By Kieran Higgins

   “The Catalina trip was amazing, and I want to go back so badly!” 

   These words have been echoed by ninth graders since they went on TPA’s annual Catalina Island Trip in September. There was so much excitement in the air when everyone – including me – got on the bus to Catalina early on that Thursday morning. We headed on our long journey around 7 a.m.

   When we got to Long Beach, we went to the Aquarium of the Pacific, an aquarium which offers a large assortment of many different marine species ranging from seals and penguins to sharks and jellyfish!

   Afterwards, we headed to the U.S.S Iowa, a World War II battleship, where we spent the night, and had an opportunity to tour the ship. 

   The next morning, we took a ferry to Catalina Island, where we stayed at Catalina Island Marine Institute, or CIMI, for three days. 

   On the first day we divided into four groups, based primarily on swimming ability, and then we snorkeled in the ocean and saw numerous species of saltwater life, ranging from Garibaldi fishes to Shovelnose guitarfish. That night we went on a night hike up a mountain to see the stars. 

   The second day at CIMI, we went through various marine life and ecosystems labs, and then we snorkeled during the day a second time, where we got more time, and also went night snorkeling, where we could see new organisms such as photosynthetic plankton and octopi.

   The last day at CIMI we went to the rest of the labs, said goodbye to the CIMI staff, and got back on the ferry. We then rode a bus back to TPA. On the way back we stopped at  In-N-Out Burger for dinner in Palm Springs. When we got back around 10 p.m., everyone left the school.

   The food was great at CIMI, ranging from hot dogs to spaghetti, with gluten and dairy-free options. At every meal, there was an hour break afterwards, when people could do many activities around the CIMI site. The labs at CIMI varied from stations to interact with species of marine wildlife to stations to view microscopic organisms. 

    I thought CIMI was a great trip and experience, and I encourage the class of 2028 to sign up!