August 23, 2012 12:12 pm Up Close and Personal Whale Watching Whale watching is a summertime tradition along the California coast and this year, the whales are closer to shore than ever. US & World Videos 4:52 Watch: Oakland Ballers co-founder discusses team, new ballpark 2:23 Forecast: Warm and windy day 0:32 Crime numbers down in Oakland, police data shows 5:44 May Day demonstrations, Gaza war protests continue across Bay Area 0:39 Sea lion population boom at San Francisco's Pier 39