If you've had a chance to read our recent posts, you'll know that we participated in Whale Tales 2017, which we are pleased to say was a smashing success. The four-day event was educational, stimulating, and a whole lot of fun. There were some terrific presentations by marine scientists who are experts in their field, guests enjoyed wonderful entertainment, and the benefit Maui whale watches saw an amazing turnout in terms of both the guests and the whales.

We were happy to use our Maui Princess as a benefit whale watching vessel, which was especially rewarding, being that it's the largest boat in Lahaina Harbor at no less than 120 feet in length. This gave us the honor of kicking off the event by bringing 100 like-minded marine life enthusiasts out on an especially fun whale watch. It was a real treat for us, knowing we're all on the same page with the importance of these majestic creatures and the health of the ocean. To top it all off, we got to enjoy the delightful musical stylings of Uncle Wayne.

The proceeds from the benefit whale watch outings went to the Whale Trust Maui, a vital non-profit organization that supports whale research. Their mission is to collaborate with researchers on Maui and throughout the Pacific to learn more about whales and the health of the marine environment in which they live. Because they're the largest mammals in the ocean, the health of their populations can tell us a lot about the health of the world's oceans.

Not only did we decide to use the Maui Princess to benefit Whale Trust, but we also presented them with a $4,000 contribution to help them continue their good work. These funds were gathered through memberships, the donations of our guests, along with the profits from our retail and snack sales over this year's whale watch season from our Kaulana, Maui Princess, and Lahaina Princess vessels. We see contributions like these as a crucial investment in the future health of the world's marine environments as well as our own, and are proud that we can help facilitate these efforts.

Through our 100% Research Direct program, we support four carefully selected recipients, and Whale Trust is one of them. As our very own Captain Dave H. Jung stated at this year's Whale Tales event, "We have an immediate need for our community to support legitimate and peer-reviewed research on Hawaii's whales, dolphins, and marine ecosystem." If you'd like to be a part of these efforts, you can get started by visiting whaletrust.org, and by joining us aboard one of our Maui ocean tours! Mahalo!