Introducing our new series, #KnowYourGuide, where we engage in conversations with experienced safari guides across all our camps and lodges. This ongoing series will feature a blend of written interviews and guide-centric videos. In today’s spotlight, we highlight Umkumbe Safari Lodge Riverside, providing an in-depth look into the much-loved guide, Tyron Combrink. Tyron, a personable and well-informed guide, consistently earns glowing reviews from our guests.
A vital element in ensuring a successful safari experience is your safari guide. These guides play multifaceted roles as companions throughout your stay, serving as mentors, educators, and protectors. Alongside the tracking team, they meticulously observe wildlife behavior and movements to identify patterns. Your khaki-clad hero or heroine possesses not only academic knowledge but also practical wisdom, learned while on the ground in the bushveld. Through a comprehensive study of guiding theory and hands-on experience, these guides contribute significantly to the overall success of a lodge.
Did you know? Safari guides aren’t just there to teach you about the wild and find your bucket-list sightings. While you’re cocooned in comfort in the dead of night, guides and predators alike begin to stir. Typically, a guide gets up way earlier than you think—they prep the vehicles for morning game drive, pack the snacks and coffees, and makes sure you’re awake in time for drive. These early morning tasks represent just a fraction of their extensive role as guides.
Let’s get nosy and chat to Tyron Combrink!
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Welkom in the Free State, a mining and farming community without much wildlife—only farm animals.
Why did you decide to become a guide?
My love for the bush started from a young age! When we had career days at school, I always dressed as a field guide. Watching Steve Irwin and wildlife documentaries fueled that desire.
How long have you been a guide at Umkumbe Safari Lodge Riverside for?
I have been working at Umkumbe for just under 3 years now.
What’s your favourite thing about Umkumbe?
Apart from the wide variety of wildlife we get to see on a daily basis. My favorite part of Umkumbe is the people I work with.
Please share details about your guiding history
I qualified as a field guide during Covid, so it actually made things tricky. I was an intern for a lodge adjacent to the Kruger National Park and spent some time on a small game reserve before starting as a field guide at Umkumbe.
What’s your top rated animal and why?
African wild dogs. When we are lucky enough to see them, it is such an adrenaline rush as they are usually very active. The fact that they are so misunderstood and endangered definitely contributes to them being my top rated animal.
Which species do you fear the most?
The Black mamba snake is the animal that I fear the most.
What’s the most unexpected encounter you’ve had with wildlife while guiding guests?
The most unexpected encounters were following a skittish group of rhinos through long grass and stumbling upon a cheetah mom and her two cubs.
Any advice for someone pursuing this profession?
My advice would be that you can never know everything. You must keep on learning new things and listening to mentors—even after you qualify as a safari guide.
Please give us a cool story from your time at Umkumbe
Spotted hyenas have a bad reputation for being scavengers, but I have always been an advocate for spotted hyenas because although they scavenge they are also very efficient hunters.
On one evening safari we were lucky enough to actually see a lone male hyena take down an adult impala right next to our vehicle. We found him right next to our lodge looking quite interested in a bachelor herd of impalas and started to chase them in circles. The impalas certainly did not think too much of the silly hyena chasing them. What the hyena actually did was to figure out which impala was the weakest—the moment he identified the weaker ones, he put so much pressure on that impala that it was forced to break away from the herd with the hyena in hot pursuit.
Within seconds the hyena got hold of the impala and the rest was history!
And lastly, what sets apart an excellent safari guide from an average one?
I think what sets an excellent guide apart from an average guide is that you need to have passion for not only animals but also people. Always keep learning and bettering yourself. I think the most important is to have respect for wildlife and humans alike.
Thanks Ty! Here’s a bit of “formal” information about the lodge where Ty is based.
About Umkumbe Safari Lodge Riverside
Set on the banks of the seasonal Sand River in the renown Sabie Game Reserve, is Umkumbe Safari Lodge Riverside. This well-established lodge is one of the most affordable in the area, offering guests a premier safari experience in a sought-after reserve. Fondly known as “leopard central”, the Umkumbe team frequently spots these cats on their traverse. The lodge sleeps a maximum of 20 guests in 11 chalets/rooms ranging from expansive suites to standard rooms. This authentic lodge offers plenty to do during your downtime between game drives.
The on-site swimming pool and deck area overlooks the riverbed, and provides ample opportunity to spot wildlife from the comfort of the lodge. The lounge and dining area bring a sense of comfort to the lodge, while the small gym provides a place for the more active minded to keep on track with their fitness goals. Avid shoppers can delight in knowing that there’s a small curio shop in the main area that stocks a variety of plush toys, accessories and curios.
Like most Kruger safari lodges, Umkumbe offers twice-daily games that depart at first light and late afternoon. Morning drives include a coffee stop and evening drives include a sundowner/snack stop. For keen walkers, there is the option of a bush walk after breakfast which takes place upon request. Walks are always guide and weather dependent, and conducted in English.
Dawie Vosloo