Los Angeles ( CNN ) -- Up a river without a paddle . That 's the situation an adventurous California sea lion found himself in after swimming up the San Joaquin River , ending up at Mape 's Ranch in Modesto , California , about a 100-mile drive from the Pacific Ocean . `` The pup traveled a mile away from the river , and surprisingly was found in the middle of one of our new baby almond orchards , '' said Billy Lyons , manager of the family-owned ranch . `` I hope everything turns out OK. '' Luckily for the sea lion -- nicknamed `` Hoppie '' -- it looks like they will . The pup is recovering back along the coast at The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito , California . He was underweight and malnourished when he arrived there last month but is eating well and gaining strength . After finding Hoppie , Lyons contacted the nearby San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge . Assistant wildlife refuge manager Eric Hopson arrived on site and with the help of ranch hands helped corral the sea lion into a trap , said Jack Sparks with the U.S . Fish and Wildlife Service . Photographs provided by Sparks show Hoppie in a crate . In one , he appears to be fast asleep , nuzzled up against white towels . Hopson then contacted The Marine Mammal Center , which agreed to take the pup . He met a representative from the center in the parking lot of a strip mall to make the hand off , Sparks said . Hoppie is not the first California sea lion to swim up the San Joaquin River channel , according to The Marine Mammal Center . Another sea lion -- nicknamed `` Chippy '' -- made the same journey in 2004 . He was found by police officers atop a cruiser . Sick sea lion ends up on hotel patio . Lost sea lion pup visits neighborhood . Dolphin refuses to leave Southern California channel .
`` Hoppie '' -- the sea lion -- traveled about a 100-mile drive from the ocean . He was underweight and malnourished and is currently recovering . Comment: