Sorry, Sam, but I think you are the one watching too much discovery channel
I kayak on Monterrey Bay, and there are plenty of times I could reach out and touch a seal, Sea Lion, or Sea Otter, if I wasn't afraid of getting bit.
At Elkhorn Slough or on Seal Rock I could easily find one anytime. They have often confronted me to keep me from landing on their territory. I have had them bump my kayak.
They often follow me around. Sometimes they follow behind the boat, surface, make rude noises, and submerge before I can turn around. I hate it when they do that!
I got close enough to this Sea Otter to grab it by the back of his neck!
http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/1090 ... 4204MjCVYd
Sea Otters were hunted by Abalone fishermen. They were so easy to hunt, they were thought to be extinct before they were protected. A group of 50 survived down in a remote area of Big Sur, and now they are very common sight again.
We do not have resident pods of Orcas here. They mostly just pass by far out to sea.
We do have a slight problems with the Great White Sharks. They are seasonal visitors. Mostly between August and January. This report is from my favorite boogie boarding beach:
Manresa State Beach — On August 19, 2006 at about 12:30 PM a number of individuals witnessed a predatory event by a White Shark on a pinniped at Manresa State Beach. “The seals in the area were swimming in about 6 to 10 feet of water.
They were staying about 20 feet away from the surfers and it seamed like they were just going about their business and watching people. After the attack they went in close to the beach, say 3 feet of water maybe 4. They kept popping up their heads, about a third of their body length out of the water looking back where the attack occurred. They stay in close for roughly 45 minutes before venturing out further into the water. The shark was 15 – 18 feet in length and its back and fins were dark grey to black.”
This is where the locals go to keep up with Whitey's latest whereabouts:
http://sharkresearchcommittee.com/pacif ... k_news.htm