A paddle boarder has recorded an amazingly close encounter with some rare leatherback turtles.<br /><br />Rick Weeks was taking his stand-up paddle board for a spin around the pier in Garden City, South Carolina back in April, when a giant turtle surfaced directly under his board. <br /><br />Weeks managed to keep his balance, although a less experienced paddler might easily have been knocked off.<br /><br />He then encountered several more of the giant reptiles floating nearby.<br /><br />Leatherbacks are the largest of all living turtles and the fourth largest reptiles in the world.<br /><br />They are classified as "Vulnerable" by the IUCN Red List.
