Ollie Porote

Olebogile (known as Ollie) Porote was born and raised in Maun, Botswana. He comes from a long line of subsistence farmers, and his passion for and appreciation of nature and wildlife dates back to the days he spent as a small boy herding goats and cattle. After finishing school, Ollie did his national service in Botswana's Department of Customary Law, then returned to his heart's vocation, enrolling in a professional guiding course at the Botswana Wildlife Training Institute. He was employed by Elephant Back Safaris for two years before moving to Okavango Wilderness Safaris in 2003. He branched out to guide additional small-group safaris, eventually coming on board with Natural Habitat Adventures in 2015. Highly trained and experienced, Ollie is a top professional guide with expertise in walking safaris and working with special-interest custom groups. Most recently he has worked from DumaTau Camp in Botswana's Linyanti region as one of the most senior local guides in the area. Outside of leading safaris, Ollie's hobbies include photography and fishing.

Praise from Nat Hab travelers:

M. Rothenberg
"Ollie must be the hardest working, most patient man on the planet. He is a natural born teacher—we learned so much about tracking animals, and he introduced us to more than 30 species of mammals and over 100 bird species. To his credit, he was as gracious the fiftieth time he identified a bird for us as he was the first! We always felt completely safe and confident with Ollie at the wheel, piloting the boat or leading the nature walk. He is fantastic!"

R. Kahn & T. Lutazi
"Ollie was extremely knowledgeable, enthusiastic, patient and thoughtful. He was one of the best guides we've ever had."

J. Sprinkles
"Ollie was amazing. He brought a calm, warm and friendly demeanor to everything he did. He handled all of our interests and personalities with ease. He was clearly well trained and encyclopedic in his knowledge of everything we saw. He shared his love of the area and the people, which had us hooked on his every word." 

D. Talbot
"Ollie was phenomenal—a terrific guide and a very astute tracker who did a great job of showing us the Okavango Delta. He could track cats with amazing accuracy and he never gave up until he was sure the animals had hunkered down or moved on. I would ask for him to be my Expedition Leader again!"

C. Rudiger
"Ollie was awesome. We hugely enjoyed him as a person and benefited from his comprehensive knowledge. We went away considering him a friend."

S. Cantley
"I'd welcome ANY opportunity to travel with Ollie again. He's a very engaging and knowledgeable guy. I watched him track a pair of lions 5 miles before we finally found them. He takes any opportunity that pops up to teach from his deep store of understanding. He's a strong communicator. His strengths are tremendous indeed."

Our Story