“Your worst day here is better than your best day on the mainland”

Those were the words I was greeted with upon my arrival at the Catalina Island Marine Institute (CIMI) by one of the sailing instructors.

The island is absolutely rugged, arid, and beautiful.

CIMI Toyon Bay from the Shrine Trail

“The Shrine” at the top of the Shrine Loop Trail

I’ve been at CIMI for about two weeks now, and I still wake up every day thinking HOLY COW I can’t believe I actually live here! The facilities are in tip-top shape (thanks to a hardworking maintenance staff), the food is delicious (thanks kitchen staff!), the landscape is breathtaking, and everyone is incredibly friendly and absolutely stoked to be living and working here.

Our first week was filled with an intense waterfront lifeguard certification course. The first day we were in the water at 6:30 am sharp, no wetsuit, doing swim drills in 63 degree water. We worked in the water all day (thank goodness for wetsuits after those initial drills) and jumped straight into book work until after 10 pm that night. We all hammered through the course in three-and-a-half solid days, and everyone passed with flying colors, confident and ready to save lives. So that others may live! Even after completing my divemaster and working in dive safety, I’m always blown away by the infinite amount of knowledge there is to gain, and the importance of practicing skills. I learned a multitude of skills I never would have known I was lacking, and was able to refresh and re-enforce my confidence in the ones I already knew.

Of course, there’s also no bonding experience like charging into the ocean at 6:30 am with a bunch of other crazies who are stuck on this island with you.

Our grumpy camp resident, Mike Bison

Though the people at CIMI are delightful company, we have present our token grump, Mike Bison. Yes, he’s named after Mike Tyson for a reason – he is not a happy camper. Fun fact: bison, though they look sleepy and slow, can run at up to 30 mph. They can also (according to our secretary) jump 6 ft vertical without a running start. Long story short, you do not want to get in the way of a large, fast, easily provoked critter. He has a habit of standing in the middle of the road when we’re trying to get somewhere, and loves to come munch on the grass and leave his patties all over camp. But, he’s a cutie and we’ll deal with it. He certainly provides endless entertainment. Ran out of small talk? Tired of talking about the weather? Talk about Mike Bison.

One of my favorite things about Toyon Bay (besides the fact that I can hear the ocean out my bedroom window) is that it is the trailhead for several hiking trails through the gulleys, canyons, and ridge-lines of the surrounding area. I’m becoming a lean, mean fighting machine from morning trail runs and afternoon hikes and explorations, and I can’t wait to lead campers and school groups up and down the trails.

Though it’s known primarily for its marine life and bison, I have fallen in love with the Catalina landscape. With the extreme drought conditions the island is currently experiencing, it’s a dry, dusty, prickly place that still manages to awe with its dramatic cliffs and rock faces veined with minerals and succulents.

Prickly pear cactus blossom – Fun Fact: The pads and fruit of the cactus are edible; the fruits are called tunas

The trails are surrounded by sage, cacti, succulents, and several shrub and tree species. Fun fact: Smelling sage releases feel-good endorphins in your brain. My personal favorite plant thus far on the island is the Lemonadeberry. This bush produces blotchy red-yellow berries with a sticky coating. If you suck on the berries, they taste like sugared lemons and are delicious. The indigenous people of Catalina used to pick the berries and soak them in water to produce a drink similar to lemonade – I’m going to collect berries and try this on my next hike!

Ironwood branches overlooking Toyon and the Pacific Ocean

Fun fact: When Wrigley owned the Chicago Cubs and the island of Catalina, the team began making their bats out of the endemic ironwood tree. This species was dubbed ironwood because the wood is incredibly dense and actually sinks when placed in water. This high density gave the Cubs an advantage and they began hitting many more homeruns. Ironwood bats were eventually banned by the MLB since they gave the Cubs an unfair advantage – no one else could get the wood since it only grew on Catalina.

I still can’t believe I get paid to hike these beautiful mountains – Canyon Trail

This past week has been a whirlwind of science and adventure training. I’ll be teaching courses on fish, sharks, invertebrates, algae, plankton, marine mammals, oceanography, kayaking, hiking, archery, snorkeling, and so much more! Our first campers just got here today and I can’t wait to start teaching tomorrow! I could write a book on everything I’ve learned, but I’ll resist for now!

Our archery range has dinosaur targets. It’s pretty awesome.

One of my favorite things about being on the ocean is walking in the morning and looking for interesting things that washed up overnight. There’s an abundance of seaglass and shells, and occasionally some live creatures. Here’s a couple I found:

Unknown eel larva I found washed up on the beach in Toyon Bay (The clear creature, you can see its eye to the right). The pink anenomes are Strawberry Anenomes, the fish are Bluebanded Gobies.

A By-the-wind-sailor (Velella velella) I found washed up in Toyon Bay. These are a type of jellyfish that use their ‘sail’ (the part pointing up towards the camera) to catch the wind and move about the open ocean in search of food. Unfortunately, when they’re caught in an adverse wind they’re helpless and get washed up on shore like this little guy.

I wish I had more pictures of the marine life, but I’m settling into a much more unplugged pace of life where I rarely have my phone on me to take pictures. I’m also currently lacking an underwater camera, but I promise I’ll get some underwater shots soon!

Shark Harbor, backside of Catalina. The variety of rock formations here are astounding.

The last couple weeks have been a blur of training and meeting dozens of new people, building friendships, memorizing plankton species, and trying to figure out where on earth the laundry rooms are. Now, our first group of campers have arrived and CIMI is full if energy! I’m so excited to teach and learn from all these kids this summer and into the school year. Wish me luck!