Back in Ecuador...womp womp :(

Kelly and I have successfully arrived back in Guayaquil and are once more (mostly) connected with the world. We will be posting thousands of pictures in the next few days, but we have also been adding pictures to past-posts now that we have a stronger internet connection! Feel free to re-examine older posts for newly added (and breathtaking if I do say so myself) pictures!

Day 10 - 8/1 - San Cristobal Island (Day 7 in Galapagos)

Morning Hike @ Punta Pitt, San Cristobal

Well, what else is new, I have a new favorite island. After breakfast a group of us loaded onto a zodiac and took a coastal tour around San Cristobal and its’ satellite (smaller) islands. As we navigated off the coast, we were able to see how beautiful the outermost terrain of this island is - coves and jagged peaks every which way…imagine the Grand Canyon, except, no guardrails! Since it was early (about 8 am), we were able to see the elusive Red Footed Boobies, Frigates, and Sea Lions actively hunting for breakfast. 

After exploring the perimeter of the island, we “wet landed” at Punta Pitt. Here about a dozen more sea lions lazily slept on the sand, which was soft and glittery; Ximena, our naturalist, explained that the glittery sediments are actually incredibly broken down pieces of lava from when this island was formed between 2.5 million-3.8 MYA (one of the oldest islands). Crazy.

We hiked throughout Punta Pitt and (as you can see through the pictures below) the landscape was breathtaking. Very little vegetation grows on this island, because it only receives 3-4 inches of rain each year. Ximena pointed out that near the shoreline bushes called Saltworth grow. We were allowed to taste the tiny yellow berries that grow on the bush and they tasted just like salt water/ocean, since they absorb the oxygen coming off the ocean. 

Along with the Saltworth bushes, many white trees covered the island, which we learned were the homes to the Red Footed Boobies. These animals are so fascinating; they have blue beaks and lightly tinted blue feet, that will not turn red until they are between the ages of 2 and 5 years old. We also learned that the RBF’s are the only boobie with prehensile feet, which allows them to hold tightly onto tress/bushes. This is an evolutionary adaptation over frigate birds, who prey on the RBF’s newly hatched chicks. Since the frigates lack the prehensile feet, they cannot easily steal RFB chicks from the nests…seriously, how cool is that?! As we were preparing to hike down the mountain, we saw some four-legged animals in the distance…not a common sight in the Galapagos. It turns out it was a wild herd of goats - an invasive species to the islands. Ximena explained to us the measures people have gone to in order to eradicate the goats, but it seems they are smarter than they appear and thus, continue to survive on the islands. 

After our hike we spent some time on the beach, fawning over sea lion pups (ok that was just me…) and swimming. The sun here at the equator is so hot on clear days, that my skin actually hurt at some points, so KH and I have been careful to apply/reapply sunscreen and/or spend as much time in the water as possible…which hasn’t been 100% effective...

Snorkeling @ Leon Dormido, San Cristobal -

SHARKS! WE SWAM WITH SHARKS!!! Around 3 o’clock, we loaded a zodiac to head to Leon Dormido (the sleeping lion) rock formation a few miles off the coast of San Cristobal.This area is known for high shark populations, as well as sea turtles, sea lions, and colorful fish. Within twenty minutes or so, KH and I were swimming with more than 2 dozen sharks - mostly white tipped reef sharks, although there were a few dark tipped reef sharks and Galapagos sharks mixed in. It was incredible to be so close to these beautiful animals - they move so effortlessly. We took a lot of video and before long, we had also seen a few Spotted Eagle Rays. A few peoples we snorkeled with saw a hammerhead, but KH and I did not, which would be depressing if it weren’t for the amazing animals we did get to see. 

Farewell Endeavour -

After snorkeling, the ship sailed around Leon Dormido as we enjoyed a bon voyage party on the aft of the ship. It was wonderful to take pictures and spend time with people we have befriended  over the last week and the sun set over Leon Dormido was the perfect setting. As one final hurrah, we were took a zodiac into the town of San Cristobal to shop and explore. It was the perfect ending to an unforgettable, amazing, incredible, life-changing adventure. 

Fun Fact: The Galapagos are home to the largest population of RFB in the world

Fun Fact: Sea Lion pups have denser fur than adults, because they do not have as much fat to keep them warm

 Red Footed Boobie

Red Footed Boobie sitting on her nest

 San Cristobal 

 Punta Pitt 

 San Cristobal 

 Saltworth Plant

 Flora on San Cristobal

 Sea lion heap...there are 8 there! 

 Sunset sail around Leon Dormido

 Leon Dormido - where we swam with sharks!! 

