WHEN Sheri Bodley went to walk her dogs along Berrow beach the last thing she expected to see was a silky shape resembling a black leopard.

Sheri, 28, was holidaying in Berrow when she decided to show her Mum and Dad the wreck of the SS Nornen on the beach, just south of Brean.

She said: “On Thursday we went for a walk on the beach towards Brean. It was getting dark and when we decided to head back around 7.30pm the dogs went crazy and led my Dad toward some sand dunes.

“They must have picked up the scent because about 30ft away stood a big cat. It was jet black and it looked like a leopard in shape and size and stood out from the sand. It froze and stared at us.

“We waited for our eyes to adjust at first to make sure we were really seeing it. One of the dogs moved and the cat jumped back towards the dunes and headed closer inland.”

On the same day Sheri’s mum had seen a book about big cat sightings in Somerset while they were sightseeing.

Sheri, from Worcester, said: “She didn’t tell us about it until after we had left the beach. We bought it the next day because we were curious.

“Mum also saw a huge paw print when we first got to the beach and we jokingly said we wouldn’t want to meet the dog who made it because it was huge. Maybe it belonged to the cat.”

HAVE you had a similar experience? Get in touch at newsdesk@burnhamnews.co.uk or call 01278-727961.