Snorkelling in the Galapagos is superb!! I miss the days that we had three snorkels in one day!! Those were epic!
Here are a few pictures, some a bit blurry but will still give you an idea of the diversity!
Thanks so much Pete! I would have none if not for your camera and skills!
Missing warm weather and heading towards Isla de la Plata, I made my way to Montanita. This was my first stop from Guayaquil. Montanita is known for its huge part scene. It is also pretty lax on drugs and one can buy weed muffins at any street corner really. There are loads of clubs, all pumping the music, mainly techno or reggaeton. I didn’t go out on my first night, but decided that I couldn’t leave the part town without going out to party.
On night two I went out with a whole load of girls from the hostel. Apparently girls are a rarity in the hostel…so who knows how six of us ended up together? We first went out for delicious espresso martinis- which I had discovered earlier on in the day. We then carried on down to Cocktail Alley- where it is 3 USD per cocktail. It was around midnight that we went to one club, which we didn’t settle in and so went to another. I can’t say I really got into the groove much… the music was very mixed up. When one of the girls decided that she was going back, I decided to join her- this was around 3am.
When we returned to the hostel; the owner; who was still awake; asked if we felt the earthquake that just occurred a few minutes ago- we had not. It was the earthquake that shook the Peruvian jungle.
This morning I left to go to Las Tunas- a very quiet beach village north of Montanita. I walked around the little town much more than I would have wanted as the GPS location was incorrect on booking.com! It was very-very quiet especially since it was Sunday. I took the quiet time to catch up on blogging and to do some planning before heading north to Puerto Lopez early the next morning.
I got into my hostel early-at 8:30- had breakfast and headed out to find water. I had to meet up with my tour operator at 09:20. I was missing Galapagos and snorkelling a lot!! So I decided to head to another
“poor man’s Galapagos”. This is in the form of Isla de la Plata, about 1.5 hours by speed boat from Puerto Lopez. The seas were rough on the way in and back probably worse. This is allegedly not normal and has occurred since the earthquake. I was pretty sure that I had shrunk by a centimetre due to the force of the landing of the boat back on the water- but was better off than the people at the back of the boat who were drenched in sea water to boot. It was like a washing machine back there! We saw a pod of bottlenose dolphins on the way to the island, but unfortunately nothing on the return trip.
Upon arriving we are in the bay where the walking trails start- and we have a family of three sea turtles and some damsel fish say hello. We have a wet landing and head off for about 2 hour walk. At the look out the group spilt into two, depending on which walk you chose- I went down the coast. Isla de la Plata is named this for two reasons- all the white bird shit made it shine like silver (Plata) and a grounded ship once lost silver that was littered across it’s beaches. I think I like the second reason!
The forest on the island –which is continental and not volcanic like the Galapagos Islands- is what is called dry tropical forest. As the rainy season is coming to an end it will get drier. The trees are not dead, just dormant. It was great to see loads of blue footed boobies again –and they are looking for mates at the moment so we had many mating dances. We also saw frigate birds and a few tropic birds.
The coastline of the island is pretty dramatic, and unfortunately littered with large plastic containers.
We headed back to the boat, had lunch –just sandwiches- and went off to snorkel in a quiet bay. The fish life is pretty good here; even saw a couple of species that I had not seen in the Galapagos. One was dark, nearly black with white polka dots and another pod of what looked like baby sword fish. After we were all on board though, it turned out that one of the girls was stung by something like a jelly fish- or maybe something else and had blisters down her arm. She said it felt nearly like electricity. Ouch!
We hunkered down to another hard core return journey!
I had fallen asleep pretty early after that exciting day, and did my last Ecuadorian bus trip- to Manta- the next morning after breakfast. I arrived about three hours later and pretty much chilled in the hotel. I wanted to finalise a few things before my flight to Quito early the next day and later on in the day, to Bogota, Colombia.
I had decided that I would head over to the Pacific Coast in Ecuador, before heading back to Quito and then Bogota.
The trip from Cuenca to Montanita is 7 hours though and I preferred to break up the journey. Approximately half way is where one finds Guayaquil. It is the largest city in Ecuador and has a bad reputation for crime. There is a huge disparity between rich and poor people who live here.
I just stayed one night, on the Promenade and spent a few hours waking around and enjoyed an early morning run. The people were pleasant and I didn’t have any bad experiences. The promenade has been well equipped with kids play areas, cafes and evening entertainment. It is a pleasant walk around.
It is also fun to visit the main square- which hosts the Iguana Park. There are loads of iguanas who call this park home and who are fed lettuce leaves by keen tourists. You need to be very careful when walking around though- so as not to step on any- their tails are long so beware!
On my last day in Cuenca, and once everyone had left, I decided to go visit the largest Incan ruins in Ecuador. Michael had the day off and so he decided to join me. It is a 2.5 hour trip north of Cuenca (which I had passed on the way from Alausi mind you!)
Ingapirca, translated from Kechwa, means Inca wall. The Incans came across the Canari tribe here and after problems conquering them they decided to live together, Interestingly, the Canari people were a matriarchal society.
There are distinct sections of the complex that can be split into the tribes. Incans built with their precise stone cutting techniques , using volcanic rocks, while the Canari used river stones. The complex is on the Incan trail that existed across the empire -from Colombia to current northern Chile and Argentina.
There are storage sheds here, a Moon Temple as well as Sun Temple . There is also a complex water reticulation system.
I took the bus from Alausi to Cuenca with two friends I had made at the hostel: Rory from Ireland and Marnie from London. It took just over 4 hours. My Airbnb hosts were super slow to respond to my request, thus I ended up staying at the same hostel that Marnie had booked. This was a very good thing though.
