The Galapagos Islands aboard the NG Islander March 22 to 29 2015

Day 6 – Guayaquil to Galapagos Islands   22 March 2015

Cruise Day 1 – North Seymour Islet

Bags out at 5:45am, ohh its been so long since we have had to deal with that!!  🙂

We were on the bus for the airport at 7am for the 1hr 40 min flight to Isla Baltra in the Galapagos Islands. This was originally an airfield set up by the Americans during WWII to protect America from the Japanese and Germans (if they came from the south west). There is now a new terminal at the airport that is pretty comfortable.

The Galapagos has its’ own Immigration and Customs control to protect it from incoming pests, both human and other biological threats. Once we cleared immigration we were taken to a VIP area where we waited for our bus to arrive.  As the bus arrived we were taken to another area where all our baggage was x-rayed and we cleared customs, and proceeded to board the bus to go to our ship, The National Geographic Islander (A catamaran).

We drove to the waterside and pulled up to a concrete set of stairs leading down to the water. Apparently the regular embarkation point was undergoing repair. We were helped down the stairs and into a Zodiac for a short ride out to our ship.

Once on board we were shown to our cabin and then did our induction to the ship and the regulation safety drills. By this time it was around 11:30am, and we went back to our cabin to settle in and lunch was served around 12:30, and our Galapagos Adventure was under way.

While we ate lunch our Captain took our ship to northern shore of North Seymour Islet. This was to be our introduction to The Galapagos and things to come.

We had a short zodiac (called “Pangas” in the Galapagos) ride to the Islet for a “dry” landing and a short 1.2 mile walk over a rocky loop path. As we stepped off the zodiac we saw Sea Lions basking on the rocky shore and Swallow Tailed Gulls with magnificent red ringed eyes.

It was literally only a few metres into the walk before the wild-life became a reality. We were walking amongst a Frigate bird (both Magnificent and Great Frigates) and Blue Footed Boobie nesting ground. Throw into the mix Land Iguanas at every turn and you have a land that intrigued Charles Darwin many years ago and sparked the birth of The Theory of Evolution. All the mature male Frigate bids were displaying their puffed out Brilliant red chests, trying to impress the female Frigates, we saw many of them flying around carrying nesting materials in their beaks. The Blue Footed Boobies are a spectacle to see, so comical with their strutting and dance moves. Their brilliant Blue feet are amazing. They are Deb’s favourite.  Throw into the mix numerous small Lava Lizards and Galapagos Doves, both of whom seem to have a special relationship with the Land Iguanas. The Doves peck parasites from the skin of the Iguanas and the Lava Lizards are often seen hitching a ride on the back of the Iguanas.

The Galapagos has been in drought for most of this wet season, the rains that were meant to come in January still have not arrived. This has meant the trees don’t have any foliage on them (although showers last week has caused some trees to begin to sprout leaves) and the animal population has been placed under great stress. We saw some evidence of this with a few dead chicks and a dead seal baby beside the trail.

The general outline of activities for the cruise will be an “optional” morning early wake up call activity, followed by breakfast, then either a land excursion or snorkelling/kayaking or zodiac tour, followed by lunch and an afternoon siesta. At 3pm there is a briefing followed by an afternoon activity such as  a land excursion or snorkelling/kayaking or zodiac tour. If you’re not up to an activity there is always an alternative on board activity to keep you busy. The day is finished off with a recap and cocktails in the lounge and dinner at 7:30pm.

 

Day 7 – Galapagos Islands   23 March 2015

Cruise Day 2 – Bartolome and Rabiada

Bartolome is a small volcanic Islet off the east coast of Santiago Island (the 4th largest of the Galapagos Islands). Bartolome is in the rain shadow of the larger Islands of Santiago and Santa Cruz, so is very dry. It has a “Moonscape” rather than a landscape, it looks very hostile and even the sparsely scattered plants that exist here only barely survive.

We had a dry landing onto this islet at the base of a 300m high volcanic hill. To protect the environment from erosion a boardwalk has been constructed to the top. Many hundreds of steps later we appreciated the fact that we had done this walk in the early hours of the day (6:30am start), it would have been almost intolerable later in the day when the temperature reaches 30+ C and the humidity soars above 80%. The views both on the way up and from the top were amazing. The mix of landscapes, dominated by the volcanic pedigree of the Islands was awe inspiring. The deep blue sea and black volcanic landscapes and blue skies gave a dramatic edge to this land.

