More of the adorable cubs.
As we rounded the bend in our open-top jeep we caught the first glimpse of them. Gorgeous, playful, strong, and full of life, they lazed in the sun staring at the group of foreigners on their territory. They were beautifully dangerous creatures who didn’t know the meaning of their own strength just yet. Their calm, marble-like eyes reflected our own timid ones as they rose, intrigued by our sudden appearance.
As the tigers began to make their way towards us, a clanging gate stopped everyone in their tracks. As soon as the tigers ran toward the figure, we recognized him as John Varty, the conservationist and big cats specialist come filmmaker. Varty had established Tiger Canyons, a tiger sanctuary in the Karoo of South Africa, close to a town called Philippolis in an attempt to combat the waning birth of tigers in the wild. The main ambition of Tiger Canyons is the release of self sufficient tigers in the wild outside of Asia.
Having volunteered in Philippolis my group was allowed the incredible opportunity of visiting Tiger Canyon and talking with John Varty himself. We were allowed the freedom to ask him any questions we possessed about the sanctuary, and we were lucky enough to spend the entire evening with him. Talking to John gave me insight into the mind of a conservationist and native South African who genuinely cared about the animals he raised. John’s passion and concern about the quickly diminishing tiger population of Asia is one ambition that I will always look up to. His faithfulness to these tigers is astounding, and he treats each and every one of them like his own children. If the one thing that I can take away from this trip is his enthusiasm and desire in his endeavor, so be it, at least I can live my life fighting for an important and meaningful cause.
Part of our group dances while John Varty plays the guitar.
Tiger sanctuary in South Africa
The tiger cubs at Tiger Canyon.
They are absolutely beautiful!
Thanks for they lovely photos.
http://ilusciouslife.wordpress.com
What happened to the original pair Ron and Julie? I first saw them on the Discovery channel documentary.
John Chang
As far as I know, Ron and Julie are still there. I was able to see both of them when I went, but this was also a few years ago, and their website hasn’t been updated in a bit.
http://www.jvbigcats.co.za/tigers.htm
Love the blog! It’s good to find travelers with good intentions. Great pics of the tigers too! I’m going to add this site to my blog roll if it’s OK by you.
http://cocktailsncoconuts.wordpress.com/
Thank you for the wonderful comments! I’m glad you’re enjoying the blog.
I just watched the show about Ron & Julie and was hoping to find out how they are doing?
Sue
As far as I know, they are doing well, but it has been a little while since I last saw them. They are quite and amazing pair, and I loved that I was able to spend a little bit of time with them!
Have the Tigers ever encountered any Lions since they arrived in Africa. Do you think it`s possible for Tigers to evolve on that continent with Lions..It`s very facinating