Anytime Rusty Hunter dips into the ocean off Laguna Beach for a free dive, he’s hopeful his new playful friend will show up to frolic around in the underwater world.
It’s not unusual for marine mammals to be curious about humans who share the sea, but this seeming friendship between Hunter and a white harbor seal is a regular encounter.
For the past six months, Hunter said he has had about 10 up-close encounters with the same white seal that each time has become more and more playful, coming up to swim between Hunter and fellow diving friends, resting its head on Hunter and putting its snout on his face mask, close enough for its whiskers to tickle Hunter’s face.
Rusty Hunter,24, a Laguna Beach diver and surfer, in Laguna Beach on Monday, February 2, 2026, has befriended a small, white harbor seal during his dives over the past six months, playing with it and fellow divers for up to an hour. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG) Rusty Hunter, 24, of Laguna Beach, has befriended a harbor seal while freediving off the coast. The same seal has visited with him about ten times, during recent dives becoming more playful and curious. (Photo courtesy of Hunter) Rusty Hunter, 24, of Laguna Beach, has befriended a harbor seal while freediving off the coast. The same seal has visited with him about ten times, during recent dives becoming more playful and curious. (Photo courtesy of Hunter) Rusty Hunter, 24, of Laguna Beach, has befriended a harbor seal while freediving off the coast. The same seal has visited with him about ten times, during recent dives becoming more playful and curious. (Photo courtesy of Payton Woods) Rusty Hunter, 24, of Laguna Beach, has befriended a harbor seal while freediving off the coast. The same seal has visited with him about ten times, during recent dives becoming more playful and curious. (Photo courtesy of Hunter) Show Caption1 of 5Rusty Hunter,24, a Laguna Beach diver and surfer, in Laguna Beach on Monday, February 2, 2026, has befriended a small, white harbor seal during his dives over the past six months, playing with it and fellow divers for up to an hour. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG) Expand“It’s hard to deny there’s some sort of connection between a seal that acts like that, and it’s even harder to deny when you’re in the water with it,” Hunter said. “It’s almost like asking if you and your dog have a bond. There’s something there, I don’t know what degree the relationship is, I don’t know if we’ll ever know. It’s engaging and interacting.”
Hunter, 24, who was born and raised in Laguna Beach, is a skimboarder and surfer who enjoys diving in the Marine Protected Area along the city’s shoreline, known for its ocean wildlife that thrives under strict regulations.
The budding photographer started bringing a camera with him on his underwater adventures to document his dives, with imagery posted on social media sharing sea species such as leopard sharks and swaying kelp forests that dance with the ebb of the ocean.
He and diving friend Jordan Manning would marvel at random encounters they would have with various seals and seal lions that seemed curious as they explored the ocean farther out. They would keep as still as possible and allow the animals to approach on their own, Hunter said.
“They are very curious, some are playful, some just want to see what you’re doing,” he said. “It’s a little intimidating when a creature comes up to you. The harbor (seals) are small, but the (sea lion) bulls are really big.”
Then, about six months ago, a curious white seal showed up during dives with friend Payton Woods.
“This white one was super sweet and playful,” Hunter recalled, speculating that the seal was a female based on its size and other identifiers. “She started being super playful and showing signs of wanting to hang out with us.”
Sometimes, to his disappointment, the familiar seal was nowhere in sight. But other times, it would show up, frolicking in the kelp and coming closer and closer to Hunter.
Some divers who have also seen the white seal started calling her “Waffles,” but Hunter avoids calling her by a name.
“When you put a name on it, it takes away some of the mystery. I don’t have anything against the name itself, to me I let her be what she is, I guess,” he said.
On one encounter in December, the seal hung out for about an hour and a half, he said, playing between the divers and the golden kelp forest, coming up for air every minute or so, then diving back down to play.
“That was the first time I got clear video of her that close to me, touching me,” Hunter said. “We went down and she had come up to us. It was an awesome day.”
At one point, Woods tapped the back of his head, signaling that the seal was approaching. He let the underwater camera roll as the seal swam around Hunter’s head, touching him with its fins, face against his, much like a playful puppy.
“I went still,” Hunter recalled. “It was a very organic moment, all three of us underwater. We came up after holding our breath for a while, we were cracking up because it was so crazy.”
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It seemed as if it was going to be an uneventful dive, not many fish in sight, the water cold.
“On our way in, we were just swimming through a few kelp paddies, and before we knew it, her head popped up. We just went underwater and started playing for an hour,” Hunter said. “This time, she was between me and my two friends, she was going back and forth, coming back to all of us. It was really fun, it’s such an awesome experience to have. That day was really special.”
Hunter said he and his diving friends all have a mutual respect for nature, never instigating an interaction and reminded the public that these are wild animals and should never be harassed, fed or disturbed.
He was torn, he said, about sharing the footage, not wanting people to go out and chase seals around.
“You’re at a disadvantage; they are infinitely faster and stronger,” he said. “And you probably won’t see anything if you try and track it around. Whatever you’re going to see, you’ll see.”
Hunter also hopes the images will remind people of the beauty all around us.
“I really think in this day and age, it’s so easy to go on our phones and kind of just forget about the raw, natural outside world around us,” he said. “I think I just want to remind people to get outside and chase adventure, above anything. The adventures and experiences and memories I’ve made with my friends, whether it’s diving or spearfishing or going on backpacking trips. All that is just, to me, such a sign of a great life. It’s just about that passion for getting outside and reminding people that it’s there.”
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