WOW..!! The closest I came to a Lion (in the wild...) was maybe 30ft... Otherwise they were alway far away like 100ft! On the other hand I could say that really the closest I was from a lion in my life is : the lion was on my laps... When I was 10 y/o I raised two baby lions that the mother was killed by hunters. We had them during few years and then with a lot of sadness we had to give them back to the reservation authority who I believe sold them to some zoo in the States....They behaved exactly like giant cats. It will be a pleasure to share some experiences with you next time you visit St Martin.
Regards.
Philippe