The hostel- El Cafecito- on the Plaza Civica- is rather unique. Tony- the owner- has lived in many countries, and in Ecuador for 23 years. He provides all incoming guests with a great deal of information and all to do activities mapped out on Maps.me. The hostel has many stairs and thus the key delivery system is one that I have not seen before- ring the secret doorbell ring and the key will be parachuted down from the rooftop 🙂 .
Arriving on Saturday afternoon we go to the Mercado, opposite side of the Square, and have pig on a spit with corn, potatoes and onions. This is a staple with all the ladies selling it- we are talking about 10 pigs here! It’s a good feed for 3USD.
Rory and I decide to go out this evening- the last opportunity in the week to go out. We found a club by the river and arrived after 10pm… however it was still pretty quiet. We had a drink or two while the place filled up a bit. We hit the dance floor at about 11pm and never left J Made friends with a group of Ecuadorians who spoke a bit of English and had a jolly good time! As a matter of fact, Rory had a better time, leaving with one of the ladies and was lost in action for the next couple of daysJ Everyone in the dorm was asking me what I had done with Rory that he had not returned . He gained himself and instant wife plus 2 kids!!
Marnie, Chris (German Biologist/Geographer) and I went out to breakfast and coffee and later Marnie and I went to Pumapungo Museum. This museum has some of the most varied displays ever- Inca ruins, aviary, archaeology, art and ethnographics – including the shrunken heads. No photos allowed inside though. Follow this link for a short explanation of the head shrinking customs of this tribe here.
Cuenca is a small city, relatively speaking, of 600,000 people. Its historical centre is protected under UNESCO world heritage. It is thus pleasant to walk around and as our group discovered- has great coffee and ice cream shops- to the point where Chris had all our daily coffee stops planned as he is coffee crazy! I’m not sure where I should be having coffee now 🙂
With all our socialising there isn’t much time to actually sightsee 🙂 We did however have some time to visit the Panama Hat Museum. Chris, Michael (volunteer at the hostel from USA) and I had an English tour lasting 20 minutes and covering how the hats are made. The hats were named as Panama hats as President Roosevelt had seen them and taken a liking to them when he saw the workers working on the Panama Canal wearing them. It then became critical for Ecuador to let the world know that it was them who actually made these hats, but the name stuck!
The hats are made from palm tree leaf fibres, the finer the fibres, the finer the hat weaving. The most expensive hat ever made took one year (3 hours per day) to make. It is priced at 20 000 USD! There is a considerable difference between the weaves –to the touch and sight.
It was a sad evening when Chris left for his flight, then a couple of hours later Michael, Liza, Swazi and Rory all caught the night bus to Peru.
Alausi is the beginning and ending destination of one of Ecuador’s scenic railway lines: Nariz del Diablo (the Devil’s Nose). The small village is pleasant and has some old railway buildings.
The railway line is one of two in the world that zig-zags down the mountainside. It was built by Costa Ricans and Panamanians and Jamaicans- all prisoners. During this time over 2,500 people died during its construction due to yellow fever, malaria and explosives accidents.
The track is very short- 12km with an elevation drop of 150m. The locomotive pulls and pushes the wagons up/ down and across the zig zags.
The train also stops in the village of Simbame where locals perform dances for the passengers. There is also a small museum where the traditions of the local villagers are explained. The dances are energetic and fun. The costumes are, as usual, very colourful and embroided with beautiful motifs.
The return trip only lasts 30 minutes.
Banos is well known as Ecuador’s adventure capital as well as thermal pools. It is set in a valley, under a volcano which destroyed the town after each of the three major eruptions it had in recent history. The town is pleasant enough- set up for tourism. For a strange reason you can also buy jungle trips here. Why is it strange- well because the packages are for lodges in the north east of the country- at least 17 hours travel from here?
A few hours after my arrival it started raining- and remained as such until late the next day! I booked a Chiva (truck) trip for the next day to do the Rutas de la Cascadas. It was the oddest trip that I have ever done. The trucks are fitted with benches, painted with colourful motifs and have super loud music blaring from huge speakers in the back- one even had disco lights?! The rain persisted the whole morning and thus we got somewhat wet as the sides of the truck were not covered.
The first sight is the hydro dam- which has some gates open to impressive volumes of water flowing out downstream. The waterfalls look good with the rain and many start from the mountain tops –which are cloud covered.
We also stop at a few zipline activities- which are good value if you are into that sort of thing. 500m zipline was only 10USD.
Later we stop at a sweet factory. The region is also known for artisanal hard candies.
We finally reach the cherry on top of the cake- Pailon del Diablo – the best waterfall near town. When walking alongside the river-or white waters that feed this waterfall, you already get an eery sense of the sheer volume and power held here! One crosses down two suspension bridges and down a series of stairs to be right behind the water- it is surreal! Loud and extraordinary volumes of water pass a narrow neck above. Every now and then a small rock shoots out into the ether as the force of the water dislodges it.
This has not been the largest waterfall I have seen; however, it was mighty impressive! The videos do the best of capturing the power!
The next day the weather was looking hopeful, but still with low cloud. I waited for the sun to try and burn off the low clouds for a while and then grabbed the 13h00 bus to Casa del Arbol (The Treehouse) which has huge swings with great views. As we gained altitude though the views disappeared with cloud cover. Much of the scenery was only visible for a quick time. I then caught the bus back to the cross lookout above Banos and walked the rest of the way back into town.
