Lowveld - Jan 2020

The best
LIFE EVER
Sometimes life takes you on various detours before you finally find the track on
which you should be. Kaapmuiden’s Maryke Hastie, who calls herself a field guide
born in a city, is delighted to say that she is now doing exactly what she wants.
Maryke fell in love with the Kruger National Park when
she was still at school. Her father was an honorary game
ranger and the family spent most of their holidays
in the park, where they had the most wonderful
experiences in the company of the game rangers.
Back in the 80s, girls were advised to either become
a nurse, teacher or secretary, and Maryke decided on
teaching. She hated every second of it, and when she
was in her 30s, she decided that she would love to be
trained as a veterinary nurse. That opened a whole new
world to her, and she still is extremely grateful for her
decision.
Text: ALITA STEENKAMP
“It became quite an adventure as I also obtained my
microlight pilot’s licence. When I heard about a position
on a game farm close to Nelspruit, I applied for the job,
brought my microlight here and started doing flights
with their guests. There were two elephants on the
farm that were used to interact with the visitors, and
I soon found that I enjoyed the elephant interaction
much more than the flying. I fell in love with these
wonderful animals and grabbed the opportunity to be
trained as an elephant stable master, becoming the first
qualified female elephant stable master in South Africa.
After that I obtained a qualification at the Field Guides
Association of Southern Africa, and did a few other
courses like tracking,” Maryke says.
There were more challenges to face when Maryke
became extremely ill with cancer. She had to rest for a
while, but after an operation and successful treatment,
she sent out her CV to a few places. One of them was
Rhino Post, and to her absolute joy, she was appointed
as a field guide. Rhino Post is a luxury safari camp on
a 12 000-hectare private concession inside the Kruger
National Park, and Maryke’s job is to take the guests
out on a safari vehicle, introducing them to South
Africa’s wonderful wildlife. She also acts as a guide on
the sleep-outs that the lodge offers, accommodating
guests sleeping on raised platforms under the stars.
12 Get It Lowveld January 2020