As Shangri-la has requested in the croc/hippo thread, here is the second once in a life time experience I had. Unfortunately no pics - you'll hear why soon.
We stayed in Berg en Dal.
It was the very first time my husband was in the park.
Through out our trip we saw awesome stuff.
Not that much round B&D though.
One late afternoon, we were driving on the gravel road leading from Malelane to Croc Bridge.
We saw cars gathering to a left turn, by the row of trees.
We joined them and there we saw this leopard that has just taken her Impala- supper up the tree.
WE watched her for a while but then she went to ground and although we searched for her for long after the others have left, we could not find her.
So we headed back to the Malelane-croc bridge gravel road and I asked my hubby to just turn left one more time, so that I could try and see from that side upwards in the other side of the lane of trees.
So the road makes this little down hill thingy and form nearly like a low water bridge.
We stood in this low level bridge area which had just little bit of water.
I lifted myself up as high as possible to try and see over the reeds and biesies if I could maybe spot her in the shade of the trees.
So my focus is far in, like 200m.
When suddenly my eye caught this movement 3 m from me,
And there she was, so close that I looked so deep into her eyes.
She was covered in blood from the kill and was down on all fours, like in a stalking position, but she wasn't stalking, she was drinking water from this little bits of water.
I was so close to her.
And as I slowly reached back my hand to SO to hand me the camera, he looked around me and saw him sitting like that.
SO though the leopard was on the point of jumping me(

my head was out the window little bit) and he immediately just put his foot on the petrol and skied off.
Needless to say the leopard got such a fright for this spinning car that he ran back into the reeds.
I cried all the way back to camp , for two reasons: one the missed photo opportunity and mostly because of the beauty of that cat.
For days on end I remembered the look in her eyes, the blood around her mouth and that exhilarating moment when I were so close to her.
I never felt in danger, but knows that she is wild.
Needless to say, since that day I don't put my head out anymore, hardly my hand.
And that, is a moment I will never forget in my life!!!