Stop 2 on our Ecuador tour was the Galapagos Islands – home of the animals that lead to the discovery of evolution. They developed from under-ocean volcanoes over 600 miles from any other land, so all life there has come by a long journey on waves, wind, or (more recently) boat. Very cool stuff!
This post is very long, but is mostly pictures. I hope you can skim through all the way, because the scuba diving pics are at the bottom and are well worth the wait!
Our flight from Quito left early and got us to Baltra Island, Galapagos, around 10am. We had to wait a bit for our other tour mates, then took off for our 5-day cruise.
Our boat for 5-days. The Encantada. Cute and very cozy.
We had a crew of 5, one guide/park ranger named Juan, and 10 fellow tourists. We were the only native English speakers, with pairs from Taiwan, Switzerland, Netherlands, and a family from France. The rooms on the boat were VERY small, but we spent most of our time on land, in the water, or on deck.
Patrick on the front sun deck. There was also covered space on the rear deck for hanging out in open air.
Our typical day included a morning and afternoon excursion, with all meals and siesta times on the boat. Both morning and afternoon had a short walk to see birds, plants and rocks, and then time in the water snorkeling. We traveled between islands at night, so we could just take a dramamine and go to sleep through the worst movement.
Walking on the Galapagos!
Our first land-based wildlife were some marine iguanas! They look like dinosaurs and spend most of their time lounging in the sun, between dives in the ocean.
They are the world’s only reptile to eat under water. They eat algae from ocean-bottom rocks, staying down for about 10 minutes at a time before the cold water causes their muscles to seize. Because they eat in sea water, they take in more salt than they should, so they have special glands on their noses that let them snort out excess salt. Salt sneezes! Really funny looking and sounding in real life.
These guys were on Santa Cruz Island, our first stop after the airport. Santa Cruz has a large permanent settlement (one of four total in all of the Galapagos) with tourist shops, restaurants, and the world-famous Charles Darwin Research Station, where scientists study tortoises, iguanas, and other wildlife.
At the entrance to the Charles Darwin Research Station.
Patrick with one of the giant land tortoises. Tortoises from each island have differently shaped shells based on the vegetation and other land animals present.
A Land Iguana – much more colorful than their marine counterparts. These guys are fat and great at lounging. This one is about 2ft long NOT including tail.
Beth with a cactus tree. The cacti here grow in lots of different shapes, but this was one of my favorites. Tall to avoid the fleshy parts being eaten by the tortoises.
We visited 7 islands: Genovesa (far north), Santiago, Sombrero Chino (Chinese Hat), Bartolome, North Seymour, Baltra, and Santa Cruz. Here are some highlights from our on-island walks.
Our first land walk – Genovesa island. The birds were everywhere! These are some courting/competing Masked Boobies.
The red-footed booby. These were everywhere on Genovesa Island.
A lava cactus. These guys are one of the first things to take root after new lava flows.
A striated night heron. Beautiful bird who followed us on a walk for a bit.
Nesting birds. Some boobies, but the main event was the Great Frigatebird in the back. That big red pouch stays “puffed” for several weeks to attract a mate, then deflates for the rest of the year.
Great Frigatebird in flight. It’s a bit blurry, but I love the distinct shape of their forked tails. When used to steer, they make Frigates formidable in-air bullies.
Nesting Frigatebird with 2-3 month old baby. Their babies stay in the nest for 6 months, and don’t turn dark until after their first full year.
Duck! These red-footed boobies were fighting over that nest-making material. A new guy swooped in, stole, and zoomed off again… right over my head.
Blue-footed booby! Endemic to the Galapagos, and known for their funny foot-lifting mating dance.
Snake! Look closely – under the center of the log. These guys are really rare to see, and not dangerous to humans. The only species of snake in the Galapagos.
At one of the most photographed landscapes in the Galapagos, the isthmus to Bartolome Island. They filmed part of Master and Commander here. Loving the wind-swept hair too. 🙂
Walking on fresh (120-year-old) lava. While cooling, it made amazing formations, like this steam vent.
One section of the lava surface. Globs and popped bubbles.
After our hike up Sombrero Chino, our escape was blocked by two big sea lions. They stay, we divert, walking quietly and talking gently to them. Animals have the right-of-way here.