We retreated from the summit back to the ship for breakfast, followed by a snorkelling safety briefing, and collecting our snorkelling equipment. Soon it was time to board the zodiacs again to have a wet landing on a small white beach on Bartolome. Here we snorkelled out from the beach and along the rocky coast for about 90 minutes. We saw lots of very colourful fish, a white tipped shark and a solitary Galapagos Penguin.

After that we headed back to the ship for a Traditional Ecuadorian buffet lunch.

After the afternoon siesta time, we went snorkelling again from the zodiacs. This time it was along a rocky coastline. We saw a few Marine Iguanas basking in the sun on the rocks and a few sea lions doing the same. In the water we saw a variety of fish and about 8 white tipped sharks.

After dinner one of the ships naturalists gave a brief introduction talk on wildlife photography. I haven’t mentioned this, but there are 4 naturalists on board the ship, and whenever we go off the ship they give us a running commentary on what we are seeing and answer any questions we might have about what we are seeing. They are all very knowledgeable and personable.

 

Day 8 – Galapagos Islands    24 March 2015

Cruise Day 3 – Isabella and Fernandia

Today started with a 6am wakeup call for a bit of sea mammal spotting from the sundeck in anticipation of our crossing the Equator at around 8am.

It was very quiet on the sea mammal front before we crossed the Equator. Everyone was invited to the Bridge Deck for the crossing  and there was a countdown as we crossed it.  That now means I have crossed the equator by car, plane and ship!! Not long after we crossed it, we spotted a pod of several hundred Common Dolphins and the ship set chase for them. We followed them for about 30 minutes crossing back over the equator and back again as we did.

Around 10am we arrived at Punta Vicenta Roca on the northwest coast of Isabella Island (The largest Island in the Galapagos) Once here we were soon in the zodiacs doing a cruise along the coast looking at the wildlife and geology. This was done in a light rain shower that quickly cleared up. Back at the ship for a quick change and back into the zodiacs for some snorkelling. I spent about 75 mins swimming with so many sea turtles and I got to swim and interact with 3 sea lions (they were so much fun). I saw quite a few marine iguanas, but unfortunately I didn’t see any in the water.

Lunch today was a Peruvian buffet, we love all the new foods and flavours we are getting to try.

After lunch, we were given a lecture on the human History of the Galapagos, which ranged from early explorers, whalers, pirates (like Black Beard) and one Charles Darwin. In almost every case the visitors to these islands pillaged the wildlife, particularly the giant tortoises.

In the afternoon we sailed to Fernandina, an imposing volcano that rises almost 5000 feet and is one of the worlds most active volcanoes. We had a dry zodiac landing here that very quickly became wet, as we had to wade through knee deep water in a creek to get to where we were going. We stepped out of some mangroves onto a black lava shelf. Straight in front of us was a sea iguana nesting ground. The sand was full of hollows where the iguana had laid their eggs. The black lava rock shelves nearby were covered in black marine iguana, huddled together to preserve their heat. The iguana have this need to excrete salt from their bodies that they accumulate from the algae they eat and the seawater they drink. They get rid of it via special glands in their heads and essentially spray it out their nose. We also saw many nesting Flightless Galapagos Cormorants, we even managed to see the egg one of them was sitting on. In a pool nearby there was a mauled sea lion carcass. Paul, our naturalist took many photos to try and identify how/or what killed it. There were also many (live) sea lions in this area, along with pelicans and a few other birds. We also saw some cactus going on the lava rocks and a very old skeleton of a whale that had been partially reassembled on the rocks.

 

Day 9 – Galapagos Islands    25 March 2015

Cruise Day 4 – Urbina bay and Tagus Cove Isabela.

Isabela is the largest of The Galapagos Islands, it makes up just over half the surface area of The Galapagos archipelago. It was created by the fusion of six enormous shield volcanoes. It has a very distinctive “Sea Horse” shape.

