6 years of Stomping for Super Steph!

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Our longest serving guide, Stephanie Harris, has reached her 6 year mark with Earthstompers Adventures! We are so proud of her! What an amazing milestone to have reached! In these 6 years I’m sure Steph experienced many wonderful moments and saw some incredible things.

We put together a few questions for her, to learn about some of these awesome experiences she had while on tour with Earthstompers.

1) I know there’s plenty, but tell us about one of your most memorable moments on tour.

Wow, there has been so many! It’s very difficult to single out one moment. Every tour has its own special moments. But moments that always stand out to me are, for example, when people see their first elephant, or look up at the stars at night and realize they haven’t seen stars in a long time because they live in a city. There has also been a few marriage proposals/engagements that happened on tour. Another special moment was when Frank Lennon (75 years old) showed the youngsters on tour how things are done when he did 216m Bungy at Bloukrans and then skydived from 10000 ft in Mossel Bay. And of course I cannot answer this question without mentioning all the awesome sunsets and sunrises I’ve witnessed along the road!

2) Tell us why you wanted to be a tour guide in South Africa?

I was seeking more adventure in my day-to-day life and also wanted to travel more. Those that have been on tour with me know how much I love nature and being outside, and I knew that as an adventure tour guide it would tick all those boxes. I also love working with people, and meeting so many interesting people from all around the world was definitely also a drawing card.

3) What would consider your most awesome wildlife encounter on tour?

Gosh, there has been so many. But if I have single out one moment it has to be a day we were driving in Addo Elephant National Park. We noticed some elephants walking in the bush and I could see that they were going to cross the road up ahead at some point (judging the direction they were walking in). So I drove along and parked the bus more or less where I thought they would cross and we waited. And sure enough we didn’t have to wait long. The elephants, gracefully and very silently, started coming out of the thicket at the exact spot where we were parked, and soon we were completely surrounded by these magnificent animals. They came so close to the bus that I could have stretched my arm out of the window to touch them. Their sheer size is humbling, and seeing the little baby elephants are possibly the cutest thing you’ll ever see!

4) This will be tough to choose, but of all the wonderful regions we visit on our scheduled tours, which area do you connect with most, after all these years of visiting frequently?

Although I truly love all the places we visit on tour, I’ll have to say that the Garden Route is very special to me. I might also be a bit biased because I grew up in this area. But you will have to travel far and wide to find a place that can compare with the beauty of the Garden Route. Its unspoiled beaches, enchanting coastal forests and breathtaking mountain views are really something special.

5)  What is your favorite meal along the Garden Route

No, please don’t make me choose! I love them all! But if I have to, I’ll have say the potjiekos and freshly baked pot-bread at Cape Agulhas Backpackers is outstanding. Almost as good as the potjie my dad makes 😉

After all these years, Steph still guides every tour expertly, with great passion. It’s an absolutely pleasure to listen to her commentary about birding and flora, not to mention her very skillful driving and reversing with the trailer! We are so blessed to have her as part of our team and we are grateful that she is still happily stomping along the Garden Route 🙂 #stillstomping

 

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