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HARTLEY'S SAFARIS REMOTE SPECIALISTS

Meet our remote specialists and find out more about who they are and what they do.


  • Aleks Bartnicka Aleks Bartnicka Photography
    Dive Photographer
    I was born in Warsaw, Poland. That’s where I lived till I discovered Palau, a tiny Pacific nation, and dropped out of college to move there. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I knew nothing about diving back then, except that I didn’t want to try it. That’s right: I did NOT want to dive. As a matter of fact, I was kind of forced into it, but that’s a different story. The bottom line is, once tried, I couldn’t stop.

    I live for diving.

    I’m privileged to have 700% of this Earth’s surface to myself. When I’m diving, it’s my world.

    To make a living I look for jobs that keep me close to the Oceans. I worked as a kayak guide, dive instructor, photographer, videographer, deckhand and writer. I tried to lean towards writing about diving, but the words always seem flat and inadequate to describe the amazing underwater realm. Photography must be my favourite medium right now, although my mind seems to stray towards video more and more. Some of my photos and writing were good enough to get published.

    The state of our Oceans worries me. I have to say it’s for all the selfish reasons. I can’t imagine not having anywhere to dive, not being able to have the breath-taking encounters with water creatures, not being part of a fairy tale. I’m constantly inspired by amazing people, some of which I had the pleasure of meeting during my travels, who dedicate their lives to marine conservation.

    I hope my images will inspire to discover, love and protect the amazing world we know so little about.

    Visit My Website
  • Gordon Hiles Gordon Hiles Videography
    Film & Television
    GORDON HILES is an international cameraman for both the film and television industry, specialising in aerial; adventure sports, wildlife and underwater filming.

    I have been involved in varied land-based wildlife expeditions filming for renowned television programs, including filming the white water river rafting adventures on the Zambezi, Orange River, Kunene River and Bio-Bio River in Chile. I’m regularly filming diving expeditions around South Africa (still one of the better dive areas of the world), Mozambique, Tanzania/Zanzibar, Red Sea, Maldives a few times, Persian Gulf, Fiji, and Galapagos.

    My underwater filming activity began in 1984 which was very new to South Africa then, and to the best of my knowledge, there were only two other people in SA apart from myself offering this service. The first film was at Dyer Island near Gansbaai/Hermanus where I filmed the Cape Fur Seals as well as the first images of Great White Sharks in the area. Here too I also filmed the Southern Right Whales in Hermanus. Today of course that is now a world tourist hotspot for shark viewing and whale watching.

    Over the years, I have covered vast expanses of land filming both aerial wildlife expeditions and off-road racing. During the latter part of 2015, I worked alongside ‘Aerials of Africa’ filming for the Smithsonian Channel, capturing images of South Africa, Botswana, Zambia and Namibia from the air. This project was to highlight the geographical, urban, wildlife, social, historical and many other aspects of these areas in a documentary series made specifically for international viewing.

    Looking back over my career, one of my greatest highlights was meeting a 6m Great White Shark underwater; this was seconded on another occasion by a 15 meter whale rushing passed me (a meter away) whilst filming the sardine run.

    A spectacular highlight too was filming into the eye of a volcano in Chile after walking across a glacier to get there. And on another occasion, a highlight not to be recommended was being charged by a black rhino while filming in the Pilansberg. Working behind the camera is exciting and thrilling but certainly has its hidden dangers too!

    Contact: Gordon Hiles email: info@seacamfilms.com
  • Kay Trethowan Kay Trethowan Travel
    Travel and Writing
    Travelling is an ongoing part of my life.

    When I’m not doing it, I’m inevitably thinking about it, reading about it and planning the next trip somewhere!

    To holiday in a stylish resort, relax, eat, drink and indulge the body is a delightful, rest on the sidelines of life.

    To travel into our fabulous world - perhaps through crowded chattering India, remote wild Africa, or along one of a hundred roads in between - is to take a journey into oneself.

    Of all the countries and places I’ve lived and travelled in over the years, India has been a constant and passionate conundrum which I now enjoy sharing with guests during small group private tours.

    But it’s at the magical hour of sunset on the vast plains of Africa, where herds of elephants, springbok and zebra roam and leopards, cheetahs and lions hunt as flocks of birds ribbon the sky, that my soul hears the whispers of our earliest forbearers in the wind and longs to take flight.

    Kay is currently based in Perth, Western Australian and is an exclusive small group tour creator and escort specializing in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Myanmar. She is a published freelance travel writer and writer.

    Follow Kay on her blog: hundredroads.com
    Contact us for an inspired itinerary to anyone of her travel destinations
  • Brett Smith Brett Smith Travel
    Adventure Travel
    I knew I wanted from life: The Next Big Thrill.

    Shortly after finishing school, I conveniently found myself working at a scuba-dive centre in Johannesburg. The “work hard-play hard” environment appealed to me and set the foundation for what I knew I wanted from life: The Next Big Thrill.

    I worked my way up to being a PADI Dive Master and, having already qualified as a skipper at 16, I decided that Mozambique could offer me more than the city life. White sandy beaches, azure waters, and world-class diving… it was a dream come true. However after some time, the easygoing beach life was just not cutting it for me. I needed more adventure and occasionally jumping in the water with a Great White shark was simply not enough.

    Deciding to dry off for a bit, I headed into the bush to work as an overland guide. I found myself exploring southern and eastern Africa like never before… And adventure certainly tends to find you when you have a large safari truck filled with foreign tourists that you alone are responsible for. Getting stuck in the most remote parts of Africa while surrounded by lion and hyena, and with little to no communication, certainly taught me how to get resourceful.

    I also got to test out all the activities before my clients did (you know, to make sure they are safe!) so white-water rafting on the Zambezi River, flying a microlight over the Victoria Falls, sky-diving, quad-biking, sand-boarding on some of the largest dunes in Namibia, guiding a makoro through the Okavango Delta, and finding the best swimming spots in crocodile and hippo infested waters were all part of the job, as was setting up camp underneath a canopy of stars, enjoying sundowners overlooking the Serengeti, finding the most incredible wildlife sightings, and knowing everything about every animal and every tree we happened across.

    In 2013, I decided to embark on the next adventure and moved to Germany. Weekend skiing, the Autobahn, and the ease of travelling around Europe, kept me there for a short while, but the ache of missing Africa became too much and I came home.

    I am now currently working on a new wildlife conservancy project in the Cradle of Humankind, South Africa. In addition to this, I am also completing my Powered Paragliding pilot course in the hopes of being able to use it to further wildlife conservation efforts, as well as undergoing training for the South African Police reservists.

    Showing people exactly why I love Africa, and helping to preserve this magnificent piece of earth, continues to be the very essence of my life.
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