Catalina Day 2

Day 2 was filled with more thrills at Toyon Bay! Some of us began with an early morning hike up Shrine Trail. Congratulations and thank you to Danny, Sergio, Sergei, Zack, Luke, Nick S., Dominick, Garrett, Nick E., Mr. Lalescu, and Ms. Koda for joining me on this short adventure. As you can see from the photos, the view was worth waking up a little earlier.

Our morning program involved rotating through lab stations, where we learned about algae, sharks, and different types of fish through hands-on activities. We enjoyed more snorkeling in the afternoon, which also included some time jumping off the floating platform. The water was very clear, allowing the students to see several more leopard sharks and garibaldi. Some of the instructors were also able to locate sea stars and a sea cucumber, which they brought to the surface for the students to see. Yes, it was cold, but the students were thrilled and had a great time. As the activity came to a close, fog rolled in, creating a beautiful backdrop as we returned to the island. Our evening program was an island simulation, where students had to address critical issues as they planned the development of a newly discovered island. They had to work together as a team to present a model that would help solve such problems as power/energy supply, waste removal, and resource protection; it was great fun watching them think and discuss (and argue, of course) during the project. You can see photos from today’s activities at www.flickr.com/photos/sandpiperprincipal. (My apologies for not making this a link… I can’t get it to work. Also, I did not upgrade my Flckr account, so it only allows me to upload 200 photos. Many of the photos from day 1 were removed to make way for photos from day 2.)

We will leave Toyon Bay on Friday morning and take shore boats to Avalon. The express shuttle leaves at 11:45 am (12:45 pm – Arizona time), and it typically takes about an hour to get to Long Beach. I will send out another phone message when the bus is loaded and we are ready to travel, which I expect to be around 1:15-1:30 pm (2:15-2:30 pm – Arizona time).

Your students are having a great time, and I know they are eager to get back home to share this experience with you!

Catalina 2011

We had a great first day on Catalina Island, although it was a bit colder than we are used to! We obviously began with our bus ride through the night. All of the students attempted to sleep, some with more successful than others. Aside from struggling to get comfortable, it was an uneventful drive, and we arrived in Long Beach a little ahead of schedule. Our ferry ride was a fairly smooth one with slightly overcast skies for most of the trip. The students were excited to see some dolphins and sea lions swimming along the way. Once we arrived, we enjoyed a quick lunch and basic orientation session about the camp before beginning our first snorkel activity. The weather was perfect and the water was clear, so our students were able to see many different types of marine life, including bat rays, guitarfish, garibaldi, and a few leopard sharks. While the water was cold, it became even colder as they had to exit the water with the sun disappearing behind the mountains. After dinner we learned a great deal about marine mammals in our evening lab, where students participated in a scavenger hunt for facts. It was an exciting and exhausting day, one that ended with many students asleep long before our prescribed quiet time. Tomorrow we have several lab activities scheduled, as well as another snorkeling outing. With the exception of facing the cold water, the students are eager to get back out there to see some more marine life. You can see pictures of today’s activities by visiting www.flickr.com/photos/sandpiperprincipal. (This is not a link; cut and paste it into your address bar to see the photos.)