Toppers Muleya grew up in Binga, on the Zimbabwean shore of Lake Kariba, and has spent the last five years guiding at The Hide Safari Camp in Hwange National Park. He guides in English, Ndebele, Shona, Tonga and Nambya, and his specialities run from birds to big cats, tracking and walking on foot. We got him out of the driver’s seat for a few questions of our own.
25° SOUTH: Tell us about a sighting you’ll never forget.
Toppers: A leopard killed a bushbuck behind our camp. It didn’t eat there and then, and while we were watching, another bushbuck came in and there was a second kill right in front of us. Two kills in the space of a few minutes.
25° SOUTH: Have you ever been genuinely scared in the bush? What happened?
Toppers: One afternoon on a game drive we were chased by a bull elephant in musth. I was driving in reverse to get away and he came after us for almost twenty metres, but he didn’t get us. My guests were very scared. Afterwards I got a good comment for being a good driver.
25° SOUTH: Is there a specific individual animal you’ve come to know over the years — one you’d recognise anywhere?
Toppers: Since 2020 the Jujatajata pride has been coming into our concession. They were a small pride then. Now, in 2026, we still follow them as our resident lions, and they have grown to eighteen — three adults, six sub-adult females, one sub-adult male and eight cubs.
25° SOUTH: A moment where an animal did something that surprised even you, after all these years?
Toppers: In 2024 a group of buffalo came to our waterhole to drink. We have a resident hippo, Moto Moto, and he killed a full-grown buffalo. That surprised everyone in camp.
25° SOUTH: The animal guests always want to see versus the animal you most love showing them — same or different?
Toppers: Most guests want to see cats. I try my best to find what they want, but whatever is out there, we stop and I share what I know about it.
25° SOUTH: What’s the bush like at 5am?
Toppers: Early morning, the fresh breeze gives you a good moment to hear the birds singing their melodious songs, celebrating a new day.
25° SOUTH: What do most visitors walk right past without noticing?
Toppers: The small insects.
25° SOUTH: Is there a sound in the bush that still stops you in your tracks, no matter how many times you’ve heard it?
Toppers: A lion roaring.
25° SOUTH: What made you become a guide?
Toppers: My father used to tell us stories about the animals, and that caught my interest. Today I’m happy sharing knowledge about the fauna and flora. Mostly, I love nature.
25° SOUTH: If you weren’t guiding, what would you be doing?
Toppers: A bus driver.
25° SOUTH: What’s something you know now that you wish you’d known on your very first game drive?
Toppers: Tracks on the ground.
25° SOUTH: What’s the hardest part of the job that guests never see?
Toppers: Driving, spotting and explaining, all at the same time.
25° SOUTH: When a sighting goes quiet and nothing’s happening, what’s going through your mind?
Toppers: If it’s quiet at a sighting, I talk about the small things — animal dung, animal bones. I get them onto the birds, the flowers, the plants, the history of the area.
25° SOUTH: Who taught you the most about the bush — and what’s the one thing they drummed into you?
Toppers: Teofil Ndlovu is my mentor. He helped me learn how to handle guests in the bush, how to position my vehicle at a sighting, and how to answer questions properly — and when I don’t know the answer, to research it and then give the feedback to my guests.
25° SOUTH: What’s the funniest thing you’ve seen out on a drive — animal or guest?
Toppers: Baboon babies swinging on each other’s tails, hanging from the branches and chasing each other.
25° SOUTH: Is there a place in your reserve that’s special to you that guests rarely get to?
Toppers: Yes, the tree house we call Dove’s Nest, almost two kilometres away. Camp guests like to spend the night out there by themselves, and we collect them the next morning.
25° SOUTH: What’s a common thing visitors get wrong about the bush before they arrive?
Toppers: They expect to see everything, including predators making a kill.
25° SOUTH: After all these years, is there still something out there you’re hoping to see for the first time?
Toppers: Yes. A pangolin.
25° SOUTH: What do you do on your days off?
Toppers: Go home and help my parents with the house chores.
25° SOUTH: What worries you?
Toppers: The elephant population is increasing, and the result is damage to the trees.
25° SOUTH: If you could ask visitors to do one thing differently, what would it be?
Toppers: Help sponsor the kids at the schools near our national park — with books and school materials.
Quickfire round
Short and instinctive — first thing that comes to mind.
- Sunrise or sunset drive? Sunset!
- Big cat or big bird? Both!
- Most overrated animal? Leopard!
- Most underrated animal? Impala!
- Your camp meal after a long day? Sadza and beef stew!
- One word for the bush? Blessing!
- Coffee at dawn or sundowner at dusk? Coffee at dawn!
- Camera or binoculars? Camera!
- Walking safari or game drive? Game drive!
- Full moon or pitch dark? Pitch dark!
A big thank you to Toppers for taking part in our Q&A. If you want to safari with him, he guides at The Hide Safari Camp in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe.
