Tigers for Africa
When I phone my best friend, Charlotte, to invite her along for a weekend in search of tigers in the Free State, I could hear the surprise in her voice. Not that I could blame her. Wild tigers, in Africa? A crazy idea – maybe a little bit, yes. Visionary – absolutely! Not that the founder of this unique conservation project, John Varty (aka JV), was praised for his initiative when he started it more than two decades ago. Quite the contrary, as this South African filmmaker and passionate conservationist suffered substantial opposition.
Fast forward 21 years and this project is now certainly earning its stripes. Tiger Canyon in the small Free State town of Philippolis, skirting the arid Karoo region, is giving hope to this highly endangered apex predator in a very successful re-wilding process. Our host for the weekend, Kirsten Wise - Jarvis, explains that the project is now entering
