Sailboat has near miss with surfacing humpback whale in San Francisco

Sept. 10 (UPI) -- A whale watching tour boat in San Francisco captured the moment a sailboat nearly collided with a humpback whale near the Golden Gate Bridge.

The video, recorded aboard a San Francisco Whale Tours boat, shows the sailboat turn sharply to avoid striking the humpback as it surfaces while feeding anchovies.

Sydney Minges, a naturalist who works for San Francisco Whale Tours, said the sailboat intentionally navigated toward the whale and showed negligence by getting to close to the marine mammal.

"If they are within 100 yards of you, you should be floating or moving in the opposite direction. One hundreds yards, or 300 feet, is the law. This sailboat was clearly not following those rules," Minges told KRON-TV.