I think Ex-Calif is spot on, but good luck proving this guy did it short of a highly improbable admission to a third party.
The
hotel certainly is not going to give
money to somebody they consider a trespasser under ANY circumstances short of a judgment.
This business about being below a certain tide line is of no consequence. That might give somebody a right of beach access, but it's not going to lead to a right to tie to somebody else's private property. Access and tying up are not at all the same thing, no matter how much you wish it to be. That's were the confusion first started.