The Nine Lives of Luigi’s Cat
Or so go the glorified leopard stories at the campfire, and that’s how my imagination was fired. I attended many safari conventions seeking leopard hunts, but prices gave the impression that operators ran leopard spas! Leopard do not respect canned hunts or park boundaries. Fences mean nothing, nor does distance. Hunting pressure does. It’s not just any old place to hunt - a responsible outfitter must have an area with activity.
After extensive research, in 2017 my wife and I arrived at Westfalen Hunting Safaris in Northern Namibia. John van der Westhuizen offered a reasonable day rate, no cost for bait animals, would refund the trophy fee if none taken, and an OK observer charge considering my wife would rather take a cruise. The only downer was being robbed at OR Tambo by SAA employees.
On that hard rock, heavy breathing was a sin
I didn’t want an outfitter who only started to bait near or at my arrival. John runs baits all year, records all bait activity including tracks and track sizes, and hires PHs that
