Michael Appalsamy – I’m just living out my boyhood dream

In short, I am just living out a young boy’s dream. 

Now, for a little bit of detail. Growing up as a young boy I use to go to the bush on many occasions with my father. Whether it was taking the dogs to the local dam to do some fishing or going away on our yearly trips to some local lodges, every trip was unique and these were the foundation blocks that sparked my passion for nature. 

It was however my first trip to the Kruger National Park that changed everything for me. It was during this trip that I made up my mind, that this is what I want to do. 

When I finished school I went on to study a Bcom in Business Management at the University of Pretoria. My father always said to me that I can be Father Christmas if I wanted to, but I will do it with a business degree behind my name. In hindsight, I am incredibly thankful that he encouraged me to do so because studying for my degree taught me to persevere and work hard for what I want in life.

In January 2020, I joined the Marataba Conservation Volunteer programme which was hands down one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had. I was privileged enough to get involved in life changing opportunities such as animal dartings, mass capture of densely populated animals as well as the tough behind the scenes work like road maintenance and fence patrols. During my time at Marataba, not a day went by where I did not feel a part of something meaningful. I was very fortunate to be involved with projects that were day in and day out focused around the conservation of the animals and land within Marataba Contractual National Park.

In July 2020, I joined the Marataba Conservation Tourism team where I worked at the camps as a guide and camp manager. Living in the bush gave me a new perspective on life and I grew tremendously as a person.

Throughout my time as a guide I developed a passion for videography. This came from trying my best to share my moments with friends and family back home. I believe that videos allow one to add a personal feel to a message. In saying this, going forward on my journey with Wild Eye, I am going to work on this skill and use my platform to spark emotions from people through my videos.