Occurred on May 11, 2021 / Seaside, Oregon, USA
Info from Licensor: “On the beach at sunrise near Cannon Beach, OR, I happened upon this woman who had just stopped, and I saw she was headed toward a grey blob that turned out to be a baby dolphin near the edge of the ocean. We were the only people around. She had already called Animal Rescue (who never made it out), and they told her to keep the dolphin wet and make sure that if the tide came in, the dolphin could swim so it didn’t drown. She had a pail and towel in her car and was wetting the dolphin down, even pulling it by the tail gently to get it on higher on the sand. I stayed close to help but didn’t hang out next to the dolphin because the woman was doing well, and I didn’t want to add to the dolphin’s anxiety. Over the next 15 minutes, the tide came in quickly, and it was evident the dolphin could swim and was trying to get back to the water. In fact, the woman tried to help when the dolphin started swimming and unfortunately lost her iPhone in the ocean! As soon as a big enough wave came in, the dolphin splashed around, turned, and was gone in a blink. A happy ending for all (except the phone). I did not know the woman; it was a chance meeting – just her and I and the dolphin. Didn’t even get her name. Then we both just drove off. Another day at the beach.”