This is the incredible moment a Stand Up Paddler got the shock of his life when a Whale breached the ocean just metres from him. We say “him”, but it’s shot from so far away that it’s kind of hard to accurately detect gender.

However, the human is topless, so we’re sticking with “him”. (In the interests of full transparency, the Whale appears to be naked, the kinky swine).

As anybody who has ever gone Whale watching only to come away disappointed will confirm, the loveable sea giants can be hard to find at the best of times. Seeing them in the wild – which is the only way to see them as far as we’re concerned –  often takes an experienced boat crew, and sometimes even spotters flying in the sky looking for pods and behavioural patterns that will indicate where the massive buggers will pop up next.

However, all this Californian fella needed was his SUP board, and a spot of good fortune. Oh, and maybe some clean board shorts afterwards.