It was of course very ironic that on the day I was leaving the weather was clear, beautiful and sunny!
Unfortunately, due to the setup of the transport network I needed to go back south to Quito before heading north to Otavalo! There are no direct buses between the two. The buses also leave from different bus stations, so I needed to grab a taxi between the two as well.
I arrived in Otavalo and checked into my accommodation where I met up with Gina- from Arizona. She was actually on both buses with me from Mindo- and now we were neighbours. We went to grab some dinner and decided to go out dancing that night. I was super keen as I have had an urge for dancing for a while now. We went out at around 9pm to hunt a place down. It took a while- at first there was nothing – then we walked in the opposite direction and found the night club district. The first one was a disappointment – so Gina grabbed a Corona, finished it and we tried another locale. We had seen more people in the club originally. It’s hard to tell though as most keep their music loud and doors closed- so you don’t know how busy it is inside!
This club was much better and we stayed there for the night. The DJ was handing out free beers to those doing a good job of working the crowd and pulling moves…and I got one!! Hahahaha- shock horror- I know! As I don’t drink beer though, Gina had it. I had a tough time convincing Gina to stay until midnight…even though we both had an afternoon nap, so we left a few minutes before. It was interesting to see how everyone got dressed though- there were business men and women in their attire, youngsters in jeans etc- casual, then there were several ladies who were in traditional attire. These are beautifully embroided white blouses, golden beaded necklaces and long skirts. A real mix!
The next morning was Otavalo’s main event- a huge market that sprawls across Ponchos Plaza and all the streets leading to it. The Saturday market is super large and important for locals and tourists alike.
There is a huge variety of items for sale and we spend some time shopping, looking and being offered every item imaginable to buy.
That night I go out to the same club again- but alone this time as young Gina was all tired out. The club area was just 4 blocks away from where we were staying, so that was handy! The night was good and I was invited to join a few of the local groups of friends as we danced through the night. I had to leave a t a reasonable time though as I was off to hike early the next morning.
I wake up at 5am on Sunday due to noise, not impressed as I needed some more sleep. I headed off to the bus stop to catch a bus to Cotacachi from where I would catch a taxi to Laguna Cuicocha to hike around the circumference of the caldera. Upon arriving in Cotacachi I started raining… more and more. So I figured I would try and wait it out. I did so by some shops near the terminal; where a guy decided that propositioning me at 07h30 was appropriate and having a beer at this time was a good plan. I just laughed it off and eventually left when he didn’t give up. Mind you; I have never heard as bad a pickup lines as this fella tried to use (in very bad and patchy English). I found a great coffee shop though and had two cappuccinos in peace while I was giving up on the idea of actually hiking.
The weather actually improved though and the sun came out for a little while, so I grabbed a taxi and went off to the lake. I asked the driver to come back and pick me up in 5 hours- the expected duration of the walk.
I’m glad that I decided to do the walk as it was really great scenery and the weather improved –until the end when it started drizzling again. The walk is pretty and pretty tough. Mainly due to the altitude, stairs and many up hills. It is at an altitude of 3,400m and 3,700m. There are great views into the caldera, of the two islands inside and then farmlands on the outside of the volcano. The caldera was created 800 years ago and has been filling up with water since then. The path is also lined with wonderful wild flowers and orchids.
I was pleasantly surprised to actually have the taxi driver pick me up a little earlier than planned- and where we said. (It is about 20minutes drive to the closest village where one can catch the bus.)
After that walk I grabbed the bus back to Otavalo, went to my hostel, grabbed my bags and went back to the bus station to grab a bus to Quito. The queue for the tickets was at least 150 people long (it was Mother’s day and hence the busyness). It took a while to get a ticket but at least the bus company seemed to have an endless supply of busses and drivers and they left as they were filled!
I had arranged a pickup with the nice Uber lady from the bus terminal to city center – which was good as it was dark when I got it.
I spent the next couple of days in Quito mainly catching up on blogging and figuring out what I will do next.
It’s hard to give up the good things in life-so it was the same group and Marc, and an older couple from Australia –all from the latest Galapagos group- who went for a day trip to Mindo from Quito. I grabbed all my gear as I was going to get dropped off and stay for a couple of nights; while the others were off to Lima.
After a 2 hour trip we got to the first stop- Tarabita- a simple cable car that is powered by a Nissan engine. We take the cable car across the ravine and go for a two hour walk through the rain forest and between a few small waterfalls. The guys even hopped into one of the pools by the waterfall and slightly froze their bits off J.
The boys and I carried on across and up the ravine, while the others caught the cable car back across.
After the hike we drive a short while to get to the butterfly farm. There is a short and sweet introduction to the lifecycle of the butterfly and then we walk into a netted space where the butterflies are abundant. There are several species – the most attractive being a large sapphire blue colour. There are also cocoons on the display and I witness two butterflies breaking through their cocoons; stretching and drying their wings.
It turns out that Marc was a skilled butterfly whisperer and collected butterflies and passed them along to me while I sat and enjoyed watching them eating banana or just relaxing.
Going through the first enclosure there are high platforms and hummingbird viewing areas. It was the first time I saw hummingbirds- seeing their wings beat as fast as they do is fascinating! They come down to drink sweet water provided in small feeding hangers.
===Funny interlude… we came across an Ecuadorian guide and Dutch tourist agent that we had shared a cable car with in Quito the day before. We had joked that we were stalking them before on the mountain… now they were stalking us.
The garden area also contains incredible flora- flowers that I have not seen before. Most are really large and have flamboyant colouring.
