Floreana Island and Southern Isabela
Dawn broke behind Devil’s Crown through low clouds into clear skies. We were anchored in tranquil Post Office Bay, and marine turtle heads were breaking the surface, causing ripples that caught the searching eye, no matter how far. A couple of frigates were up early as well, literally high in the sky looking for action. Postcards were dropped into the barrel and others were taken for delivery, while a surprise visit from penguins occurred later during the Zodiac ride.
Champion Island was phenomenal with visibility down to 100 feet, if not more. Riders on the glass bottom boat and snorkelers as well had the experience of seeing sea lions reveling in their three-dimensional world (when they laughed at us poor, clumsy land mammals in the water, we could tell…bubbles came out their noses). Aquatic ballet could be one description, but to me they seemed more like jet-propelled stunt pilots in a submarine world. Thousands of young salemas, grunts and anchovies swam frenzied between the sea surface for feeding and the depths to escape the plunging blue-footed boobies and surface-plucking terns, never mind dodging the Indo-Pacific bonitos dashing through the schools deeper yet.
Our long mid-day navigation proved exceptionally exciting today. We came across a pod of bottlenose dolphins accompanying over 100 short-finned pilot whales with one or two Bryde’s, or possibly Minke whales nearby. When we slowed to see the pilot whales, they also slowed, and several spy-hopped to take a gander at the large vessel floating on the wide-open sea making shrieking noises of excitement through a frill of arms waving along the edges.
The afternoon took us into a completely different element of Galápagos. We visited the small 3,000-member town of Villamil, located in the southeastern corner of Isabela Island. Sandy streets keep the sounds and temperatures around the most pleasant levels. Endangered giant tortoises from the region are protected and cared for here in the breeding center run by the National Park Service; the young raised for later release into the wild. Free time in town allowed for a quiet beer in a local cantina near the expansive beach, or a visit to the fisherman’s wives cooperative. One could also choose between ice creams or delicious smoked fish: another fisherman’s wives initiative to supplement an income sometimes uncomfortably precarious.
Successful? Absolutely delightful.
Dawn broke behind Devil’s Crown through low clouds into clear skies. We were anchored in tranquil Post Office Bay, and marine turtle heads were breaking the surface, causing ripples that caught the searching eye, no matter how far. A couple of frigates were up early as well, literally high in the sky looking for action. Postcards were dropped into the barrel and others were taken for delivery, while a surprise visit from penguins occurred later during the Zodiac ride.
Champion Island was phenomenal with visibility down to 100 feet, if not more. Riders on the glass bottom boat and snorkelers as well had the experience of seeing sea lions reveling in their three-dimensional world (when they laughed at us poor, clumsy land mammals in the water, we could tell…bubbles came out their noses). Aquatic ballet could be one description, but to me they seemed more like jet-propelled stunt pilots in a submarine world. Thousands of young salemas, grunts and anchovies swam frenzied between the sea surface for feeding and the depths to escape the plunging blue-footed boobies and surface-plucking terns, never mind dodging the Indo-Pacific bonitos dashing through the schools deeper yet.
Our long mid-day navigation proved exceptionally exciting today. We came across a pod of bottlenose dolphins accompanying over 100 short-finned pilot whales with one or two Bryde’s, or possibly Minke whales nearby. When we slowed to see the pilot whales, they also slowed, and several spy-hopped to take a gander at the large vessel floating on the wide-open sea making shrieking noises of excitement through a frill of arms waving along the edges.
The afternoon took us into a completely different element of Galápagos. We visited the small 3,000-member town of Villamil, located in the southeastern corner of Isabela Island. Sandy streets keep the sounds and temperatures around the most pleasant levels. Endangered giant tortoises from the region are protected and cared for here in the breeding center run by the National Park Service; the young raised for later release into the wild. Free time in town allowed for a quiet beer in a local cantina near the expansive beach, or a visit to the fisherman’s wives cooperative. One could also choose between ice creams or delicious smoked fish: another fisherman’s wives initiative to supplement an income sometimes uncomfortably precarious.
Successful? Absolutely delightful.