Day 9 - 7/31 - Santa Cruz Island (Day 6 in Galapagos) GIANT TORTOISES!

Santa Cruz – So strange to be back in civilization!  We haven’t seen houses or human structures in five days.  Docked in Puerto Ayora, a town of 18,000 people, the only post office, and the Charles Darwin Research Station.  Visited their giant tortoise breeding program where Lonesome George lived out the second half of his life.  The researchers take and incubate eggs from the different species and keep them safe until they’re five and then return them to their respective islands.  Each one is marked by a number and color for identification.  Until they are about two or three they are often eaten by rats, and then from three to five, feral pigs are a problem.  By five, they are big enough to be safe but still small enough to move.  There are about seven adults here, but they are accidental hybrids from their time in captivity in the early 1900s.  They have no true homes to return to.  Fascinating place.

From the research center we walked into town along Darwin Avenue, visiting small shops for souvenirs.  We met for a drink then were shipped out to get suited up for mountain bikes.  It was a hilly three-mile ride that was through gorgeous country-side with farms and pastures growing coffee, sugar cane, bananas, papayas I think, corn, bamboo, grazing cattle, chickens in trees, pretty flowers (non-native because purples, pinks, and reds – endemic species are white or yellow), etc.  It was green and lush like we would picture on a tropical island but stood out because it was nothing we’ve seen so far.  BUT TOO MANY HILLS!  Ugh – need to save biking for flat Chicago. 

Our bike route ended at a family farm that demonstrated how they made coffee from the beans, sugar, molasses, and some serious alcohol.  Dehydrated from our sweaty bike ride, we tried shots of alcohol, juice with alcohol, and the excellent coffee they made there.  My head was swimming!

Next, lunch in the highlands at a family run open-air restaurant for grilled chicken, then on to my favorite part of the day. - walking among giant tortoises in the wild.  This time of year they are all over the place because they’ve moved up to get vegetation fed by the moisture that accumulates on the western elevations.  The lowlands are dormant because it’s the dry season.  Tracking studies show that these giants migrate long distances on many islands corresponding with the seasons.  As you can see from the pictures, these are large lumbering creatures that look like ET and are pretty unfazed by us humans.   I found them adorable and ancient. 

Another fascinating day in the Galapagos!

PS Happy Birthday Grandpa and Zoe if you’re reading.  J

Strange pond with red tiny fern plants on right, but in the shade on the left, green duckweed covering.  Boots definitely necessary!

As they dropped dried coffee beans into the big pestle, they wave the feather fan to separate the papery casing. 

Wonderland

Salad

At the research center.  

Checking us out.

Day 8 - 7/30 - Santiago Island (Day 5 in Galapagos)

Early Morning Hike through Playa Espumilla, Santiago -

Today was the earliest activity we’ve had so far. We left on a zodiac at 6:30 am for Playa Espumilla on Santiago Island (the second largest of the islands). Carlos, our favorite Naturalist, walked us through the inland areas where we saw vast sandy spaces littered with thousands of holes from fiddler crabs. We hiked through a dense forest of mangrove trees (just amazing - I felt like a little kid exploring the woods and scouting out tree house property) and up a small mountain, where we saw mockingbirds, finches, and a Galapagos hawk. At the top of the mountain, Carlos explained how during the wet season a large waterfall forms across the trail we were walking through. We finished our hike back on the beach and saw a few dozen sea turtle nests (no babies/eggs were visible), as well as pelicans and Masked boobies (aka Nazca boobies) hunting for breakfast.

Morning Snorkeling @ Buccaneer Cove, Santiago - 

KH and I went snorkeling at Buccaneer’s Cove after breakfast today. This area of Santiago is named such, because it was once visited/occupied by pirates. As we disembarked from the main ship, a few people saw what the crew had written down for today’s water temperature…a balmy 67 degrees (yesterday when I was shivering in the water the temperature was 70…woof).  Our snorkeling site was against a jagged cliff and we were instructed to swim along the cliff until the very end, where we could swim into the cove. As we swam, we were able to maneuver throughout large chunks of the cliff that once fell off the mainland. Tons of animals lived in the small crevices created by these rocks, including barnacles, pyramid sea stars, parrot fish, king angelfish, and a huge manta ray laying at the bottom of the ocean. As we swam into the cove, the water got colder and much darker than anything I’ve ever swam in; I couldn’t really see anything, except the legs of people in front of me. As we navigated toward the back of the cove, KH spotted a sea lion doing laps and summersaults around us. Of course we frantically tried to follow him, but it was too dark inside the cove, and none of our videos of him playing were clear enough to see…womp womp. 

