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Great news!  The wonderful folks at Wilderness Safaris have just offered me a huge discount on my conservation safari to Namibia in September 2015 (next year).  However, it’s only for a limited time!   (more…)

You simply have to experience Namibia at least once in your life.  It’s like nowhere else on the planet.  The sense of space you get, and the deep desert silence, has to be experienced to be believed.  If you’re in the rat race this is the perfect escape.

Sunset in the Namib Desert (credit: Tammie Matson)

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I’ve lost touch of the number of people who have written to me over the years asking how to get some practical experience in conservation by volunteering in Africa.  So here it is at last –  my list of volunteering suggestions!

Kids at Humani School, Zimbabwe

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Due to a couple of last minute cancellations I have just 3 remaining spots left on my Okavango Delta safari on 26th Nov to 3rd Dec this year.  The price of US$5300 is a special not-to-be-repeated opening price for my new company, Matson & Ridley Safaris and a rare chance to see one of my absolute favourite parts of Africa with me.  This is the only trip I’ll be running personally this year and I’d love to have you join us!

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I’m very excited to announce that I’ll be taking a group of Africaphiles with me on safari in the world famous Okavango Delta in the first week of December this year!  This is truly the jewel of Africa, in my opinion, and I’ve been dying to go back there to remind myself just how beautiful nature can be.  Half a dozen have already signed up to this safari and there are a total of 12 places only, so if you’d like to join us please get in touch with me here as soon as possible.

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I’m very excited to be coming back to Sydney for a week in early August for the launch of my third book, “Planet Elephant” – a story of family, love and the global wildlife trade.  It seemed like a good opportunity to throw a bit of a shin-dig for fellow Africa-lovers as well as raise some funds for the causes that are close to my heart, and key to the message of this next book – stopping the poaching of rhinos and elephants in Africa.

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Elephant and calf in Khaudum NP, Namibia (T. Matson)

If you’re my facebook friend, there’s a very good chance you’re sick to death about me rambling on about elephants and ivory and asking you to sign yet another petition around CITES, the meeting of countries this week in Bangkok, Thailand.  If you’re not, then this post is for you.   (more…)

Apologies for the long silence on the blog front.  Last week I delivered the second draft of my upcoming book on elephants and rhinos in Africa and Asia to my editor at Pan Macmillan and I’m just re-emerging to join the human race.  The book will be on shelves in Australia in August.   (more…)

Female white rhino, Save Valley Conservancy

A couple of months ago while in the Save Valley Conservancy, Zimbabwe I was fortunate to spend some time with the conservancy’s new anti-poaching team, led by husband and wife team, Bryce and Lara Clemence, who started on the job in April.  I have to admit, I was curious to know about how they planned to get on top of the rhino poaching in this part of the world.   (more…)

I’m making videos.  With my book deadline looming next month, I’m writing too, but the thing about making movies once you’ve got some of the right gear is that it’s really addictive.  Even worse than Facebook!  The last couple of years in my travels with wildlife I’ve been filming in high definition on my Canon SLR 600D.  Now with a refurbished Mac Air that comes with iMovie thanks to my lovely hubby I could waste untold hours of my days creating stories from all these trips – it’s just so much fun!  The trick is to keep them short – under two minutes is my goal – so that people with short attention spans (which is most people these days) will actually watch them.  Over the coming months/years I’m going to be producing what I call The Tam Tales – lots of short videos about wildlife and other cool stuff I spot on my travels.  Here’s the first one, based on the Humani School project in Zimbabwe.  Click here to watch it.