With that colourful part of the day done; a hungry bunch of us headed off to lunch. Then the best part of the day… tour of the local chocolate factory- El Quetzal. A guide took us through the process, we tasted the fresh cocoa seeds, and the dried version as it goes through the process. A walk through the garden revealed the actual flowers of the cocoa plant. The tree produces 3,000 flowers, of which approximately 100 are pollinated by a tiny mosquito! We saw (and smelt) the fermentation boxes as well as drying racks, then went through the roasting process and separation of shells and bean. Finally, the cocoa butter separation and drying (for hot chocolate).
The best part was of course the tasting at the end…yum! I might have gone back the next day for a cappuccino and more brownie 🙂
Like the chocolate- a bitter sweet moment comes to pass- and I have to say goodbye to my travel buddies and hug it out until the next time I might see them somewhere on the road!
I get to my accommodation and make a plan for the next day. I was looking forward to joining a group to do bird watching early the next day. There were however no groups available… and 75USD for a few hours was a bit steep for me. Giving up on that idea I decided to go for a morning run- it was fabulous in the fresh air and at a relatively low altitude of 1,400m. I took the dirt roads to the butterfly farm and along the river, it was refreshing and great to hit the road after such a long time!
I went to the chocolate factory and spent some time around the village. I was hoping to go out that evening, but found out that it was pretty dead in town. The time in Mindo was quiet and relaxing…really pleasant.
All roads lead to Quito… and I have and will pass it many times during my trip around Ecuador. I flew into the city from Lima, Peru during the Easter period, and thus didn’t see much. I looked forward to do some actual exploring after our return from the Galapagos.
Considering we apparently couldn’t get enough of each other; it was Pete, Angela, Scott and myself that explored Quito (Marc was out conquering Cotopaxi). We took a taxi and dropped me off at the place I was staying for bag drop off and then went out on foot.
We didn’t get very far before we hit a police blockade on our way to Plaza Independencia-all access to the Plaza was closed off by police. We then found out there would be a motorcade in a few minutes- so we waited. It turned out that a large South Korean contingency inclusive of President were on their way, and drove right past us. There were special forces, police, body guards, presidential guards, army and snipers around everywhere. After to formalities though the police allowed us to enter the plaza. This was great as the Plaza was empty… no people in our way!!! Yay!!
The Casa Cultural was also not very busy, so we step inside and walked around the building- it turned out there were great views from the upper floors.
Once we had enough of exploring the center we took a cab to TeleferiQo- which takes you from 3,100m to 4,000m. The temperature changed accordingly and you could feel the thinner air. Pete and I walked up to the swing and had a good view from there. We got back to the cable car just before the weather turned nastier and wetter.
We went back into the city, direct to the Basilica of the National Vow. Scott and Angela had already seen it and thus went back to the hotel. Pete and I went exploring. The building is absolutely magnificent, and it is unique in that the gargoyles are not your usual gothic style, but are actually birds and animals endemic to Ecuador. We first walk around the outside, then hold our breath to go up to the very top viewing tower. The way is through a wobbly wooden bridge across the very top ceilings of the basilica. Then up a series of mighty steep and narrow stairways. It doesn’t help that we both have a fear of heights… but hey… it was well worth the effort for the view!
The inside of the Basilica was very dramatic yet simple at the same time. Many of the stainless glass windows were being restored. The others are fabulous and host a great level of detail.
That evening we were meeting for drinks and dinner at Plaza Foch- the modern part of the city. I got an Uber pick up from a lovely lady who spoke English… and the first thing she asked me was why I was staying where I was. She said that the street was well known for prostitution…oh well!! Oops! The old city center is a place where you do not go out at night…and so I didn’t plan to- just as well!
The dreaded last day is here!! I’m already having snorkelling withdrawal symptoms knowing that I won’t be able to for a while! We have breakfast scheduled at 05h00. So no sleeping in for us! We are off to see the tortoises; at the same farm we went to a week ago- but a first for the newer passengers.
Its then time to say good bye…But not for too long with some plans being made to travel and discover Quito / Mindo together in the next few days. We fly out of Baltra airport, the same one we landed in two weeks ago.
We have a long navigation from Isla Genovesa to the south and Plaza Islas. The morning walk after breakfast was to discover more land iguanas and see how the cactus revegetation on the island was going. Many cacti have been over-eaten by growing iguana population. It takes them hundreds of years to grow as tall as they are here- so it is a slow process.
There is a somewhat incredible sighting on this island for us- we witness an iguana feeding on a petrel. Our guide informs us that this has been suspected for a while but very rarely seen –all he has left behind are the wings. We witness the other iguanas eating the flowers off of some of the vegetation. They do this as not to destroy the whole plant, and thus their food source!
This island also has an interesting geology- where a portion of the island is pushed up limestone which happened in one sudden event. This happened before on another island where fishermen who were in the area when the event occurred reported seeing sea turtles, fish and other species on the pushed up land- they obviously couldn’t believe their eyes!
On Santa Fe Island we have a snorkel off the dinghy in a bay… it is our last snorkel for the trip!!!! NOOOOOOO 🙁 The sea lions might have know this though and we enjoy playing with them one last time. We have a good variety of fish and say goodbye to them.
There is a protected bay with superb clear water and we have a short panga ride here before our wet landing on the beach filled with sea lions. There is no snorkelling here due to the amount of sea lions and the always angry alpha males! We are rewarded in seeing stunning schools of spotted eagle rays and a large black tip reef shark.