Afternoon Long Hike/Swim at Puerto Egas Santiago -

Around 2 in the afternoon, we took a zodiac from our ship to Puerto Egas, a different area of Santiago than we’ve seen yet. As we arrived on the beach, a sea lion was circling our zodiac and several other sea lions were laying on the sand. Even after we laid down towels for people to layout or go snorkeling, the sea lions walked through our “camp” and over our towels, bag, etc. - it is their home first!  KH saw more fish, sea anemones, lime green sea urchins, and a sting ray while snorkeling. Meanwhile, I was busy harassing a 2 week-old sea lion pup - I have tons of video to share when I get home (and pictures below). We spent about two hours on the beach, during which we were able to see how the alpha males (there were two for this particular group) interacted with their females (multiple) and pups. 

Our naturalists, Fernando, warned us that the alpha males are aggressive about their territory and that we should keep our distance from him/them. Of course, one then proceeded to swim right up to me. It’s those moments (and we’ve been fortunate enough to have many down here) that I remember these are wild animals…with very sharp teeth! After our time on the beach, we went on a hike inland on the island. We got to see our first fur seals (picture below), which look similar to sea lions, but have larger heads, denser fur that looks like hair, and are generally fatter in the midsection…think Santa Clause in seal form.  These particular seals were hanging around a collapsed lava tunnel that the locals have named “Darwin's Toilet,” because of how the water flushes in and out from the ocean. Fernando explained that fur seals were hunted for a long time and are therefore less trusting/friendly toward humans than the sea lions. Tomorrow we are visiting the Charles Darwin Research Center (YES!!!) and having lunch in the highlands of Santa Cruz, where the tortoise populations are very dense…we’re both hoping to see a very old, large Lonesome George relative…we will see! 

1. Fun Fact: A barnacle’s penis is the longest invertebrate penis relative to body size - thanks for that Carlos

2. Fun Fact: The locals call the blue footed boobies “bluebies” and the red footed boobies “rubies" 

 Morning hike on Santiago

 Bucaneers' Cove Snorkeling

 Afternoon hike on Santiago Island

 sea lion napping at Puerto Egas

 2 week-old sea lion pup

 again...adorable! 

 Santiago 

 grasshopper at Puerto Egas

 Baby sea lions snuggling 

 Same two sea lions...not snuggling 

 Fur seal in "Darwin's Toilet" lava tunnel

Day 7 - 7/29 - Isabela Island (Day 4 in Galapagos)

Big day à hike, kayak, snorkel, hike No one is required to do any activity but Katie and I are in constant fear of missing something so we pack it all in.  All events were on Isabela Island today, which is the largest island made from six different volcanoes.  It’s the one shaped like a seahorse on the map.

Urbina Bay Hike – this was the longest hike we’ll do here.  Only two miles but we were warned it can be very hot.  We started under clouds so not too bad.  This was not Katie’s favorite hike but payoff was at the end.  Rigorous trail in the beginning because it wound through marine reef that was uplifted 15’ in 1954.  Coral was everywhere on the first half mile inland.  We saw several yellow land iguanas but many more of their burrows.  I was excited to finally see a giant tortoise (~80 yrs old) sitting right in the middle of the path and later we saw a young one half its size.  Finches and mockingbirds flitting around but we had a bad problem with paper wasps.  They were thick and people were freaking out.  No one in our group got stung though.  At the end of the hike was what made Katie get over the wasps – we could go for a swim to cool off and the water felt great.  Soon after we got in, pelicans and a blue-footed booby started dive-bombing for fish all around us.  We got some amazing pics but they were doing this within 6’ of us!  Then we noticed some penguins darting around and they would watch the pelicans dive and then speed over to get the scraps.  Amazing – we couldn't stop laughing.

Tagus Cove Kayaking – We signed up for the tandem kayaking.  It was more for scenery and exercise.  We were told we wouldn’t see much wildlife but some neat birds, sea turtles, and a few sea lions arcing out of the water as they went by.  We were a little rusty with the paddles but got pretty good coordinating by the end.  Oddly, there is a lot of graffiti on the cliffs in this area.  How they got to some of those places I have no idea but I wonder the same thing in Chicago.

Tagus Cove Snorkeling – You know you’re spoiled when a gorgeous variety of fish, marine iguanas, and sea turtles are an OK snorkeling day.  Then the penguins came. Usually they’re so fast and they zoom by, but we watched a few hunting in this small cove for quite a while – they were seemingly so unaware of us they’d almost bump into us because their focus was down on the fish.  Once, they both swam on either side of me so close I could have reached out and touched them.  So adorable – they were my highlight snorkeling.  Although seeing the flightless cormorant hunting underwater was a thrill also.

