Five busloads of Curtis students departed for a day of boating and whale watching on Tuesday, May 27th. Students and teachers from IB Biology and marine science classes, as well as Ms. Jackson’s physics classes, embarked on this trip all equally ready to be mind blown by the enormous whales they were set to see. This year, the amount of individuals who wanted to go on the trip increased, with over 170 people attending, in comparison to last year’s 150. A few students even had to be turned away.

The students eagerly boarded one of American Princess Cruises’ many boats. The group got the opportunity to take pictures and view the many whales that came by. Junior Angelina Mohsen said, “The trip was fire. I got to be with my friends on the boat, and the breeze was nice.”

After a long day of enjoying glimpses of several magnificent whales, as well as some dolphins, the journey concluded. Unlike last year, the boat had to dock in Manhattan. From there, the students walked to the ferry and made their way back to Staten Island. One bonus of the detour was the fact that the group got a rare close-up look at the Statue of Liberty from the boat.

The whale watching trip, which is on-track to becoming an annual event, is the brainchild of Mr. David Scheffler, the marine science teacher and Robotics club supervisor. “After seeing a picture of a whale breaching near Mr. Barrett’s boat in New York harbor, I thought it would be fascinating and adventurous for my marine science students to get an up-close and personal look at the waters and marine life surrounding our wonderful island,” he said. “Special thanks to Mr. Gambardella and Ms. Delillo, as well as Mother Nature for cooperating.” He also added that, while it took at least three months for last year’s trip to fill up, this one sold out in 45 days.

Even though the whale sightings lasted for a short time, the magic of seeing these creatures in the wild made the trip worth it. “I think it was very fun seeing all the excitement of when a whale would appear. I’ll probably go again,” freshman Evanny Fernandez expressed.