Giant’s Castle is truly special

My friend Hennie Storm and I are keen birdwatchers and amateur photographers. Recently, we spent time in the vulture hide at Giant’s Castle in the Drakensberg (inset). We had to book six months in advance! Giant’s Castle is home to a population of the rare and endangered bearded vulture, which is one of the main reasons the hide is so booked up. We also saw jackal buzzards, Cape vultures and a couple of opportunistic black-backed jackals. The highlight for me was managing to photograph these two bearded vultures in flight. We spent three nights in the Giant’s Castle rest camp – also great. This experience is right at the top of my list of special moments in nature.

ZIES VAN ZYL, Vanderbijlpark