About Girl in the Wilderness

Who Is Antje Mouton, Founder of Girl in the Wilderness?

Traveller, Photographer, Adventure Seeker

Antje has spent most of her life finding her way back to wild places, and much of her career helping other people experience them responsibly. Her work has always been grounded in the belief that ethical tourism can and should contribute to the protection of Africa’s wildlife, wilderness areas and the communities living alongside them.



Over the years, she has worked alongside respected international brands including National Geographic, Animal Planet and the Discovery Channel, supporting complex productions, specialist groups and conservation projects across Africa. She has an extraordinary ability to manage the moving parts that nobody else sees, from complicated travel logistics and remote operations to the unexpected problems that inevitably arise when working in the African wilderness. She is calm under pressure, brutally practical when required and a formidable person to have in your corner when plans go sideways.

Girl in the Wilderness began in 2012 as an Instagram handle, long before becoming a safari company. It was simply a place for Antje to document her travels across the African continent, share the remote places she was visiting and photograph the wildlife she encountered along the way. Her photography developed alongside her travels, with some of her images later appearing in international print media, including National Geographic Traveller’s UK Safari Edition.

As her audience grew, women began contacting her with questions that went far beyond photography. They wanted to know whether Africa was safe, whether they could travel alone, what they should wear, where they should go and, most importantly, whether they would feel comfortable doing it without a partner or a group of friends. Many had dreamed about going on safari for years but kept postponing it because nobody in their lives wanted to come with them.

For Antje, the next step felt obvious. With her background in African travel, operations and conservation, Girl in the Wilderness could become more than a collection of photographs and stories. It could become a way to help women stop waiting for somebody else to be ready. She began creating safari journeys specifically for women, combining honest advice, carefully considered logistics and genuine first-hand knowledge of the places she recommends.

Experience the real Africa, with someone who lives and breathes it every single day...

Today, Antje lives alongside the  Greater Kruger National Park. Living at the edge of one of Africa’s most significant wildlife landscapes has allowed her to build deep friendships with conservationists, researchers, rangers and wildlife veterinarians. These relationships make it possible for Girl in the Wilderness to offer meaningful conservation experiences that go far beyond simply watching wildlife from a safari vehicle.

Together with her husband, specialist private guide Martin Meyer, Antje has participated in hands-on conservation work involving rhinos, lions, elephants, hyenas and other vulnerable species. Her experience includes rhino dehorning operations, wildlife collaring, telemetry work and human-wildlife conflict mitigation. These experiences have shaped the way she approaches tourism and strengthened her belief that travellers should leave Africa with a deeper understanding of what it takes to protect its wild spaces.

Antje has a particular fondness for the animals that do not always receive the glamorous marketing campaign. Vultures, hyenas and pangolins are firmly at the top of her list. Hyenas, in particular, appeal to her for their intelligence, humour and unapologetically matriarchal society. They are resilient, wildly misunderstood and do not take nonsense from anybody, which may explain the attraction.



The only things Antje loves more than travel, wildlife and her husband are their three Belgian Malinois. They are clever, demanding, slightly chaotic and almost certainly in charge of the household.