Zarek Cockar

Born and raised in Kenya, growing up Zarek took every opportunity to go camping, hiking, or on safari and developed a deep connection to East Africa’s wilderness areas.  A safari with Zarek is defined by his wide-eyed wonder at the natural world, from hopping through muddy puddles trying to catch frogs to slowly roving a riverbank searching for an elusive leopard. 

As a Gold Level guide, Zarek is familiar with local wildlife, cultures, and landscapes, including less visited destinations such as Gabon and Chad. He also holds a “Level 2” qualification with the Field Guides Association of Southern Africa (FGASA), and a “Level 3 Track & Sign” qualification with Cybertracker, a non-profit network for wildlife trackers. These widely-recognized qualifications have provided him with useful tools to interpret the signs and behaviours of wildlife encountered on safari.

Although a Kenyan by birth and a qualified guide, Zarek understands the importance and need to not take for granted the collective, traditional knowledge systems of Africa's indigenous peoples. Zarek holds the utmost respect for the ancient wisdom and skills held by local cultures that he believes he could never hope to attain in full. Zarek strives to include representatives of Africa's rich diversity of ethnicities throughout his safaris to intertwine this wealth of knowledge into the fabric of every safari.

Home location: Kenya

Guides in: across Africa, specialising in Kenya, Tanzania, Gabon and Chad.

Languages: English

Daily rate: $$$