anaconda in the Southern Pantanal, Brazil.
I travel - I keep visiting new places, and I keep seeking out new animals. It’s what I love to do, and it’s what I live for. As a young kid, I ate, slept, drank, and dreamed of wild animals. I always wanted to be around them. All my toys were animal toys (until Star Wars arrived, then it was all Star Wars stuff), and all my books were animal books. I would read stories about wildlife and the places you could find them. I dreamed of being there, of going there.
I grew up in rural South Texas; my views were of orange orchards, plowed fields filled with corn or melon (I still can’t stand melon to this day). There were small ranches, with horses and cattle peppering the area. We had one neighbor, the Curls. Bob Curl was an old horseman, he never liked me much, I always asked too many questions I guess. My days were spent outdoors, running around on dirt roads, looking for lizards, snakes, ground squirrels, and birds. It’s what I filled my days with.
When the evenings would come, the toads would come out, and I’d try to catch them. As the sun set, the light bugs lit up the sky, and I ran around trying to catch them too. Of course, when the light bugs would come out, I knew it was time to head inside and have dinner. I’d go in, hungry, sweaty, covered in dirt, runny nose, with a big smile on my face.
It was a good childhood.
Growing up I wanted to be a veterinarian, but not for cats and dogs. I never had much interest in that. I dreamed of being a vet that worked with wildlife. I wanted to go to Africa and care for lions, elephants, giraffes… animals like that. At the time, it was the only way I knew how to get into the game. I didn’t know about wildlife filmmaking or guiding, or photography. Being a vet was the one way I knew I would be able to get close, and be close to wildlife.
Photographing sperm whales off Dominica. Image by Jean Dubois
That was forty-something years ago, and here I am at the age of 51, still eating, sleeping, drinking, dreaming of wildlife and wild places, where I can go see animals.
As a kid, I wanted to be close to them, and that hasn’t changed. I can’t help it. It is just the way I am. My daughter Sophia has always joked, “there is close, and then there is Eli close.”
Having a bit of fun, sizing up an American crocodile off Banco Chinchorro, MX. Image by Mark Rangi
Dancing with my beloved tigers, Tiger Beach Bahamas. Image by Jack Meadows.
I just enjoy the feeling of being there and smelling that rare air. It is a fantastic feeling. Of course, I understand and respect when I have to keep my distance, and I do when I am supposed to. And there are some animals you just can’t and shouldn’t get close too… sadly. Lol. But those moments when I can be close, where there is no blue between us, or a silverback is walking just a few feet away… it is the best feeling in the world.
Of course, I have often been accused of being an adrenaline junky because of it, but I am far from that. I am just comfortable in that environment. It feels normal to me. It feels like I am home. Weird, I know, but I don’t have any other way to describe it.
With my partner in crime, Maritza Martinez. Tiger Beach Bahamas.
This year we are celebrating twenty years of running wildlife expeditions. It is crazy that I have made a career out of this, that showing people wild animals is my job. I am eternally grateful that I get to do what I do. I love helping people on their wildlife journeys, helping them make their dreams come true. Knowing that I am part of that makes me so happy, and gives me purpose.
Of course, without the love and support of my family, especially my wife, dad, and brother, none of this would have been possible. They believed in me and every single one of my crazy dreams. Why, I will never know. But they did.
As I write this blog, I wonder what compelled me to write this up. Then I remembered, it was a social media post that sparked it. Someone asked me to tell more of my story, so here it is. Well, a tiny piece of it. There is so much more there, motorcycle days, bull riding days, teenage years… but I don’t think this blog is the place to post those stories. But sharing where my crazy love for wildlife came from definitely is.
Giant anteater, Bonito, Brazil.
Writing this helped me to remember so many things I had forgotten about, so many great memories of my childhood started flooding back. Of course it wasn’t perfect, nobody’s is I guess. But the good for sure outweighed the bad, and the good is all I care about. It also helped me realize that this journey that I am on, the job that I have, the people that I share time with, and the wildlife I encounter - it has never been a career with wildlife I am chasing… it has always been about living out a little kid’s dreams.
Thanks for reading.
