December 2019, Cory and I went to San Francisco to see the Harry Potter play at the Curran Theater. We stayed at a hotel at Fisherman's Wharf which is a pretty cool part of the city, although very touristy. Fisherman's Wharf is within walking distance of Pier 33 and the ferries to Alcatraz Island, now a part of the National park system. The Wharf is just down the road from the famous switchback Lombard Street and is connected to the rest of San Francisco with a network of trollies and cable cars. These were pretty fun to ride. Fisherman's Wharf is also the home to Boudins Bakery, which claims to be the originator of sourdough bread, I am not sure I believe this but whatever. Boudins Bakery was shockingly overpriced and the the food couldn't hold a candle to a northeast delicatessen.
Our hotel was roughly 2 blocks from the water front and we could feel the mixing of air from off the bay and the breeze coming in from the Pacific Ocean. As we checked in it was drizzling, and we could hear off in the distance what sounded like a bunch of injured dogs barking. We decided that we would go explore the Wharf a little if the rain died down any. Luckily shortly after this, it did. As we walked toward the water front the dog barks seemed to get louder and then all of a sudden stopped. Eventually we found ourselves at Pier 39 with all of its boutique and touristy shops and restaurants.
Walking around the outdoor mall, which is Pier 39, we eventually heard the barking sounds again. By this time we had guessed that the calls were from Sea Lions or Seals, but could not tell where they were coming from. That is, until we had rounded the corner near the northwest side of the pier, it was a large pier, and there they were hundreds of Sea Lions on detached floating docks next to Pier 39. In some cases the Sea Lions were closer than 30 feet from us. Most were laying around but some were swimming, some pups were playing and all were jostling for position on the docks.
We stayed for a little bit, but decided that because we had had a long drive to San Francisco and because we had a long day of Harry Potter plays the next day, we would turn in early. Perhaps we would come back the day after the plays to see more of the Sea Lions.
I was curious about why Sea Lions would be clustered on and around these docks at Pier 39, in the middle of San Francisco Bay and the very urban surrounds. Usually Sea Lions like to be on coastal beaches and rocky outcrops. I briefly researched the Sea Lions at Pier 39, thinking they had to be some sort of domesticated group. I found out instead that they were indeed wild. Apparently there was an earthquake around October 1989 and shortly afterward Sea Lions began occupying the docks around Pier 39. This was a point of contention with the human Marina tenants who could no longer safely navigate the Marina without potentially injuring the Sea Lions and in fact the Sea Lions were taking up so much dock space that the boats could no longer dock there. Several attempts were made to relocate the animals and encourage them to find other lodgings, but the Sea Lions kept coming back. It appears that no one has yet discovered the real reason for this. Regardless, eventually the docks around Pier 39 were officially ceded to the Sea Lions.
We got up early on December 5th to hopefully see the Sea Lions prior to getting on a ferry to go to Alcatraz Island. Sure enough they were there, louder than ever, enjoying the morning. Sea Lion pups were playing and chasing each other in the water, adolescence were practicing sparring, and wisened Sea Lions were relaxing, sunning themselves. One of the younger Sea Lions even jumped out of the water in front of me, while being chased by another Sea Lion. As I snapped away with my camera, eventually I found what I want to believe is this cute family almost in an embrace. (At the top of the post.)
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