The afternoon walk is pleasant and an opportunity to see more land iguanas and birds. It is specifically tailored to trying to spot the only endemic owl to the Galapagos. We strain our eyes for a long time and see nothing! Well we do see petrels- the owl’s favourite meal – but didn’t see any being snatched for lunch.
During the night we sail to Genovesa Island- in the north of the Galapagos Archipelago. We have a wet landing in Darwin Bay which is filled with nesting swallow tail gulls, frigate birds, red footed boobies, Nazca boobies and we even see a striated heron. There are several semi grown chicks…fluffy down between adult feathers and faces that only a mother could love!
There is a large group of male frigate birds that are in the shrubs and every time a female or two fly over they all burst into whistling and blowing their sacs up to attempt to attract a lovely lady. One male had three juvenile females around him, that would not be ready to mate yet… Pete made the comment that the male should stop flirting with the teenagers 🙂 .
We went snorkelling off the beach, but kept a wide berth from an agro alpha male sea lion. The main purpose was to try and see some baby sharks- white tips to be more specific. Some of the group did see them, others not.
After lunch we go snorkelling at Darwin’s Bay, off the panga. We have a great long snorkel with an exciting new species of fish we haven’t seen before- they have a sapphire neon sparkle, the small ones are nearly totally sapphire and larger ones have bright dots on them. We also see Idol Moorfish- they have a long white tail fin- similar to the red billed tropic birds.
Once the snorkel is complete we get our dry gear on, to climb to the Prince Phillip Step lookout. There are around 350 steps to the top, and the journey is broken up with stories from our guide- and he even magically finished one! He was really bad at starting them, then getting side tracked and finishing somewhere else entirely. I still need to Google some documentaries about the Baroness and the toothless Germans… crazy people! They removed all their teeth and became vegetarians?!? Like I said… I need more info!
We travel to the Island of North Seymour overnight. There are five people leaving us today- many of those that only joined us 5 days ago. We have a pre-breakfast walk to see nesting frigates and blue footed boobies. Several of the male frigates are puffed up and I note the black dots on the red sacs, close to the body of the males. My favourite, and most special moment is a couple of blue footed boobies who were doing a mating dance. The male displays his blue feet, makes whistling sounds and does wing displays. The female first ignored him for a little while then joined in the dancing….clearly the male was her type 🙂 a short while later the male presented her with some sticks, and she did likewise. They began piling them in the same location as a team… I think we have a match! The video of the mating dance (>600MB) is again large but great to watch!!
The island also has many land iguanas- which is the first time that the new additions to the group see these.
After breakfast some of our passengers depart with hugs and “see you laters”, and we stay on the boat as there isn’t much of a town or community to visit while the others are dropped off at the airport and another five replacements are picked up. Our guide told us to behave…so we amended the afternoon plan for when the others return to include shirtless Zumba, dancing,open bar and crafts and tattoos in the evening 🙂 .
A panga ride was the first order of business at Floreana Island. We went out to see some sea turtles while they slept in a protected bay. The sea lion pups also use it as a play area as it is too shallow for the sharks.
We then have a wet landing at the post office. Now calling it a post office is not entirely correct. It is a barrel. The concept works as follows: tourists bring their own post cards, complete with address but no stamps. These are kept in a Ziploc bag to protect them from the elements. The next load of tourists come on shore and “post” their card and take one or many from the bag and post them from their home countries, or anywhere really.
We snorkel off the same beach that we landed on for the post office. The most exciting sighting were of sea turtles. There were mainly smaller fish around.
Corona del Diablo (Devil’s Crown) is the location of our afternoon snorkelling trip. It is a collapsed caldera a few hundred meters from the island of Floreana. The waters were a little choppy and currents stronger than we have experienced. You know that it is going to be a good dive when you spot a white tip reef shark within the first minute! The fish and life around the rock faces of the caldera were great. Lots of colourful variety and we all would have liked to stay longer! It is also the first time that we saw a yellow puffer fish. We also saw the cutely named chocolate chip starfish- it is yellow with thick, short, black spikes that look like choc chips.
We have a few minutes to change into our walking clothes to visit Punta Cormorant. There is a large brackish lake here that has a few flamingos, we also see some fly catchers and finches. We are visited on the beach by a heron, who is surrounded by people trying to photograph it and it doesn’t move at all. As a matter of fact, it looks ready for more photos-definitely a poser. It is still there when we return from the second beach. The second beach is the consistency of flour and white, giving the sea a turquoise blue colour. As we make our way along the beach I spot objects in the waves- 2 spotted eagle rays and a black tipped reef shark! A little further down I spotted several sting rays- some smaller and then a large adult! A lot to discover in a relatively small area.
Our guide also brings the micro plastics that have washed up on the beach to our attention and we pick some up on the return trip. They are really small and no one noticed them until we really looked for it- and then you can see it everywhere!
We woke up to Gardner Bay, Espanola Island. It also has white sand beaches and turquoise water. We have a leisurely walk on the beach and look out for the Galapagos hawks which are not wanting to come out. There are many sea lions on the beach which we look forward to swimming with later …but none of them were keen to get in the water! Our swim thus turned into an opportunity to cool off and not swim with the sea lions.
A further 30-minute boat trip got us to our off the panga snorkelling destination. The waters were clear, we swam close to the rocks and got to play with many sea lions here. One needs to remember that due to the fact that the animals here don’t really have any predators and weren’t hunted, they don’t have a fear for humans.
In the afternoon we went for a walk at Suarez Point, still on Espanola Island. This is the only place where you can see the waved albatross. It is only April to November that these birds come in to mate, lay eggs and look after the chicks. We thus saw a few birds on eggs, a couple of mating dances. This are fabulous to watch, there is feet lifting, wing flapping and sword fighting with the beaks. The males instigate the dancing and if the female mirrors the movements then we have a match! The video file is very large (>400MB) but well worth watching!
