I can’t believe that we are in Galapagos! For a long time we had eliminated this magical place from our itinerary because of the high cost. Originally we were looking to do a 10 day dive liveaboard, but at $10,000 for the two of us, we just couldn’t swing it. I’m so happy that we did more research and made the decision to do a more budget friendly trip to the archipelago. So far, it’s amazing. After a three flight/21+ hour journey from Peru to get to Guayaquil, Ecuador, then two hours of sleep and an 8AM flight to Galapagos, here we are. Despite our lack of sleep, when we landed we felt wide awake due to the anticipation and excitement! Sharks, turtles, octopi, seals, sea lions, birds! We couldn't wait to drop our bags off at the hotel and immediately start exploring. The airport at which we landed, Baltra, is on a small barely inhabited island and when we exited, the landscape seemed quite barren. The first impression is that Galapagos is not a pretty place, but that didn't come as a surprise as everything I've read reminds you not to go there expecting a tropical paradise. However, it wasn't long after that when I spotted the vibrant blues of the water and the already huge smile on my face grew larger. I always feel at home at the ocean, at peace. It must have been all of those wonderful summer vacations spent at York Beach, Maine.
If you aren’t too familiar with Galapagos, here are a few small facts, our next post will share more:
- The archipelago is located 560 miles off of mainland Ecuador and consists of 13 major islands (each with an area of over 6 square miles), and 6 medium islands (each with an area between half and 6 square miles).
- Only five of the islands have residents
- Many of the islands can only be reached by a multi-day cruise and accessed with a National Park guide
We are starting our 12 nights here on Isla Santa Cruz, in the largest town of Galapagos, Puerto Ayora (~12,000 inhabitants as of the 2010 census). In the wild, on our first day, we saw: lots of sea lions sleeping in the sun, dozens of Sally Lightfoot crabs, dozens of marine iguanas, and several kinds of Darwin finches, and that was all before dinner.
Some Sally Light Footed Crabs
Marine iguanas on the prowl
We also went to the Charles Darwin Research Center because we felt that we shouldn't leave Galapagos without seeing what it was all about. It is a nonprofit organization that with the help of over 200 scientists and volunteers, focuses on research and conservation efforts for the islands. When we arrived, it was closed for a two hour lunch break as seems to be the trend here, but to our surprise the grounds were still accessible. We walked around and saw many Galapagos tortoises in captivity as well as land iguanas. I couldn't believe how large both of these species are and it was great to finally see them. However, I felt like we were cheating having just arrived and gone to a what felt like a "zoo" of sorts, but like I said, I thought we should pay a visit to the Research Center. I hope that we see these turtles and iguanas in the wild too. The Research Center plays a critical role in the breeding process for both the giant tortoises and land iguanas. Without intervention, these two species could easily face extinction due to introduced predators like rats, cats, dogs, goats, and cows that like to feast on their eggs.
Once it got dark, we took a local's recommendation and headed down to the pier. At night it is lit up which attracts a lot of marine life. We saw a surprising amount of small, black tipped reef sharks, a sea turtle, a swimming sea lion, a sleeping sea lion, an eagle ray, and several pelicans.
Ok, so many it's not the best video, but look at all of those sharks!
After only a few days, I've taken to calling sea lions Galapagos pigeons. While I haven't seen any actual pigeons, you see sea lions absolutely everywhere so it feels like they are taking their place. They are usually sleeping on the sidewalk or on some structure close to the water.
Jake and his sea lion friend on the pier in Puerto Ayora on Isla Santa Cruz
A pelican and a sea lion hoping to get some fresh fish at the market on Isla Santa Cruz
Our second day on Isla Santa Cruz we walked about three miles to Tortuga Bay. It's a surprisingly beautiful white sand beach but you can't swim there due to the rough seas and strong current. They allow surfing but we enjoyed looking at the many marine iguanas instead. Just past Tortuga Bay is another nice white sand beach that is nestled in a bay, Playa Mansa. We brought snorkeling gear with us but the combination of freezing cold water and poor visibility didn't keep us in the water exploring for too long. We then rented kayaks for an hour or so and in one of the mangrove coves we saw about 20 black tipped reef sharks below us. My clumsy self was nervous being in such close proximity to sharks in such shallow water. I managed to get out of the area without tipping my kayak and shortly after we followed around a few sea turtles and tried to catch up with a ray. I'm not sure if the visibility is always so poor at Playa Mansa, but if you find yourself there, you may consider spending your money on renting a kayak vs. snorkeling gear.
The next day we moved on to Isla Isabela and did a five hour excursion via boat to Los Tunneles. After an hour long journey from the port, our group of 10 walked on top of the lava rock with our guide. Here is where we saw the blue footed boobies for the first time. I was uncomfortable with how close our guide took us to them. It was unbelievable that the birds, who were either sitting on eggs or protecting their young chicks did not appear to be phased by us. They were fun to watch and reminded me of a Disney or Pixar movie - they really looked like cartoon characters. Unlike our snorkeling experience the day before, the water here was incredibly clear. When we walked around or slowly navigated in the boat, it was like we were in a giant aquarium watching sea turtles and parrotfish swim around us. All of the wildlife in Galapagos seems super sized.
A blue footed boobie protecting its young
Cruising around Los Tuneles on Isla Isabela
The next part of the Tuneles tour was about an hour of snorkeling. While we didn't see many fish, we snorkeled with an eagle ray, many turtles, golden rays, white tipped reef sharks, and a seahorse. The seahorse was bigger than the one we saw in Thailand, but they are kind of boring to observe. They are no doubt a really odd looking animal, but they pretty much just stay in one place and that's not too exciting to watch. The sharks on the other hand were really cool and I've never been so close to them before. First we were leaning on this underwater lava formation watching them swim out of cave. Later, we returned to the cave and one by one, our guide held us down underwater, with our head in the cave as we looked at them for as long as we could hold our breath. Ok, writing that down makes it sound like a crazy, stupid thing to do. I almost didn't, but after another girl in our group came up for air saying that it wasn't scary and it was awesome, I decided I couldn't miss out. I agree, it was really awesome.
Jake heading down into the cave to see the white tipped reef sharks
I don't think once will be enough for us for Galapagos. We already know that we'd love to return someday after we saved and saved to do a big diving trip here.
~ Jesslyn
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Sources: Lonely Planet: Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands
https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Ayora
https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islas_Gal%C3%A1pagos