Featured in The Telegraph: Tusk Wildlife Ranger Award Winner, 2022

As Travel Partner to Tusk, Exceptional Travel is delighted to showcase the dedicated work of Neddy Mulimo, this years winner of the Tusk Wildlife Ranger Award.

Extract from The Telegraph: Meet the 66-year-old ranger still battling poachers in Zambia. Responding to serious levels of poaching, (Neddy) applied tactics learned during a 20-month stint of national service military training and came up with the novel idea of digging trenches for rangers to find cover in the wide, open landscape.

“We started apprehending poachers in a way never seen before,” he proudly declares.

An ability to think quickly under pressure is Mulimo’s greatest attribute: he’s outwitted poachers in spur of the moment undercover sting operations; confronted armed criminals with only a hunting rifle in his hand; and narrowly dodged being trampled by a wounded buffalo.

But more than anything, tenacity and selflessness have underpinned his success.

“First and foremost, I believe I should protect other people and the wildlife around me,” he says, watching elephants gather on the banks of the Kafue River, close to his base in Zambia’s largest and oldest national park. “I know I must always find an answer to the problem.”

Charlie Mayhew MBE, Chief Executive of Tusk, commented: “Neddy is a truly exceptional ranger. For 36 years he has dedicated his life to conservation, and it shows in the passion and drive with which he does his job. We’re delighted to be able to thank Neddy for his endless dedication to the conservation of Africa’s wildlife with this award.”

TV adventurer and Tusk ambassador, Bear Grylls added: “Through my ambassadorial role and involvement with the Tusk Wildlife Ranger Challenge, I have seen first-hand how Africa’s rangers put their lives on the line in defence of wildlife, despite resources stretched to the extreme. Neddy Mulimo is an inspiration, both to rangers across Africa, and to every one of us that values the natural world.”

Nick Maughan, founder of the Nick Maughan Foundation, stated further: “Neddy’s dedication to wildlife conservation has been essential in protecting some of Zambia’s most endangered species, including the endemic Kafue Lechwe. The respect he commands amongst his peers is testament to the work he has done over the years with passion and humility. Thank you Neddy, for your dedication and commitment to preserving wildlife for generations to come.”

To read the full article, click HERE. (note: a Telegraph subscription will be required) and if you are keen to visit the areas where Neddy and his team are operating, please contact us below.