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Australia’s Best Guides – Ray Andrews | Naturalist & Birder

Ray Andrews

Ray Andrews has a CV to beat most when it comes to knowledge of nature. His bespoke tours are a fascinating way to learn almost anything about Australia and our unique wilderness.

Please tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do?

I call myself a naturalist but I have so many more interests. My degree is in Tropical Plant sciences. I am a big birder, and have worked with frogs, mammals, insects, planted 10,000’s of trees, done aboriginal rock art tours for years, operated biking, canoeing, sea kayaking, hiking and camping tours. I ran a wine tour company and was featured on many docos and travel productions. I currently run a tour company specialising in adventures into Papua New Guinea and do bespoke tours in Australia.

My favourite place to visit is the Cape York peninsula and the far flung Islands of Melanesia. I am just as happy sitting down half naked in a village hut in Papua New Guinea gorging on wild pig with my bare hands as to being a wine snob sipping on gorgeous chardonnays (if you don’t like chardy you haven’t tried enough of it) at top notch restaurants. My wife would prefer me to be the later.

I love history and especially the contact periods when Europeans first meet indigenous cultures and have a special interest in the Wallace line in Indonesia where the flora and fauna of Australia (Sahul) meets the Asiatic (Sunda) fauna and flora.

I live in beautiful Eumundi on the Sunshine coast with an amazing wife and two great kids. My latest project is setting up a film shoot for National Geographic in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea where I am taking my son along with me.

What’s your favourite Australian animal and why?

Love platypus and spend way too much time stalking them in the river on my property.

What haven’t you seen / done in Australia that you’d like to and why?

I haven’t been to the Coral Bay or Hamelin pool of WA. Best secret spot in Australia is the Quinkan Rock Art bodies on Cape York peninsula, but if you haven’t experienced the Trobriand Islands in PNG you are missing out of everything.

 

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