Seals relaxing off the coast of California, just South of Monterey in Point Lobos State Natural Reserve. If you want to see baby seals close up in the wild start booking your trip soon. These photos were taken in May, the beaches were closed to humans and seals were pretty much everywhere humans weren't.
In every calm and secluded bay mother seals were relaxing with their babies. It's safe from Orcas in here and humans. Since hunting stopped and the destruction of their main food sources from overfishing, the population of seals has really bounced back.
We spent a good part of our vacation watching the seals and wished we had better cameras than what was available on our smartphones.
This photo was taken off a dock in North Vancouver. Seals live all up and down the pacific Northwest Coast. They're excellent swimmers, being shaped like torpedos and are rather fast underwater.
On land it is a different story. This young seal was awkwardly trying to get up the beach to join its family.
They gave up and looked at us while waiting for a helpful wave. Watching them flop up the beach is a site to behold.
Seals are mammals, they breastfeed just like humans do. They bark like dogs and have snouts remarkably similar.
We see deer almost every time we leave the city. These ones were found in the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia.
A mother deer is eating grass in a park in downtown Kelowna.
Baby deer are cute, this family was found near Invermere, British Columbia. The Kootenays are overrun with deer.
We must of seen a hundred deer on that weekend trip near Radium BC.
This deer looks like it lives in Alberta, it's the early spring and it still hasn't shed its winter coat.
Dandelions present a nutritious spring treat.
Back to Invermere, yes we take a lot of animal photos.
These fawns were living on Vancouver Island, near Parksville.
Nothing is cuter than a doe with her fawns.
Taking photos of wildlife requires time an patience. Animals are our favorite subjects and we are looking forward to a good 2025 with a more professional set of tools.
Thank you for viewing and have a nice week.
All photos were taken with an s22, iphone 14 pro or iphone 16 pro and are not edited with AI.
You can always tell you are in good country when there are predators like seals living there. Predators are a fraction in number of their prey, so where there are plentiful predators, there are plentiful prey animals too.
Seals have very stinky breath, BTW. It is the worst, most fishy
smellbreath I have ever experienced.Thanks!
Edit: I remember that fermented salmon heads actually smell worse than seal breath. The Tlingits where I grew up called fermented salmon heads 'Ghink', which they told me means 'Stink Heads'.
Seals look more like friends than foe but I'm no fish, nor were we tempted to jump off the pier and find out. Hopefully you don't have to smell the breath of any more seals!
I won't be sneaking up on them ever again, so see no way I can again suffer that intimacy.
I didn't know that seals almost barked like dogs...it must be a strange sound to hear from them...but they are certainly cool to watch. I love seeing how animal life develops...it's fabulous to be a part of it. Beautiful photos.
They don't sound exactly like dogs but pretty close to it, you can hear a bunch of seals on the beach or pier before you see them. Thanks
I wish I could do it, I'm sure it would be a very beautiful and stress-relieving spectacle.
Thank you.
Everything looks charming but this is especially adorable
They really are cute
Nice shots
Thank you
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