Penguin! North of the equator! (Just a little bit, but still). This guy is the only equatorial-dwelling penguin in the world. And right behind him – a cactus forest.
I felt like the Galapagos were an interesting mixture of Arizona desserts sitting right next to Hawaiian beaches.
Gorgeous white-sand beach. All to ourselves! (and our 10 ship-mates).
Hermit crab on the beach.
This sea turtle didn’t make it. The wind and sand have preserved him well.
Sally Lightfoot crabs. Beautiful blue mouths and red bodies, almost always scampering across black lava rocks.
On land, the wildlife is all very unique and interesting, with often only a small selection of species on each island. Under the waves, however, the Galapagos sit at the junction of 4 major oceanic currents, bringing an amazing diversity and abundance of sea life, including things you’d expect to see in Australia, Thailand, Costa Rica, and sub-Antarctic waters all at once.
Ready to snorkel! Check out the lava rock cliffs behind him. Those extend below the surface too, making beautiful nooks and crannies for hiding fish.
We saw schools of these fish everywhere. I love their reflective spots and bright yellow tails.
A flounder (flatfish). Yep, that is a fish. Our guide was super psyched about this rare find.
A common stingray “flying” across the sandy bottom.
To hide, stingrays bury themselves in sand. Once we spotted one, we started seeing them everywhere! Can you spot all three in this shot?
Another type of ray – the spotted eagle ray. I love the long pencil-thin tail. This one has a “wing-span” of about 2 1/2 ft.
Find the fish! A master of disguise – this is a scorpion rockfish. Poisonous. Almost invisible. I’m so proud of myself for spotting this one. (Hint – head is on the right, just below center. Tail to the left. Very rounded gills and a round fin coming down front.)
School of little fishes. The water was usually very clear and lovely blue.
One type of pufferfish. I love their boxy bodies. So far, I’ve never seen one “puffed” up. Probably a good thing. This guy is about 6″ long and a good hider under that rock.
One type of damselfish. We saw lots of these. I also love the lava flow patterns underneath.
Blue sea star.
Beth and a pacific green sea turtle. He hung out closer for a long while, then went on his way.
Shiny! I love the schools that make a little wall. For a more impressive “wall”, keep looking below!
Chocolate chip sea star (for real). Isn’t that an appropriate name?
Selfie with sea lions.
Sea lion. He was as close as he looks. So graceful and bendy.
Patrick dancing with the sealion.
Playing chicken with the sea lion. He started it! He seemed a bit disappointed in our oh-so-slow movement.
Shark! This was our first white-tipped reef shark. We ended up seeing lots more later. They were all pretty uninterested in us.
Showering off after snorkeling. We each got a one minute rinse after morning snorkel and a 5-minute private hot shower in the evening.
Our last afternoon, instead of going onto land, we took a dinghy (little boat) trip to the mangrove cove for a “sea turtle safari”.
White mangroves in Black Turtle Cove. Apparently sea turtle’s favorite food is the bark of white mangrove trees.
Turtle hanging out just beneath the surface.
We saw about a dozen sea turtles total, and lots of pelicans and other bird life.
A spectacular sunset at sea.
After 5 days at sea, we spent two nights on land so we could get in a little scuba diving and head further beneath the waves. Our guide took photos and shared them all. Here are a few of the favorites!
Ready to dive. We had only 4 divers and one guide with each group.
“Nest” of white tip reef sharks. On this dive alone we saw about 20 of these beautiful sharks!
One of the coolest things I’ve ever seen diving – a wall of fish, or “fish-nado”. About 15 ft tall and maybe 15 ft in diameter. Think of the all-move-together fish in Finding Nemo.
When we disturbed a portion, they would immediately fill the gap back in. Here’s me in the middle of the fish-nado.
Beth and Patrick in the fish-nado. It was dark and a bit scary, but so amazing.
Fish and sea turtle. We saw lots of schools, turtles and sea lions.
And here are two videos for you:
It was a completely amazing experience. The diving was a bit challenging with currents, but not as tough as we expected. We had such a great time!
Next stop – the Amazon. Check back soon for that post and lots more photos.