After breakfast and before it got too hot I went for a hike through an area that was uplifted from the ocean in 1954. Apparently, within a 24 hr period a section of the seafloor was raised by as much as 5 metres, and a stretch of new coastline was created.  The walk started with a wet landing at a volcanic sand beach and then we set off into the low bush. We had only gone about 100m when we saw a giant tortoise walking along the same path as us. (It tried to make a quick getaway, but we caught it anyway! 🙂  ) Fernando, our naturalist guide, estimated that it was around 80-90 years old. There was another much smaller giant tortoise sleeping in a pool of shallow water nearby. As we turned the next corner on the path another giant tortoise was walking towards us and there was a bright orange/yellow land iguana at the edge of the trail just in front of the tortoise. Crazy good!

The bush around us had lots of finches and other birds in it, but they were very hard to see. We were warned about a local tree “The Poison Apple Tree” (sort of gives itself away huh!!). The sap and fruit from the tree are very poisonous to humans, but the giant tortoise don’t seem to mind the apples. The trails we are following are actually giant tortoise “freeways” they have just had the overhanging bush cleared away so we can pass by.

Around halfway through the walk we came onto some large clusters of coral rock, these were stark reminders of the force at which the upheaval of the seafloor. As we made our way back to the coast we saw a few black sea iguanas and about 5 or 6 Galapagos Penguins. The first penguin we saw was in the water, and then we came across a small group perched on a rock about a metre above the water. It was an interesting walk, and not as strenuous as they had warned!

After lunch we set sail again, heading back north to Tagus Cove. Tagus Cove is one of the places Darwin  visited in 1835. On the steep rocky hills where we anchored there is a lot of “historic graffiti” high on the hillside. I could make out dates going back as far as 1879. Historic or not, it still looks ugly!

 

Day 10 – Galapagos Islands  26 March 2015

Cruise Day 5 – Espumilla Beach, Bucaneer’s Cove and Puerto Egas      Santiago Island

We started today with a slow walk along a sandy beach, Espumilla Beach, in front of a mangrove forest. The first thing we saw was turtle tracks up the beach then back down to the water. The mangrove area is a turtle nesting area. The turtle tracks look a bit like a mini tractor has driven up the beach. We saw quite a few Darwin Finches and a beautiful Yellow Warbler.  There were Blue Footed Boobies fishing off the shore line, diving into the water from great heights, and zooming into the water as they flew very fast and low to the water. We also saw holes in the beach where something, possibly crabs, had dug down and raided a turtle nest, you could see eaten eggs at the bottom of the holes.

In the early part of the afternoon, our head Naturalist, Lyn, gave a very interesting talk about Charles Darwin.

After that we went for a walk on Puerto Egas. The main part of the walk was along a lava rock shelf on the coast. There were lots of Sea Iguana, Sea Lions, and numerous birds. It was lots of fun again getting up close to all the animals. And we got some great photos.

The animals of The Galapagos are best described as “Innocent” maybe even Naive. It is only the sea lions and fur seals that show any real caution around humans, and that is because they were hunted here for a couple of hundred years. The Iguana let you get within inches of them, the birds, while very skittish, often came within feet of you, and the Giant Tortoise, if you got too close (within a few meters) they just pull their heads into their shells until you either move away or simply stop moving around. It has been truly amazing to be able to get up so close to so many wild animals that have no fear of us.

 

Day 11 – Galapagos Islands   27 March 2015

Cruise Day 6 – Puerto Ayora and The Highlands   Santa Cruz Island

We woke this morning, after a fairly rocky night, anchored in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz island.  No early wake-up call today, thank goodness.

Around 8am we left the ship and took a zodiac ride to the port and then boarded a bus for the Charles Darwin Research Station and Tortoise Breeding Center.  We didn’t really get to see anything much of the Darwin Research establishment, but instead were taken on a walking tour around the Giant Tortoise Breeding Center. The Center itself reminded me of a 1970’s zoo, with small concrete enclosures that looked unkept. A bit disappointing really, because it seems they are doing very good work here in breeding and releasing Giant Tortoises back into the wild.

