Santa Cruz and North Seymour
I just cannot believe that we have only completed day 3 of this trip and we have seen and done more than on most week-long vacations. I can only imagine what it will feel like at the end of Day 7.
I would never consider myself a wildlife enthusiast or an adventure traveler. My past vacations have certainly included beautiful beaches, museums and major site seeing locations. But, I have never been drawn to an adventure trip like this one. If you are going try one, the Galápagos Islands just might be the best possible choice.
While yesterday was more about the water, today was more about the land and wildlife. At 6am, we heard Lynn Fowler’s pleasant voice encouraging us to wake up. After a quick cup a coffee, we are whisked into the Zodiac boats for a short ride to shore and the busy port town of Puerto Ayora. It was nice to see a populated area of the Galápagos, as so many of our locations thus far have been mostly uninhabited National Park areas.
We boarded a bus for a drive through a residential area of the town and into the highlands. There was more moisture and thus vegetation in this area especially as we drove higher. Our visit in the highlands began on a cattle farm that is also the home of wild giant tortoises. Several of the tortoises were already waiting for us on the side of the road on our ride into the farm. We had to wait just a bit as they slowly made their way out the bus’ path. They don’t move fast, as we all know, but sure are fun to watch wobble along.
Once we hiked further into the area, we found tortoises everywhere and of various sizes. We found a bunch of them bathing in a mud pond and many more scattered throughout the land. It was a great area for really fantastic close up pictures of these fascinating creatures. Ernesto, our naturalist for this adventure, also provided a great deal of color commentary on everything from orange trees to turtle poop. These trips are certainly successful because of the knowledge, humor and likeability of the naturalists that Lindblad provides. Just don’t eat the orange when he tells you to unless you like a very sour fruit.
The next adventure was a walk through a lava tunnel. This cave-like structure created by running lava was a ¼ mile long and probably 10ft high in most places. However, several sections of it required you to crouch down. I never expected it to be as beautiful as it was in formation or texture. The silver coloring and tone of the minerals was quite beautiful. Watching 6-year-old Elam guide us through the tunnel with gusto was the highlight of this adventure.
All that before breakfast! We had a full terrific breakfast on the farm overlooking their land and then boarded buses and headed back to town to explore. Some people shopped while others took a trip to visit the Charles Darwin Research Station. We decided to do both in our little group. The Darwin Station allowed us the chance to see many more tortoises even closer and the highlight was the hundreds of babies that were bred here in captivity. All of them will soon be released into the wild.
A little bit of shopping never hurt anyone and we were on the hunt for some local art that we found in the form of photography and silver. We have some family at home that will love their silver sea turtles.
We headed back to the ship for a four hour cruise to North Seymour. Our experience here was a hike over lava boulders to the coast and the experience of some very unique and amazing wildlife.
I have never had an interest in bird watching but I will leave this trip with not just an appreciation but also, perhaps, a future interest. To actually get the chance to see the mating ritual of frigatebirds and the rearing process, all in one place and at arms reach, was profound.
On top of that, we happen to be in Galápagos during the sea lion birthing season. We were steps away from female sea lions caring for their newborn pups. In our group, we had five very excited kids: Destiny, Chelsea, Blake, Thomas and Natara. To watch them experience this adventure was worth the whole trip.RFV06
I just cannot believe that we have only completed day 3 of this trip and we have seen and done more than on most week-long vacations. I can only imagine what it will feel like at the end of Day 7.
I would never consider myself a wildlife enthusiast or an adventure traveler. My past vacations have certainly included beautiful beaches, museums and major site seeing locations. But, I have never been drawn to an adventure trip like this one. If you are going try one, the Galápagos Islands just might be the best possible choice.
While yesterday was more about the water, today was more about the land and wildlife. At 6am, we heard Lynn Fowler’s pleasant voice encouraging us to wake up. After a quick cup a coffee, we are whisked into the Zodiac boats for a short ride to shore and the busy port town of Puerto Ayora. It was nice to see a populated area of the Galápagos, as so many of our locations thus far have been mostly uninhabited National Park areas.
We boarded a bus for a drive through a residential area of the town and into the highlands. There was more moisture and thus vegetation in this area especially as we drove higher. Our visit in the highlands began on a cattle farm that is also the home of wild giant tortoises. Several of the tortoises were already waiting for us on the side of the road on our ride into the farm. We had to wait just a bit as they slowly made their way out the bus’ path. They don’t move fast, as we all know, but sure are fun to watch wobble along.
Once we hiked further into the area, we found tortoises everywhere and of various sizes. We found a bunch of them bathing in a mud pond and many more scattered throughout the land. It was a great area for really fantastic close up pictures of these fascinating creatures. Ernesto, our naturalist for this adventure, also provided a great deal of color commentary on everything from orange trees to turtle poop. These trips are certainly successful because of the knowledge, humor and likeability of the naturalists that Lindblad provides. Just don’t eat the orange when he tells you to unless you like a very sour fruit.
The next adventure was a walk through a lava tunnel. This cave-like structure created by running lava was a ¼ mile long and probably 10ft high in most places. However, several sections of it required you to crouch down. I never expected it to be as beautiful as it was in formation or texture. The silver coloring and tone of the minerals was quite beautiful. Watching 6-year-old Elam guide us through the tunnel with gusto was the highlight of this adventure.
All that before breakfast! We had a full terrific breakfast on the farm overlooking their land and then boarded buses and headed back to town to explore. Some people shopped while others took a trip to visit the Charles Darwin Research Station. We decided to do both in our little group. The Darwin Station allowed us the chance to see many more tortoises even closer and the highlight was the hundreds of babies that were bred here in captivity. All of them will soon be released into the wild.
A little bit of shopping never hurt anyone and we were on the hunt for some local art that we found in the form of photography and silver. We have some family at home that will love their silver sea turtles.
We headed back to the ship for a four hour cruise to North Seymour. Our experience here was a hike over lava boulders to the coast and the experience of some very unique and amazing wildlife.
I have never had an interest in bird watching but I will leave this trip with not just an appreciation but also, perhaps, a future interest. To actually get the chance to see the mating ritual of frigatebirds and the rearing process, all in one place and at arms reach, was profound.
On top of that, we happen to be in Galápagos during the sea lion birthing season. We were steps away from female sea lions caring for their newborn pups. In our group, we had five very excited kids: Destiny, Chelsea, Blake, Thomas and Natara. To watch them experience this adventure was worth the whole trip.RFV06
