Olivia Rose

Having been lucky enough to experience a vast array of awe-inspiring wildlife sightings across Africa, my most memorable has to be from a recent visit to Laikipia, Kenya.After having what can only be described as an ‘African massage’ from the extremely bumpy roads on my journey, I finally arrived at the ‘Out of Africa’ style tented camp nestled on the edge of a ridge overlooking the vast savannah and meandering river below; offering spectacular panoramic views across Laikipia.The final day was off to a rewarding start. We climbed to the top of a rocky kopje with our binoculars in hand and amazingly spotted a pride of lions we had previously heard hunting in the early hours. We proceeded to weave through the thick bush and admired the family feasting on the remains of an unfortunate Zebra.The evening drew in and we enjoyed a bush dinner set beneath a towering fever tree; all huddled around a roaring fire – a real ‘wild at heart’ experience.Just as we were packing up, I heard the distant call of a leopard, this sent my adrenaline pumping… could it be?I had heard previous rumours of the elusive black (melanistic) leopard – the rarest big cat in Africa – being regularly seen in the area, but I never in a million years imagined that I would have the privilege of actually seeing one.Words cannot describe the excitement I felt when I saw the mysterious shadow of the black Leopard – the queen of the night – gracefully emerge from the bush.I was fortunate enough to spend hours observing her and watching her hunt Dik Dik alongside her mother. An experience that is firmly engraved in my memory!