Paddle boarder has close encounter with Blue Whale

Rich German captured this incredible Blue Whale footage from his paddle board using a GoPro camera. The amazingly close encounter occurred approximately 2 miles off the coast of Laguna Beach, California. Considered the world's largest animal, blue whales average between 70-90 feet in length!

"I was out paddling and saw their huge spouts out in the distance. Started paddling with them last summer. They come to the area just for the summer because they eat krill (like little tiny shrimp) and there is a big supply of it here in the summer," German said. "At first I was intimidated by them because they are so huge. But I quickly realized they are totally harmless. They are very peaceful, sublime, mystical creatures."

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