The great white shark was lazily cruising along the Dana Point waters, moving so slowly it looked like it might be sleeping.

The latest sighting on Saturday was a thrill for whale watching passengers who expected an array of wildlife, but even longtime workers on the Dana Wharf boat were excited by the find, said Steve O’Toole, a volunteer with the American Cetacean Society who captured the fin on camera.

The sighting of the estimated 10-12 foot shark comes just two weeks after a swimmer in Corona del Mar was bitten by what experts believe was a 10-foot great white shark.

There have been numerous sightings of great whites off the Orange County coastline the past two years, along with beach warnings and closures.

But now, the sharks are growing.

“Oh boy … we’re getting the big boys coming in,” he said.

The shark, spotted just a half a mile off the coast near the Dana Point Harbor entrance — and near a popular surf spot off Doheny — hung near the boat for nearly 10 minutes.

“It was really lazily swimming, so slowly through the water, going back and forth a little bit, to the point … one could almost surmise, he was sleeping,”O’Toole said.

O’Toole said he’s been on the boats for nearly 15 years, and this was the first time he’s seen a great white of this size off the O.C. coast.

“It’s unique, it’s different,” he said. “Personally this was wonderful to see. You can’t deny the excitement that regular people have. You just mention the word shark — it elicits all sort of different reactions.”

Contact the writer: lconnelly@ocregister.com