Bark and ride! Cheeky seal astonishes paddle-boarder when it pops out of the water and hitches a lift
- Seal hopped onto novice paddle-boarder’s board on Monday afternoon in Dorset
- The inquisitive creature ignored Cenk Albayrak-Touye as it basked on his board
- He feared the seal might capsize board and tip him into water in Poole Harbour
This is the moment a novice paddle-boarder picked up an unexpected passenger when a seal hitched a ride.
The chilled-out animal hopped on to Cenk Albayrak-Touye’s board before spending a couple of minutes lying on it basking in the sun.
It seemed oblivious to its host for most of the time it spent relaxing on his board in the sea off Dorset on Bank Holiday Monday.
But it then turned round and had a good look at him before slipping back into the water.
Mr Albayrak-Touye, 25, an English teacher, was paddle-boarding with his dad just off Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, when he filmed the astonishing encounter.
He said: ‘I have only ever seen a glimpse of a seal so this was the last thing I expected.
The seal hopped on board as Cenk Albayrak-Touye, 25, was paddle-boarding with his dad just off Brownsea Island in Poole, Dorset
‘Me and my dad have recently bought paddle-boards and this was only the fourth or fifth time we had been out on them.
‘We had gone a bit further afield and I sat down to keep my balance.
‘My dad didn’t realise why I had stopped because I didn’t want to shout out in case I scared the seal.’
Mr Albayrak-Touye, from Poole, said the seal was so big and heavy he wondered if they were going to over-balance and fall into the water.
He filmed the encounter on Monday afternoon as temperatures soared and crowds flocked to Dorset’s beaches.
Last summer, further west along the Dorset coast one seal was so relaxed that it fell asleep for four hours on a paddle-boarder’s board.
The seal turned round and had a good look at Mr Albayrak-Touye, pictured right, before slipping back into the sea
The animal, known as Sammy by locals in Weymouth, has become a regular sight for beachgoers, often approaching people on the beach and being regularly checked up on by volunteers.
In August the seal was pictured riding on Buster Cottam’s board. He described Sammy as ‘gentle’ and similar to a dog.
The seal stayed in a ‘deep sleep’ on his board while occasionally ‘stretching and yawning’, he said.
Dorset Wildlife Trust says both grey seals and harbour seals are spotted around the county’s coast.
On its website, it advises people to keep to a more than 100 yards from seals, but when inquisitive juveniles come closer, it advises staying calm and not crowding or touching them.