After longer than needed tour, we were free to walk back into town, and were encouraged to shop in town. We got some postcards for the grandchildren and wrote them out while waiting for everyone to get together at The Rock Cafe (The Rock is the name the Island was called by the US forces that were stationed here in WWII.)

Around 11am we left town in the bus, and headed into the highlands. The highlands are much cooler, apparently, than the coast and can have big thunderstorms at no notice.

Our first stop was at a small farm, where we saw sugar cane juice extract, using a mule as a power source, a manual labour intensive method they use for processing their coffee crop (picking, drying, dehusking and finally roasting), how they produce a molasses type sugar and finally we were taken to where he made his own Moonshine. That stuff would take the paint off an old steel post!!!

From there we went to a local highland farm that allows tour groups to walk around their property looking at the Giant Galapagos Tortoises that feed there during the wet season. While we were waiting to do our tour, Chris , a New Zealander we have met. Was coaxed to get inside a Giant Tortoise Shell, he did a very good impersonation, very funny. It was a really interesting time, walking around and learning a bit about their life cycle and how they live. We even saw a couple of Tortoises mating. They really do, do everything slowly!!

At the end of the tour we had a walk through a very large Lava Tube (Tunnel), it must have been 100m long and up to 4m in diameter, and maybe 5 metres underground. A very eerie sensation.

That wrapped up our day in the Highlands and we were taken back to the town.  Before we caught a Zodiac back to our ship, we tried to buy stamps for the postcards, but the post office was shut.  We will have to wait until we get back to the mainland to post them.

 

Day 12 – Galapagos Islands   28 March 2015

Cruise Day 7– Punta Pitt and Leon Dormido, San Cristobal  Island

Our days started  a little differently, I took the Hike to the plateau of a “small” volcanic hill for the views and wildlife while Deb went for a Zodiac Cruise to see some of the wildlife, particularly birds nesting on the foreshore.

The hike was  warm, it took us up through a dry creek bed passed the side of a volcanic cone and onto a flat plateau overlooking the coastline. There wasn’t too much to see until we got to the top. Once there, there were spectacular views down over the island and out to sea.

The wildlife up top was really interesting. We saw many Red Footed Boobie nests, many with chicks in them. We also saw, from a distance, the third type white faced Boobie and also lots of Frigate birds.

On the way back down I rolled my right ankle, something I haven’t done for quite a while. It was painful but manageable. The whole walk was very hot, I had decided earlier that I wouldn’t go for a swim after the walk, silly me!!!!

On the Zodiac cruise Deb saw lots of Red Footed Boobies, Blue Footed Boobies, Frigate birds and she even saw a group of about half a dozen Rays mating in some shallow water.

In the afternoon I went deep water snorkelling for the last time around Leon Dormido, a very tall steep walled rocky Island. The water was pretty murky, but we did see lots of fish and just as the dive was finishing I saw a sea turtle, which was a nice way to finish my time in the water.

After all the snorkelers were back on board the Captain did a circumnavigation of Leon Dormido before setting course to Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, San Cristobal.

In the evening we had a Farewell cocktail with the Captain  and watched a slide show of  a collection of photos put together by the crew using the passengers photos. It was very interesting to relive the cruise.

After dinner we packed our bag have to have it out for collection at 6:15am.

 

Day 13 – Galapagos Islands  and Guayaquil 29 March 2015

Cruise Day 8– Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, San Cristobal Island  and Check-out from The Galapagos

We were off the NG Islander a little after 8am and taken to the airport for our 9:30 flight.

We are both looking forward to the next stage of our Holiday, and a bit of time when it is just us.

Our flight was delayed while we watched as they changed a tyre on the plane. The airport here is almost brand new and it appeared that this may have been the first tyre they had changed here, no one seemed to know what to do. But it is better to have them change it rather than take a chance on our Guayaquil landing.  (How many Ecuadorians/Galapagonians does it take to change an aircraft tyre?  13!!! Once they find the right tools!

Our flight left about 2 hours late and they seem to have put the pedal to the metal for the flight home, our 1hr 40 min flight took just a touch over 1 hr!!

We have checked into the Guayaquil Hilton and have a wake-up call at 4am tomorrow for our flight to Havana, Cuba via Panama City.    Postcards are on their way, will be interested to know how long they take to arrive.

 

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