Seals.

One of the things we found most thrilling in California was the animals. Near Carmel, we saw plenty of California Sea Lions, playful in the water - huddling together to sun in the December air. Very sweet. And further south, we got the chance to see a colony of elephant seals that come each winter. They come ashore only once a year, to give birth and mate. The males were aggressively going at each other and the baby seals were barking wildly. It was amazing because the males were monstrous, literally (2.5 tons), undulating awkwardly - obese - and unable to move. They looked almost stranded on land, they moved with such difficulty. Then when they would slide into the water, they were transformed.