Incredible moment paddleboarder has very close encounter with pod of curious orcas off Alaska coast

An expert Alaskan paddleboarder captured video of the amazing moment he had a breathtakingly close encounter with a pod of bold orcas. 

Saffron Hayes, 38, is a seasoned paddleboarder and adventurist from Juneau, Alaska, who frequently paddles off the Alaska coast with his wife and young children. 

On a recent paddleboard excursion to the waters near Lena Point, almost 14 miles northwest of Downtown Juneau, Hayes experienced the shock of a lifetime.

Hayes managed to capture the wild moment he came just inches away from a massive orca on camera. 

He said he spotted the orca pod and paddled over to get a closer look - while still keeping his distance.

An expert Alaskan paddleboarder captured video of the amazing moment he had a breathtakingly close encounter with a pod of bold orcas

Saffron Hayes, 38, is a seasoned paddleboarder and adventurist from Juneau, Alaska , who frequently paddles off the Alaska coast with his wife and young children

On a recent paddleboard excursion to the waters near Lena Point, almost 14 miles northwest of Downtown Juneau, Hayes experienced the shock of a lifetime

Hayes managed to capture the wild moment he came just inches away from a massive orca on camera

The paddleboarder said he was sitting in about 10 feet of water when one of the whales in the group became curious. 

'They came and checked me out, and it was really scary,' Hayes said. 'Maybe he thought I was a sea lion or something, or just wanted to get real close and look at me,' Hayes told Alaska's News Source. 

The orca made its way over to Hayes and swam underneath his paddleboard - before it all of a sudden popped out of the water just inches away from him. 

Hayes stopped recording in panic. 'I freaked out when he came up, and he kind of blew his blowhole at me, and I turned off the camera but two other orcas came by shortly after[ward] that I didn't capture on video,' Hayes recalled. 'Both times, just kind of buzzed right by my paddleboard.'

Despite being freaked out by the terrifying moment, Hayes felt that the whale's intentions were not malicious and that it was a 'playful' act from the orca.  

The paddleboarder said he was sitting in about 10 feet of water when one of the whales in the group became curious

The orca made its way over to Hayes and swam underneath his paddleboard - before it all of a sudden popped out of the water just inches away from him

'He didn't touch the paddleboard, and you know, it was amazing how like, shallow I was. I could see the bottom,' Hayes said. 

'The orca was so graceful — just coming right underneath the paddleboard and turning around and then coming back and blowing air at me.

'He could've easily tipped me or did something to me.'

Hayes said that the entire encounter lasted around 10 minutes and he saw 10 orcas swimming close-by in the group.