Oh wow! Awesome photos and must have been such a mixed feeling for you during your encounter with the mammal (adrenaline rush for sure!!!)... but looking back, it must have felt unbelievably awesome to have paddled so closely to it! What a great experience! Thanks for sharing your experience and photos.
I am glad you enjoyed the photos! It would only be fair to give credit where it is due to the photographer Michael. It was a last minute decision to bring the phone along for pictures, and I know that if I were holding the camera it likely would have fallen into the ocean. I was trembling with fear the entire time.
Thanks for reading!