Hashim Luhindi's Biography

photo of Isack Hashim Luhindi joined Duma Explorer in 2011. He is originally from the Pare area of Tanzania and moved to Arusha in 1996 after finishing secondary school in Mwanza. He is married and has two daughters who were born in 2003 and 2007.

Hashim worked with Shidolya Tours from 1997 until 2010. While at Shidolya, he worked as a guide with Isack Msuya, one of Duma's other guides, for ten years. Isack and Hashim went on many safaris together and they are happy to be working together again at Duma.

Hashim completed tour guide courses in 1996 and 1997 and takes refresher courses almost every low season. He has visited all of the Northern Tanzania parks and also Saadani National Park on the east coast of Tanzania. He climbed Mount Kilimanjaro when he was in secondary school but has not climbed Mount Meru.

Hashim's favorite park is the Serengeti because it is home to the wildebeest migration. It is also extremely large with a very diverse ecosystem.

The Hammerkop is Hashim's favorite bird as it builds a very large nest and uses many different materials when constructing it. The nest can also house several generations of Hammerkop as it is so large. Other birds such as weavers often construct their nests under the Hammerkop's nest.

Hashim's favorite animal is the giraffe because it is the tallest animal and is very good natured.

In 2010 in the Serengeti Hashim witnessed a lone cheetah attack a leopard in order to steal its prey - a mongoose. This was extremely unusual as the leopard is much stronger than the cheetah. The leopard escaped by climbing a tree and the cheetah abandoned the dead mongoose.

Hashim advises tourists to wear light colors during safari and to remember to bring a jacket as the mornings and evenings can be cold. He also advises bringing mosquito repellant to help repel mosquitos and tsetse flies.

Hashim enjoys working for Duma because it cares for its clients and staff. He also sees that Duma is growing nicely so he knows he will be busy in the upcoming years.

Client Praise for Hashim

December 2011
Hashim was a really nice guy-a gentleman.We enjoyed his company and he is very knowledgeable-faultless. We most enjoyed the closeness to animals.We felt we saw just about "everything" ie. lots of animals and even more interestingly lots of different behaviors, again well described by Hashim.

November 2011
We were very fortunate to have had Hashim Luhindi as our guide and driver along the way. Safari travelers develop a close relationship with their guide but I have to say that Ashim was a cut above the rest. With over ten (10) years of experience as a guide he knew everything there was to know about the National Parks we visited and the birds and animals we saw. He knew from experience the specific locations of the more elusive animals and especially the cats. Best of all, as we are bird enthusiasts he was an enthusiastic and exceptional birder himself, making identifications based simply on sounds and silhouettes. As a professional photographer he accommodated all my endless requests to stop, change angles and wait for long periods of time to get the right shot. His patience and attention to detail enabled us to take some very unique and special shots of animals at rest and in action. I know that many of the other game drivers and their clients missed many of the things we saw simply because they gave up and left or didn't spend the time looking. In addition, Ashim was always prompt and courteous. We also appreciated his attention to our safety and the safety of the animals along the route. He never left the road and would often disengage from the "scrums" of other land cruisers that congregate around the more interesting animals. We still got all of the great pictures we wanted but at a safe distance.

October 2011
We were entirely satisfied with Hashim. We thought his knowledge and his abilty to share it is outstanding.

October 2011
But, the trip would not have been what it was without Hashim, our driver and guide. His knowledge, patience and warmth made each day special. There were four of us, all with different personalities, and we were all touched by this gentle man. And, did he help us find the animals!! He could spot a leopard's tail on a tree branch from a far distance. He could see a python in branches in another tree. We saw plenty of lions, giraffes, elephants, wildebeests, zebras, warthogs, ostriches, eagles, malibu storks, etc. We even saw 5 rhinos! But the pressure was on to see a cheetah - and we did, two! We were just as impressed with Hashim our first day as we were the last (he had us at hello).

September 2011
Meant to write earlier following our safari but just want to say it was an amazing experience that both my wife and I enjoyed tremendously thanks in large part to our wonderful guide Hashim who was thoughtful, competent, courteous and tremendously knowledgeable about the parks, animals, history, etc throughout our trip.

August 2011
Our guide Hashim was amazing at spotting animals and incredibly knowledgeable about everything that we saw.

July 2011
Hashim is an outstanding guide, very knowledgable of the territory and of the wildlife, available and flexible for every need and really a nice person to talk with.

July 2011
Nice car and great driver ... Hashim is super, really above my expectations.. he was always available to our needs and really knowledgable about wildlife and logistics in general.

July 2011
Hashim was the nicest and most caring host one could ever have.

June 2011
Our guide was Hashim who was fantastic at spotting animals, very knowledgeable about the wildlife, and just very pleasant to be with.

June 2011
Hashim was knowledgeable about plants and animals, polite, and accommodating.