Sea Lion Climbs 145 Steps Into La Jolla Store

A San Diego store had to refuse service to a whiskered customer who wandered in from the sea.

A curious little sea lion climbed 145 steps to reach the Cave Store in La Jolla, manager Rachelle Agosti told NBC 7 Friday.

The Cave Store acts as the entrance to a manmade tunnel which delves down the cliffside and into the Sunny Jim Sea Cave.

While most people use the store to access the spectacular cave, the employees were surprised to find a visitor coming from the other direction on Jan 21.

Agosti said just before closing, the sea lion waddled into the store.

β€œIt was shocking,” the manager said.

Security footage shows the sea lion startling customers as it wandered around for about 10 minutes, confused and scared as the employees chased it around.

The quick-thinking humans decided to grab some salmon – normally used to feed their cats -- to grab the sea lion’s attention. They were able to lead it out of the store, back into the tunnel and to the ocean.

This is the first time a daring sea lion has made it into the building, though five years ago, another climbed up the stairs and close to the entrance, said Agosti.
 

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