We also see Nazca/masked boobies with some young chicks, as well as swallow tails and red beaked tropic birds. The tropic birds have a long white tail feather, which frigate birds sometimes pull on to get them to drop or regurgitate fish! The abundance and variety of birdlife was extraordinary and we watched them all flying around while we sat on the cliffs of the island.
It was a packed day all up with two walks and three snorkels!
Our morning walk included Punto Pitt (North San Cristobal Island)- well known as the only place where you can see all the booby species that Galapagos has to offer: blue footed, brown red footed, white red footed (these are same but have different colour variations) and the Nazca or masked booby. It was great to see so many boobies nesting- the blue footed boobies nest on the ground and the red footed boobies nest in the trees. They also eat different food and thus do not compete for mates, nesting sites or food. It was also our first opportunity to see the red footed boobies for the trip, which was exciting. Though most of them were fairly far away.
When we got back on the boat we got ready for a snorkel off the pangas. There was not too much to see though and with strong currents our guide pulled us in early and we returned on board.
After this we were off to Cerro Brujo (Warlock Hill), a magical beach with white sands and turquoise waters. The sand here is organic and this holds a very steady temperature- which is also good for sea turtle nests. We walked along the beach and saw marine iguanas, pelicans, brown terns and a baby black tipped reef shark. There were also horrid horseflies that were biting!
We did a snorkel off the beach after our walk, the most exciting thing that I saw was a sea snake- banded grey and black. We did not have very clear water as the tide was coming in and the waves were starting to enter the bay.
It was a short navigation to Leon Dormido / Kicker Rock. It is two rocks that rise 150m above the level of the sea. We keep close to the rocks and see an abundance of fish life and turtles- which is a first for our new guests. There is also a channel between the two rocks which we can swim through which proves super exciting! As I was swimming more towards that centre of the passage I saw two large spotted eagle rays and underneath them three hammerhead sharks!! I was delighted to see these species! A few minutes later I saw a large black tip reef shark and another hammerhead before getting back on the panga! This snorkel was fabulous! And the waters were so still, except for a slightly strong current through the passage.
The eagle rays were gliding effortlessly through the water –with their “wings” moving ever so slightly. I could not spot the hammerheads again after I surfaced to tell others of my find.
We arrive back into Puerto Moreno in the evening and stay until after midnight before sailing south.
We arrive at the island of San Cristobal and the capital of the Galapagos Islands; Puerto Baquerizo Moreno in the early morning. We have time to visit the interpretation center which gives us the natural and human history of the island. It is well put together and interesting but does not take long to get through.
We then have to split with the half of the group that are leaving us after their 7-day trip. Unfortunately this means that my Norwegian and Irish friends are leaving…a good reason to catch up in Bergen and Dublin in the future :). They go off to the airport while we stroll around town, then meet up with them later to say our final good byes.
A funny story: the airport is right next to the town, so locals go to the airport a few hours before fly out time; check in, do a bag drop and get their boarding passes. They then go home and only come back to the airport when they hear & see their plane landing.
We head back to the boat to await the arrival of our new passengers and wonder what the tide will bring in.
The new group is made up of primarily Canadians and New Zealanders, and also a considerably older group but still fit. We also get a new (hot-hot) 🙂 guide and some crew members.
We have a late lunch, as we waited for the group and then embark on our first two activities: A snorkel around Isla Lobos (Sea Lions) which was lovely and cooling, though we did not spot any new fish or water species. What was more interesting was what was happening in the air; where frigate birds were gathered and many males were showing off their inflated red sacs to females to impress them in order to mate.
The walk on Isla Lobos afterwards was great as we got to see nesting blue footed boobies and the mating rituals of the frigate birds up close. The male frigates perch on the trees and then inflate their red throat sacs to impress the females that are flying overhead. If one of them likes what she sees she will perch next to him. If another male wants to interfere they will fight with the male completion and make him fly off with his sac still partially inflated. This is dangerous if he perches in another tree and possibly punctures his sac on a branch) these birds are not used to flying with their sacs inflated). This will not kill the bird but will have him out of mating action for the season as he will not be able to attract a mate.
We also note a nest that has been abandoned by a blue footed booby couple with three eggs in it. The mother would have been concerned that she would not be able to feed her hatchlings and thus abandoned the eggs.
From Isla Lobos we need to travel back to Puerto Moreno to overnight until after midnight due to navy regulations and we commence our trip to the north of San Cristobal Island (Punto Pitt) after 01h00.
Pete (fellow traveller), Paula (Su Chef) and I decide to take that opportunity that we are in port to head out on a panga to town for an hour and a half. It was a quiet walk and a look as to what was happening and finished off with a beer and I had a fried ice cream for the first time. It was OK, but I think I prefer the traditional type 🙂 It was good to get away though and cured a bit of cabin fever with some guests.
Our day started with a 2-hour return walk to Tortuga Bay. However, there are no tortugas (sea turtles) there any more due to exploitation of the sand dunes in the in the 1960s-1980s when the sea sand was used for building. The people didn’t realise that it was also an important sea turtle nesting beach. The walk is through an easy paved walkway and along the beach. Bathing has been forbidden here due to strong currents and in an attempt to lure the sea turtles back. Across the beach and around the corner is a lovely protected bay where people can swim.
