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Seal Attacks

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  • 08-09-2008 10:31am
    #1
    surfjunky
    Registered Users Posts: 118 ✭✭


    Forgive the alarmist subject title but has anyone ever been attacked by a seal?
    I was out for a nice session in a remote location on the weekend with one mate and no other humans out. There were however around 6 seals, 5 medium sized ones and 1 huge bleary-eyed monster hanging around.
    At one point a fish jumped right out of the water near us and there were a good few birds diving in, so we reckoned they had cornered a shoal of fish and were picking them off. Anyway, they were hanging around the take-off point, we’d paddle out, catch a wave and repeat. Half an hour into it they started to come right up to us, the smaller ones popping up, slapping the water and diving, the big one would just lurk up a few feet (as close as 2 feet at one point) from us and stare us down. This went on for the whole session and it felt decidedly intimidating! I've been out with seals loads of times but never saw them behaving like this.
    Question, has anyone ever had a run-in with seals, been bitten or scratched?


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    #2
    tof2006
    Registered Users Posts: 31 ✭tof2006


    While surfing never, the behaviour you saw might be explain by the presence of pulps,
    there is a thread in this forum about Snorkelling with seals, i've put the link below, it should give you more explanation ( I hope)

    Is it safe to snorkel with a Seal?
    http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=56881288


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    #3
    surfjunky
    Registered Users Posts: 118 ✭✭surfjunky


    Interesting thread Tof2006 (thanks), the advice around not ‘swimming in their direction’ was difficult to follow as the seals were in the break zone so we’d be heading straight for them when trying to get out back. Also when we were out back we couldn’t avoid staring at them (which that link advises against) as we had to keep an eye for sets coming in and they’d just sit further out eye-balling us the whole time! Hard to strike a balance between getting in the sweet spot for take-off and avoiding seals. Just thanking my lucky stars I wasn’t subjected to seal prison-love like that girl in the other thread! :eek:


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    #4
    binhead
    Registered Users Posts: 91 ✭✭binhead


    Maybe they were locals?

    smirk..


    no never been bitten by a seal but they make me nervous when they get close.


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    #5
    CHD
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 6,956 ✭✭✭CHD


    Wrestled a seal to death once.Must have been 8 foot tall and 400lbs he were. He ate my samich on me he did. I got him.

    Generally though there safe enough but don't get in there way.


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    #6
    neon_glows
    Closed Accounts Posts: 873 ✭✭✭neon_glows


    yeah local tramore surfers are generally that ugly, thats all you saw.


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