Today we got to take a glimpse into the magical world of sea lions. We snorkeled with them twice today, the first time we went out the sea lions were very playful. One of the sea lions followed us the whole time we were snorkeling; he brought us gifts of sea shells, feathers and some seaweed. When we went out after lunch the sea lions were a little less playful, I think we interrupted their nap time. But there were a couple that came out to play with us, they were just as curious of us as we were around them; they kept nibbling on our wet suits, fins and even our hands. This was definitely a once in a life time opportunity. -Ashlee
Today one of my dreams came true. I got to snorkel with wild sea lions… real, live sea lions. The first time we went out in the morning, one of the yearlings attached itself to my snorkel group for the whole hour and a half we were in the water. He brought us things to show off like a feather, some seaweed and sea shells. He snuck up behind me and nibbled on my fins twice. The second time we went out in the afternoon the sea lions were all napping but some of the yearlings woke up to come play with us. I got my wetsuit bit, just like a puppy would bit on your jacket. It was a dream come true to swim with the dogs of the sea. -Candace
For the first time in my life, I got to witness one of the events i’ve only ever seen on Animal Planet. I got to snorkel in the clear blue water, with sea lions. The morning snorkel was the most eventful, with a single juvenile sea lion following our snorkel group. He would swim all around us and appeared to dance under the water with us. At one point he swam in front of me and mouthed my hand like a puppy would. He stayed for a minute or so before splashing me, then going off to play with somebody else in our group. This was an experience unlike any other I’ve had in my life, and I look forward to doing something like this in the future. -Trinity
Today was one of the greatest moments of my life. I was able to go snorkeling today with the sea lions and not just one. This morning I was so excited to be snorkeling with the sea lions but i was only expecting to be close but instead I was able to actually pet them and play with them as well. In the group that I was in, one sea lion decided to come visit us. This sea lion swam with us through the whole snorkeling session, playing with us and also would bring us different types of objects as gifts such as feathers and shells. As we headed to the boat one of the baby sea lions followed us and I decided to stay back and swim around with it. The next part that happens just blows my mind, The sea lion comes up to me and comes into my arms. I began to hold the sea lion in my arms and after awhile it started to swim between my arms while also blowing bubbles in my face. This will be one of the best moments and memories ever. -Alec
Early this morning and late this afternoon, I got to get eye to eye with the amazing California Sea lion. This has by far been one of the best moments and first experiences of my life. When I first got the word about the sea lions and that we would be swimming with them, I immediately smiled and got super excited. On our first adventure out to their colony, Los Islotes, I brought my go-pro and was able to catch some incredible videos and pictures of the sea lions along with the vast variety of fish that were around too. Near the end of our first hour and half snorkel, we came across a couple very friendly and playful juvenile sea lions and they were doing flips and nibbling on our fingers. We went back for a quick lunch and then right back at it at 3 for the sea lions again, but this time I did not want to bring my go-pro and I was focused more on interacting with them. The sea lions did not fail and were all over us from the minute we got into the water. This experience was definitely one that will stick with me forever and I cant wait until I get another opportunity to do it again! --Tanner L.
Today I did something that I never thought I would be able to do. I swam with sea lions, and it was magical. When we first got in the water I was so afraid of being bitten by a bull, or an angry female. But these sea lions were absolute water dogs. The baby sea lions kept coming up to us to play. I was really glad that I wore gloves though. It felt like teething puppies, but with much more force. All I had to do was put out my hand and wiggle my fingers and they would nibble on them. They also thought that my fins were toys to play with and chew on. Once I found the baby sea lions I was no longer afraid of anything bad happening. These sea lions weren’t looking for something to eat, they were looking for something to play with, and I’m glad that they chose me. One baby sea lion was chewing on my flipper and I waved out my fingers and it was so cool to have it swim up my body and basically hug me. They were sooo soft, and their eyes were so big. They were the definitely the cutest thing in the water, and I will never forget my new water friends. -Sydney
Every day of this trip as been amazing, but today I was able to snorkel with sea lions, not once, twice. Many babies swam with us, playing as soon as they saw one of us. They bit our hands (not too hard) like cute dogs. They are very soft and they have big sweet eyes. I’m so glad I came here and got to see some of the most incredible animals. -Irene
The sea lions have to be in my opinion the pinnacle of this trip. They represent all the ocean has to offer. These mammals group in small packs around an island and many jump into the water to great the boat as we pulled up. The first encounter i had was a pup swimming up to me at ramming speed. It was scary and funny at the same time as the pup was wide eyed and barking. This sea lion would follow us around the entire island as we snorkeled. When we came back there was less playful pups and more large roaring males. We watched them wrestle with each other and bark out there feelings. These sea lions showed me that there is a whole entire world just under the water. -Zach
As this being my first year in the club, this trip has been amazing. Today was a special day for all of us. We got to see and snorkel with sea lions. As we got to their island, they started to bark at us but as we got in the water and get closer to them, the juveniles came in and swam around us. We got to rub their bellies and have them nibble on our hands. Something I never thought I would do. But it was an amazing experience to have that happen. We also got to see adult male sea lions fight it out and bark at one another over territory (a rock). Something that always startled me was when a giant male swam from underneath me or the two giant males fight right below me. It was scary but amazing. Today was the best day out of the trip so far and I’m glad I joined this club and had such a great experience with friends all around me. - David
Today was the highlight of the trip so far. I was able to check an activity off of my bucket list which was to touch a wild sea lion. I was able to do this multiple times today after two snorkels at Los Islotes here in the bay of La Paz. During the first snorkel my snorkel group had a juvinile sea lion follow and play with us for an hour around part of Los Islotes. It repeatedly came up to me and toothed on my hand and brought up shells to play with from the depths. During the second snorkel on the opposite side of Los Islotes it took a while for the sea lions to decide that they wanted to play with us. After about ten minutes we found a playful juvenile. After playing with the little guy for a few minutes we realized that the poor thing had a fish hook and line hanging out of his mouth. After he left we carried on for a little while until we found another playful sea lion. This time the mom came into the water and we noticed a ring around its neck, come to find out it was a gill net stuck around its neck. It was then that I came to realize that to feed ourselves we harm other magnificent creatures. All in all it was a great learning experience that I will remember for the rest of my life -Mike
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