In the afternoon we take a 30-minute bus trip to a tortoise breeding center/farm (Rancho El Manzanilto). It is a short walk around the property and observing tortoises of all ages, including one that was over a meter tall with his neck stretched out.
It was a little bumpy on our night trip to Puerto Villamil, Isabella Island and we had many sick passengers, including my roommate who threw up in the sink and it stayed full the whole night… I decided I had enough of the smell and went to sleep on the deck chairs upstairs, outside. Though sleep it was not!
Our first trip was before breakfast to Tinoteras which is a nursery for white tip reef sharks. We took a quick panga trip and were ready for what was supposed to be approx. 1 hour walk. Three minutes later we walked alongside the nursery to find only a few sea lions playing and absolutely no sharks- it seems that we had seen all the little ones right along our boat, just before we left. There were about 13 of them there! To make it all a little more ironic our walk was cut short due to trail closure for marine iguana breeding. So a 10-minute walk all up, if that.
After breakfast some of us got prepared to take the bus up to the start point of the hike to Sierra Negra- the second largest caldera in the world. The bus trip is 45minutes and we went from a super-hot sunny climate to overcast, misty and drizzly at the start of the trail. Again we found out that one of the lookouts is closed, and so we only saw lookout 2 and 3. We had about 1.5 minutes of OK-ish visibility before the low hanging clouds covered everything up again!
What we did see was impressive- many fumaroles billowing steam and a crater filled with hardened lava. This volcano last erupted in June 2018. It was a shame that we couldn’t see its full impressive size.
In the afternoon we go into Puerto Villamil –our last stop on Isla Isabela to spend some time in another Tortoise Sanctuary and Breeding Center. We were lucky enough to see two tortoises mating- and the female trying very hard to escape! Our guide had picked up this behaviour by the sound that the male tortoise makes every time he pushes in- a low grunting. We then had a short walk to try and find some more flamingos but only got 2 more.
The group had 1.5 hours of free time in the small town (2,000 people) and we spent it cooling down with beer and ice cream. We did try the local drink- coco loco – cana / moonshine made from sugar cane and coconut water served in said coconut. Not a favourite for me, as I don’t like coconut water. It was mighty strong though!
Our first activity for the morning was a panga ride in and around the mangroves of Elizabeth Bay, Isla Isabela. This was an exciting trip as we saw many turtles; two types of rays: spotted eagle ray and the golden cowray; blue footed boobies; frigates and penguins. Our cherry on the cake was a large pod of common dolphins hunting in the bay together with large amounts of pelicans and penguins.
On the way to Punta Moreno we were on the lookout for whales and hammerhead sharks but unfortunately didn’t spot any.
In Punta Moreno we had a snorkel to try and find the Giant Pacific Seahorse. Some members of the group did see one. Even though I spent my head in sea weed so the speak, my looking did not come up with any! We did see the normal array of colourful fish and also black spiky urchins.
After the snorkel we did a dry landing at a lava field. It was luckily overcast, so we didn’t cook from the radiated heated. We went around the brackish lakes that have formed in the area. One of them is host to a few flamingos. It was great to see their colours with the black, lifeless backdrop. There were also moorhens in these small lakes. The lava is pretty abrasive and difficult to walk on. It is imperative that all stick to the trail as many lava tunnels may not be thick enough to hold up our weight.
On Punta Espinoza on Fernandina, the youngest of the Galápagos Islands we see hundreds of marine iguanas – black in colour and lying on the warming lava to gain warmth and energy for the day ahead. Their numbers actually dropped significantly in the last El Nino when waters warmed and the algae upon which they feed retreated to deeper, cooler waters. As the iguanas were not able to dive to that depth or hold their breathe for that long many died of starvation / drowning.
Snorkeling this morning is with the marine iguanas which are feeding on the algae on the rocks close to shore and with many sea turtles… it makes the one that we saw alone so much less exciting. It is also great to see the penguins swimming in the water.
In the afternoon we snorkel off the beach-at Urbina Bay- just upon entering the water I spotted a spotted eagle ray and saw very little thereafter as the water was very murky due to the incoming tide. It was disappointing as the snorkeling is always my favourite here!
When getting ready for our walk through some more mangroves and on the lookout for tortoises we were being “attacked” by paper wasps. We were introduced to poisonous apple trees- the apples are eaten by the tortoises. The tortoises on this island live in the crater of the volcano and have a 3-month journey down to mate and lay eggs and a 4-5 months journey to get back up in the crater! We spotted three male land iguanas which are various shade of yellow- orange. They are vegetarians, despite their looks. Right at the very end of our walk we see a small tortoise next to the path.
Our day started with a panga ride around Puerto Espumilla and Buccaneer Cove. We saw pelicans, fur sea lions, and blue footed boobies that were fishing in the water. They shape their bodies and wings into torpedoes and dive in the water to catch fish. The favourite meal is sardines, which also goes to producing the blue pigmentation in the feet and legs. We also see a few turtles. The water looks fantastic, but due to a change in plan we will not snorkel here but off the beach at our next destination.
Puerto Egas was once manned and salt was mined from the volcanic hills in the area. There was no source of fresh water though, so as salt was mined and transported out to mainland Ecuador, water was brought back. The mining was stopped due to declaring the islands a national park. On our afternoon walk we completely fry in the sun- it’s really strong here in the equator and walking and night black lava does not assist! We find a fur sea lion playing in a pool of water and some that are relaxing in little rock caves. Right at the end of the walk we see an octopus in a tiny rock pool. Its head is about the size of a large human fist and is a maroon, brown colour- very well camouflaged.
