
Naturally Adventurous
Charley Hesse and Ken Behrens have travelled all over the globe, and accumulated a lifetime worth of adventure stories, in pursuit of wild places and wild creatures. Both are lifelong birding and natural history fanatics, and professional guides. Charley was born in the UK, but has spent his life living in Japan, Ecuador, South Africa, and now Thailand. Ken was born in the US, and has lived in South Africa and Madagascar for the last decade plus.
Contact Ken and Charley: ken.behrens@gmail.com and cfchesse@gmail.com
Photo Galleries: https://www.ken-behrens.com/naturally-adventurous-podcast
Latest episodes

Nov 13, 2020 • 38min
Episode 16: Ken's Top 10 Lifetime Mammals - numbers 9-10
Ken kicks off his (drumroll please!) Top 10 Lifetime Mammals, with Brindled Gnu and Fosa. Why did he choose these two beasts? Listen to find out!
See a bunch of pics of both animals in the episode photo gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-16
For some insight on wildebeest psychology, check out this cartoon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMJXvsCLu6s
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Feel free to contact us at: ken.behrens@gmail.com OR cfchesse@gmail.com
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Nov 6, 2020 • 35min
Episode 15. Charley's Top 10 lifetime mammals (Number 6-7).
Ken and Charley get back into the swing of things with more stories of some of the world's best mammals. Today, tales of Dhole (Asian Wild Dog) and Spectacled Bear in the Paramo of Ecuador.
Episode photo gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-15
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Feel free to contact us at: ken.behrens@gmail.com OR cfchesse@gmail.com
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Nov 4, 2020 • 1h 3min
Episode 14: Freestyle - Ken's epic Madagascar family trip, and festival time in Thailand
Ken and Charley chat about Ken's just-completed adventurous family trip to northeast Madagascar, land of rainforest, vanilla, and some amazing wildlife. Charley talks about the picturesque Loi Krathong festival in Chiang Mai. The episode wraps up with an interview with Franco, a local guide from Marojejy National Park.
Don't miss the mega episode photo gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-14
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Contact: ken.behrens@gmail.com OR cfchesse@gmail.com
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Oct 16, 2020 • 48min
Episode 13: Freestyle - adventures in Chiang Mai and Northern Madagascar
Charley and Ken catch up on what has been happening in the last week, including life birds for Charley's son Felix, Ken's son Rianala's first visit to the rainforest, and Ken's pilgrimage to see an ancient plant, one of the world's rarest. This episode also includes a new kind of feature, a short interview with Ken's friend and northern Madagascar guide and naturalist Angeluc Razafy.
Episode Photo Gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-13
E-mail addresses for Charley and Ken: cfchesse@gmail.com AND ken.behrens@gmail.com
To check out Charley's live birding event, look out for the video on Sunday 3am EST / 8am UK / 2pm Thailand at the following site:
https://www.facebook.com/events/710206879568605
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Oct 9, 2020 • 53min
Episode 12: Charley's Top 10 Lifetime Mammals - numbers 8-10
Following the popularity of their Top 10 Birds episodes, Charley & Ken embark on stories of mammal adventures.
Charley tells of getting chased up a tree by peccaries in Costa Rica, going in search of giant flying-squirrels in the mountains of Taiwan, and the armour-clad Indian Rhino in the base of the Himalayas.
Don't forget to check out our photo gallery from the episode at:
https://www.ken-behrens.com/episode-12
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Oct 2, 2020 • 1h 1min
Episode 11: A Chat with Phil Chaon
Phil is an international traveller, birder, guide, and all-around interesting dude. He has an endless array of great stories from field jobs and backpacking trips all around the world.
Episode Photo Gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-11
Willow Ptarmigan (Red Grouse) recording from Simon Elliott, on Xeno-Canto.
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Sep 25, 2020 • 1h 1min
Episode 10: Life in Madagascar.
Ken tells Charley about his life in Madagascar, a place that Charley also knows well. They talk about the wonders of Madagascar as a "laboratory of evolution", a land where lemurs ranging from the tiny mouse-lemurs to 500-pound "gorilla lemurs" all evolved from the same ancestor. They also chat about the human cultures and what it's like to travel through the "8th Continent".
Episode photo gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-10
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Sep 18, 2020 • 58min
Episode 9: Life in Thailand
Ken interviews Charley about living in Thailand. Hear about the world's biggest water fight, the difference between glai and glai, and some unforgettable encounters with Asian Elephants and Coral-billed Ground Cuckoos.
Episode photo gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-9
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Sep 10, 2020 • 1h 2min
Episode 8: Charley & Ken welcome Keith Barnes to the show.
Charley & Ken welcome their first guest: Keith Barnes. Keith is a South African world traveller and birder who is one of the owners of Tropical Birding. He has an insane arsenal of adventure stories. In this episode, he tells two, involving a hippo (Amadeus), and a leopard (no name). We also chat about the effects of covid on ecotourism, and the way forwards to resuming global travel.
Episode Photo Gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-8
Two links with some info about Tropical Birding's vision for the resumption of travel:
http://www.tropicalbirding.com/birding-reimagined/
http://www.tropicalbirding.com/safetypolicy/
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Birding Nature Travel Adventure

Sep 4, 2020 • 46min
Episode 7: Ken's 1-3 top lifetime birds
Find out Ken's top 3 lifetime birding experiences, including an unforgettable day on the Atlantic seaboard, and a breathless sprint up a mountainside in Spain.
To review, here is Ken's whole top 10 to this point: 4) Great Gray Owl - Minnesota, USA; 5) Rail-Babbler - Peninsular Malaysia; 6) Southern Cassowary - West Papua; 7) Red-tailed Newtonia - Madagascar; 8) Sharpbill - Bolivia; 9) Scaly Ground-Roller - Madagascar; 10) White-crowned Hornbill - Bornean Malaysia
Episode photo gallery: https://www.ken-behrens.com/podcast-episode-7
If you wish to support this podcast, please check out our patreon page at:
https://www.patreon.com/naturallyadventurous?fan_landing=true
Birding Nature Travel Adventure