Swimming with the Sea Lions

It’s no secret that I love the ocean. My stress levels drop the moment that I step onto the beach. I remove my flip-flops and walk the water’s edge, making sure to feel the sand between my toes and listen to the calmness of the waves that leave me drifting deeper into the sound. There’s just something about it that draws me near and calms me every single time. I am also fascinated by the amazing sea life living below the waves. My adventure swimming with sharks was a thrilling and heart pounding experience (read about it here); and today I want to share with you another time I found myself swimming with the sea life.

It was a beautiful sunny day on the south side of Kauai, Hawaii; the sky was blue, the sea was calm, and the beach was packed. We were enjoying our afternoon snorkeling off of Poipu Beach when I looked up and saw a big sea lion sunbathing on the beach. I knew that sea lions were known to frequent the area, but I never thought I would have the opportunity to see one so close!

We swam back to the beach and ran up to our beach towels to grab the camera in order to capture such a cool moment on our vacation. After about 15-20 minutes of watching him and taking some photos, I decided that it was time to get back out and snorkel. (My family doesn’t tease me about being a fish in the water for no reason). 😉

Little did I know (or realize) that Mr. Sea Lion had the same idea. As I was snorkeling, I looked over to the general area where I last saw the sea lion and I could no longer see him on the beach. I looked in the water towards the direction I thought the sea lion might be and I couldn’t see him in the water, either. It was at this time that I looked towards my (now) husband and he looked extremely anxious as he was nervously waving me in. Wondering what was going on, I slowly swam to the beach and asked him what he needed. He explained that the sea lion was swimming right behind me and he was worried that something bad might happen. Maybe the sea lion would be too curious… or would want to play… or to be too aggressive… It didn’t help that the sea lion barked a few times (I can’t believe I didn’t hear him):

I must admit that turning around and being face to face with a sea lion would have been startling, but I wish I would have realized that this giant creature was interested in me while snorkeling. That would have made for some awesome underwater photos!

Have you ever had a close encounter with wildlife? Please share. 🙂