Later that morning we go for a walk through mangroves to try and find some sea turtles who are nesting on the beach, however it was too hot and sunny out- they would not be back until late afternoon. However having said that, the rains came just before our pangas arrived and so we got drenched anyway.
We wake up to the distinctive volcano named Chinese Hat (Sombrero Chino) and plan to take a short panga (rigid inflatable powered boat) ride to the beach for a wet landing and short walk. A lone sea lion is on the beach and gets paparazzi-ed by nearly everyone. We see many Sally Lightfoot crabs which are a bright red and blue colours. We also get a taste of a few marine iguanas and see the American oyster catchers. The first oyster catchers were only found on the islands in 2006. Due to the climate in that year there were oysters available for these birds to eat. However, after a climate change event, the oysters died. The oyster catchers were able to modify their diet to eat the crabs and thus survived. We also spot our first penguin- named the Galapagos Penguin. These are pretty small and remind me of the Humboldt penguins.
After our walk we return to the boat and get our swimwear on for our first snorkel of the trip and the day. The pangas take us past coal black lava flows and one can see the various lava flow events by the differences in colour and cacti growth in the older area. The water is warm and great visibility. The fish are too many to mention and have such a beautiful array of colours! I then spot two white tip reef sharks within 10 minutes of one another. They are so agile and I am grateful that they don’t enjoy eating people 🙂
After lunch we head off to Rabida Island or Isla Roja (Red Island due to the colour of the beach sand). We have a panga cruise here and see our first blue footed boobies. Our guide also confuses a pelican for a booby and I give him grief for the duration of the trip about him not knowing his boobies, which leads to endless entertainment 🙂 . We also had a really rare opportunity to see a feeding frenzy- we went out to sea a fair distance as our guide noted some activity on the surface of the water and then as we were head out more and more birds flew in from the islands. There was a school of tuna feeding and the birds on the surface were waiting for scraps. These were shearwaters.
We had a short walk on Rabida Island, through the mangrove and got eaten by mosquitoes. We were instructed beforehand not to wear bright colours as there are dangerous paper wasps on this island…but no one mentioned mosquitoes.
The evening had a big surprise in store for us! We only had to set off again around midnight, so we remained anchored in our bay. There were many Galapagos sharks circling our vessel, together with flying fish that the sea lions were chasing- and boy did they have speed! At one point the sharks (6 of them) got into a bit of a frenzy and there was just white water and splashing everywhere- but none of us knew why? The sharks were at least 2m long each and somewhat intimidating. The flying fish were the preferred food of the sea lions- and it was amazing to see how they got caught, but they did not eat the heads and the sharks didn’t seem to like them either.
A very early start to our Galapagos adventures with breakfast at 03h45! Then we got on the bus to the airport. Our flight left at 06h30. The first step to getting to the Galapagos is a bag scan for organic items and the purchase of a $20 tourist card- as the $100 park entry fee is apparently not enough!
All forms of plastic are also discouraged on the islands – which is great for animals and clean environment!
The flight is from Quito to Guayaquil – in the south of the country, to the islands which are actually west of Ecuador. Apparently fuel is significantly cheaper in Guayaquil and hence our stop.
We land on Baltra Island, one of three airports are located here. Hereafter we grab a bus to the ferry, just a few quick minutes get us across the channel and then a 45-minute bus ride to the southern port of Puerto Ayora where our ship, Estrella del Mar (Star of the Sea) is waiting for us. In settling into the cabins we note the small quarters. The rooms have bunk beds and tiny bathrooms with little storage. I should mention that the ship is rather small- it only takes 16 passengers; and approximately 8 crew.
We have lunch on the ship and then head off to the island to visit the tortoise breeding sanctuary on Santa Cruz Island. Our guide gave us interesting insights into the mating rituals of tortoises. First of all, females will not mate every year- only once every two to three years, and even when they are on heat they will not make it easy for the males. Cooperation is apparently not a strength in this species. Mating takes 2-3 hours! The male gets on top of the female. It is important to note that he weighs up to four times as much as she does! As the male gets tired while penetrating he rests then tries again and rests. The female keeps spinning around or tries to walk through bushes to get him off of her!
GPS tracking has shown some interesting statistics on the mileage that tortoises cover. Male tortoises only cover 18 meters (60 feet) per day on a normal day; during mating season however they cover up to 3.2 km (2 miles)! Females move further and consistently whether it is mating season or not at 2.4 km or 1.5 miles. So it is clear to see what motivates the males!
We also see Diego the tortoise who has fathered more than 800 baby tortoises.
Female tortoises only lay their eggs where ground temperatures are between 28C and 29.5C. This means that some of them walk up to 40km to find suitable soil.
After the tortoise visit we were off to have some free time in Puerto Ayora; Santa Cruz. People did souvenir shopping (especially those that were only doing the 7-day trip.) Some of us also hooked by the bar and enjoy some local brews and mojitos. The afternoon rain came in and ruined our photo opportunities and set in for much of the night. We head off to our next destination after dinner.
In order to have some order in these posts I’m going to match the itinerary -to make sure I have covered all the activities.
Day 1 is not too exciting as it is meeting day. We meet the first group (which includes those people staying for the full 2 weeks on the boat and a group staying for 1 week).
We have several older couples , and a younger group of Norwegians, as well as us 4 singles (USA, Switzerland, England and I). There are 14 of us, a couple pulled out the night before departure.
My roommate for the two weeks is an older English woman.
I fly into Quito from Lima on Good Friday and spent a couple of days relaxing before walking to the Hilton to check in. The weather , combined with Easter closures meant that i didn’t really get up to much before the trip.