Tagus Cove Hike – After snorkeling we had exactly 20 minutes to clean snorkeling gear, dry off, change clothes, and line up for the late afternoon hike.  It was a strenuous but scenic hike up 1000’ on the rim of a tuff cone overlooking Darwin Lake.  Strange trees, a barren volcanic plain, and some graffiti dating back to 1836 in the stone.  This is one of the stops Darwin made on the Beagle in 1835.  Gorgeous.

 Land Iguana 

 First tortoise sighting - 80+ years old!

 Flightless Cormorant - beautiful birds

 Urbina Bay

 Pelican 

 Darwin's Lake - Tagus Cove, Isabela 

 Tagus Cove 

 Urbina Bay

 Cormorants drying their wings

 7,000 YO Coral! Inland! Incredible.

 Penguino :) Kelly's BFF

 Yellow Warbler

Day 6 - 7/28 - Fernandina & Isabela (Day 3 in Galapagos)

I know I keep saying this, but seriously, today was AMAZING! Over night we traveled 90 nautical miles to an area in the pacific just between Fernandina and Isabela. KH woke up early and was able to spot dolphins and “blow hole action,” a clear sign that whales were in the area! 

Morning Hike on Fernandina Island 

This is the newest island of all the Galapagos and there are even “lava ribbons” that are only 4 years old, a result of the most recent volcanic eruption (today we saw black ash spurting from the volcano).  The terrain is made entirely of black lava rock, lava ribbons, white sand, and such little greenery that the little the island has pops out. Our Naturalist Gaby told us that all the water on this island is salt-water, except for the very top of the volcano, where freshwater can be found; however, it takes over a days hike to reach this summit. While on the island, we hiked through the different types of lava - the blackness of the igneous rock made the island incredibly hot - and saw hundreds of black marine iguanas, sea lions (mostly babies), flightless cormorants, and sea turtles! Again, the animals, have no fear, and so there were times when we were stepping in between the marine iguanas who refused to move. The Black Marine Iguanas are so rare, because the Galapagos are the only place they live int he entire world and they are the only marine iguanas in the entire world as well. We took more video of them swimming and it is unreal how similar they move compared to crocodiles. In addition to the Black Marine Iguanas, we saw a Bandit Snake, also black. It is amazing to see how all these animals have adapted in regard to their volcanic environment - something Darwin touched on in regard to natural selection. 

Afternoon Snorkel on Isabela Island @ Punta Vicente Roca

WOW! I didn’t think snorkeling today could be better than yesterday, but it was by far the greatest thing we’ve done yet. Our zodiac took us to a of cove on Isabela Island known for its scuba diving and high populations of sea turtles. Within two minutes, we saw sea turtles who seemed to effortlessly float through the water, occasionally stopping to nibble on some algae. They were so majestic and fearless that at one point, one almost floated into me! About 20 minutes in to our adventure, we finally spotted penguins! They were tiny and incredibly fast - almost like they were being shot out of a canon. We got amazing video of this, but our blog is being dumb and it won’t let us upload it - I’ll try again when we’re back home. We also had an incredible encounter with a curious and mischievous sea lion who got within a foot of me at one point - just incredible! As we swam around the coast of Isabela and into a shallower nook, we witnessed the “hang out” spot of more than 5 dozen sea turtles. It was breath taking. Some were small and active, whereas others were HUGE (literally, more than 6 ft. tall and 5 ft. wide….seriously) and lazily laid on the ocean floor. As were loaded back onto the zodiac to come home, we again saw a giant manta, just hovering at the surface. There are truly no words for how amazing today and this afternoon were - possibly the most exciting moments of my life. Tomorrow, we get to go kayaking and snorkeling again; the only animals left on our bucket list are the Galapagos tortoises and any type of whale! Our naturalists have assured us that the tortoises are a definite within the next few days and that the whales are a real possibility! Fingers crossed!!! 

At the end of the day, the entire boat had a champagne toast as we crossed the equator - it was right around sunset and incredibly beautiful. 

Fun Fact: The Galapagos Islands are the coldest place that exists on the equator.

 Green sea turtle! 

 lava cactus

sea lion - aka Katie's BFF

 predator-prey relationships :)

 Very windy day....

 Black Marine Iguana - the only marine iguanas in the world

 Aggregations of Black Marine Iguanas warming themselves

 and more...