you scan the trees for a variety of wildlife from angwantibos to African palm civets. The local people still rely on the forests where they live alongside the wide ranging Western Lowland Gorillas and Chimpanzees  

  • What's the most extraordinary wildlife encounter you've ever had while on a safari, and how did it leave an impact on you?

    I had guests that on arrival wanted to see a kill. They had been on many previous safaris, never witnessing one. The subsequent two days were spent following a female cheetah with 4 cubs, being hungry the day the guests arrived, she provided the best opportunity as she needed to make a kill every second day at least. 

    On the second afternoon, she was stalking a small herd of Nyala in an acacia thicket on the edge of a large river. The cubs were left about 50m behind and we had positioned ourselves on a little outcrop overlooking the scene. We briefly lost sight of her and suddenly the Nyala ran, they ran between the trees and we caught brief glimpses of her as she caught up with them. Then suddenly the entire herd reappeared and ran for safety, a few seconds later the cheetah appeared and lay down, she was lying on her one side and did not return to the cubs. A few moments later, blood started to pool below her, the cubs called and found her. She did not move, but licked them as they gathered around her. The blood pool grew in size as it seeped into the ground. Finally, she stood up and moved a little, we saw a deep gash on her should were a patch of skin the size of my hand had been ripped off. Blood was spurting out as she walked. We called the conservation team and left the area. The group of guests and I were in silence, we had not expected this result at all. Stopping for a morning coffee, the mood was tense as we all quietly knew that without intervention this cheetah family would not survive. 

    After inspection we found she had turned too quickly on the Nyala and a branch had ripped her open. The conservation team did get involved, they stitched her up and she made a full recovery along with the cubs. This truly showed the one cannot predict the outcome of any event in the wild and just how quickly life can change.


  • Which safari experience do you find most exhilarating - tracking big cats, observing elephants at a waterhole, or bird-watching in a lush forest?

    Each option is intiging for me, as a photographer I always love watching Elepahants drinking and socializing at waterholes, catching those special moments often only seen at such places. Bird-watching in lush forests for me is thrilling as it can be incredibly difficult, as a fast flying robin whips past in the undergrowth, or by knowing the calls one has to intrepidly approach the source to get a view.


    Tracking big cats for me just tops that list. On foot, the tracks show the past life of the cat, it’s actions and foretelling its intentions. Is it hunting, patrolling or looking for a place to rest. Leopards, in their secretive way, move silently, passing by unseen and unheard and tracking these animals requires patience, skill and a deep understanding of their behaviour. Tracking big cats often leads to other interesting encounters along the way.


  • If you had to sum up your passion for guiding and the wild in one sentence, what would it be?

    Helping others to understand the true pleasure in nature through a narrow and broad perspective of worldwide wildlife areas, the greatness of each and the challenges to achieving holistic conservation, with a dash of humour and a sprinkle of …. 

  • If you could have any superpower on safari, what would it be?

    The ability to communicate with animals. I say this not necessarily just to communicate directly with an individual animal but communities. This could provide a deeper understanding into how the social structures of animals work and to be able to empathise with them. Also I guess, to see which ones are really intelligent and if they do exist as we sometimes portray such as Scrat being rather mindless in Ice Age.

  • What's the most unusual or funny wildlife behaviour you've ever witnessed?

    There are many funny experience, from baby elephants rolling around infront of vehicles just to show off then running back to mom, to lions getting stuck in trees and appearing far to scared to come down. Personally I do love watching birds that mimic. The diminuitive Chestnut-vented tit-babler sounding off like it is a Fish Eagle from deep inside a thorn tree, but my favourite was a Karoo Scrub-Robin mimicking a cheetah call and getting 3 cubs to curious walk over to investigate, even the mother cheetah returned the call, this went on for quite a few minutes as the bird hopped around calling the cheetah and they ended up moving in a large figure of 8 until they finally figured out what was happening.

  • If you were to lead a safari for your favourite celebrity, who would it be, and what kind of safari experience would you plan for them?

    I have never been one to pick a favourite celebrity, but in each field often there are people that you admire and look up to. This question for me poses an interesting dynamic. I feel that the celebrity I chose would in turn create a greater awareness for conservation. In this regard, I think Joe Rogan would be the celebrity. He has an incredible following on his podcast and taking him on safari would add an extra dimension to what he might relay to his listeners. He is thought provoking in his question and I would love to take him on a safari to Boma in South Sudan to see the relatively unheard of migrations of White-eared Kob and Mongalla Gazelle (the second largest mammal migration in the world) and the plight of the several ethnic groups that live within the park.  Then onto Odzala, as I have stated before, is just stunning and finish off in the Okavango Delta.

  • Which destination is still on your bucket list and why?

    Pantanal. I do really enjoy seeing the large cats and to view a jaguar resting on the river bank watching carefully for an unaware caimen passing by.

  • What legacy do you want to leave behind ?

    As I slowly age and watch my son grow this question is one I pose to myself frequently, what legacy have I already started to leave and what would I want to improve or change? I would like to say that in each person I interact with especially on safari, to leave behind thought provoking ideas for them, to want to enjoy and see the pleasure in nature, to feel connected to it and change their lives to understand the importance of conservation and live it.

Don't just sit there, take the first step to uncovering the natural world in a way you could never have imagined before!

If you have a longing to experience the extraordinary - be it the dense rainforests of the Congo, the vast open plains of Zimbabwe or the magic of the Green Kalahari with Brendon, get in touch now so that we can book your free safari consultation and get the ball rolling on your next great adventure

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