Who We Are
A part of the Rupununi landscape for almost 100 years the McTurk family remains committed to our history and traditions while still seeking growth and improvement through innovation, creativity and a respect for the local environment.
We seek in all our dealings to treat persons with respect, integrity, and consideration regardless of ethnicity, age, sex, sexual orientation or economic status.
The Main Compound is located a mere minutes from the banks of the Rupununi River.
Among our long list of awards Karanambu Lodge has been the recipient of:
- the 2013 – Caribbean Tourism Organisation – Excellence in Sustainable Tourism Award
- the 2017 – Guyana Tourism Authority – People’s Choice Award
- the 2019 – Caribbean Tourism Organisation Aware of Sustainable Accommodation
- 2023 Green Destinations Good+ Travel Seal+
- 2024 Green Destinations top 100 stories 2024 award
Featured in publications...
Since its founding in the 1920’s the wildlife of Karanambu and the McTurk Family have been features in publications and played host to such notaries as:
David Attenborough, Gerald Durrell, Jeff Corwin, Davis Finch, Steven Hilty and John Gimlette and has been a favourite location for documentaries including the BBC, German Television, National Geographic, Calgary’s ‘Zoo Quest’, the Discovery Channel, the World Wildlife Fund, Conservation International, Warner Brother International, Silverback, REEL Guyana and A Wild Connection with James Currie among others…
Karanambu in national geographic 1953.
Tiny and Constance McTurk, Karanambu main compound 1940’s
Our History
To a former generation Karanambu was made famous as the home of Tiny (Edward) McTurk; an amateur naturalist and local folk legend, it was Tiny who introduced the English speaking world to the creatures of South America and inspired the likes of David Attenborough and Gerald Durrel during their first travels of South America.
Originally established in the 1920’s by Tiny McTurk – the main compound at Karanambu served as a balata collection station for the British Guiana Balata Company which in turn supplied the British Empire with the highly coveted latex. Cattle was a natural complement that provided meat for the family and workers. To Tiny’s friends the ranch would ultimately become known as “Tiny’s Tiger Ranch” for the high number of Jaguar and Puma on the property. The first outstation was named Macidawn in tribute to Andrew McDonald who was its first manager.
By the 1980s with balata having been replaced by cheaper ways to produce plastics and little revenue from cattle Tiny's daughter Diane would turn Karanambu’s reputation for hospitality and nature to Eco-tourism and open Karanambu’s doors to its first paying guests.
It was during this period that Diane’s own passion for conservation was ignited. Caring for “Frankincense” an orphaned baby giant otter (so named as he was received as a Christmas gift) that Diane’s own life’s passion would emerge and ultimately lead to the creation of the world’s most successful giant otter reintroduction program at Karanambu. In tribute to their late father’s love for Karanambu Diane and her siblings Mickey and Constance would commit Karanambu to being Guyana’s first Private Protected Area and establish The Karanambu Trust in 1996.
Balata bleeder climbing tree.
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Karanambu is the ultimate destination for your nature travel