Galapagos Island Adventure, days 4, 5, 6, 7

Hello!  Sorry for the absence.  We've had 11 of our children and grandchildren visiting over the last few weeks.  It was wonderful and we loved every minute!  You have probably had a few things going on in your lives as well and have now forgotten what we were doing here a month ago.

So, to recap a bit -- we were in the Galapagos Islands and were probably up to about day four of our adventure.  Something like that.  At the very beginning Bob made a map of where we went and somehow it fell off and disappeared, so let's try that again and maybe that will help.

Or not.  Hmmm.  This looks like the Los Angeles freeway system in the old Johnny Carson monologue:  "You take the San Diego Freeway to the Ventura Freeway to the Slauson Cutoff ..." Anyway, the red dashes represent days 1-5 and the black, 6-10.

We are in Santa Cruz at this point.  We went swimming at Bachas Bay and saw these little fellows streaking along in the shallow water.  They are a variety of small shark that you could almost think of as kind of cute.

And a parrot fish looking all dressed up for a date.

We went hiking at Cerro Dragon and were lucky enough to see a few flamingos.

Nap-time

Cerro Dragon Santa Cruz

Finally, we arrive at Puerto Ayora.  This is what we have been waiting for -- the Giant Tortoises!

Santa Cruz Highlands

Although the Galapagos Islands are a national park, they are inhabited by about 30,000 people mostly on the larger islands.  In the upper area of Santa Cruz where the largest tortoises are found, the park essentially pays landowners to allow the tortoises to walk freely on their land and to permit tourists in to see them.  We were told the landowner here was paid about $20,000 a month.  The arrangement includes an agreement to not build fencing that would impede the tortoises from moving as they wished.  

We never saw any park rangers or anyone employed there aside from people in a small picnic area selling refreshments.  Groups of tourists like us arrived and strolled around supervised only by their guides.  You could certainly take a taxi up there by yourself and be supervised by no one at all.  I am picturing tortoises covered in the graffiti.  Fortunately we saw nothing like that. 

What we did see was fairly breath-taking when we first arrived -- these enormous walking boulders everywhere!  They were sleeping in the sun, munching on the lush grass, sitting in mud holes and just living as they have for millions of years.  

Santa Cruz Highlands

They are not quite so oblivious to humans as the iguanas are.  I had the distinct impression that although they tolerated us, they found us annoying.  If you got too close to their faces, they absented themselves from the conversation as all tortoises do.

Keep a respectful distance though and they are more or less content to pose.  

It was lovely up there in the Highlands -- lush and green, sunny, but cool for the equator.  We discovered a side benefit that surprises us when we spotted smooth-billed anis in the trees and on the grass.  It's kind of a primitive-looking bird, but we were nevertheless very happy to see it.  We had chased this particular bird for two visits to Texas, making a dash to where we heard they had been seen only to be told they left the day before.  Well, there he was right in front of us and we only had go to 600 miles off Ecuador to see him.

Then we went back to town to the Charles Darwin Research Station.  

Darwin Research Center Santa Cruz

What we were told is happening here is research and tortoise breeding.  I thought there would be -- I don't know -- researchers?  At least a few employees walking around.  Instead it's a rather sleepy place. They are having funding issues, which is worrying.  

It was also going on mid-afternoon, on the coast, on the Equator and getting real hot.  Maybe that's it.  

Then an interesting thing.  This was Lonesome George's home for over 40 years.  

Lonesome George is perhaps the most famous of the giants tortoises -- although that would be a pretty short list.  In 2012 Lonesome George was found dead in his corral.  It made the news here and all over the world.  There was a great outpouring of sadness.  He was not the oldest tortoise and he was not the largest.  He was the last of his kind.  There are (or were) 10 subspecies of giant Galapagos tortoises.  That fact actually was Darwin's particular interest in them.  To make a long story too short, they don't migrate, if they were born on a particular island, they stayed and developed adaptations to the different environments of each island and thus became different from each other.  In 1971 George was found wandering on Pinta Island.  This was exciting news as Pinta tortoises had been thought to be extinct.  Alas, he was alone on his island.  He was eventually brought to the Darwin Center and provided a large comfortable pen, which his caretakers thoughtfully populated with attractive lady tortoises.  They hoped he would produce offspring that were half Pintas.  But he was having none of it.  In one especially silly episode, they thought that he had forgotten how these things were done and they played videos for him of tortoises mating. Yes, really.  And so it went until the sad day in 2012.  He is still famous and still loved.  His remains are on display at the Smithsonian and wood carvings of his image can be found can be found in any souvenir shop.  The real one is gone now, all of them are.  Perhaps some of George's DNA will be used to create a new line of Pinta tortoises.  But it won't be quite the same, will it?

   

This was George's enclosure.  When he was alive there was a plaque there that read:  "Whatever happens to this single animal, let him always remind us that the fate of all living things on Earth is in human hands."

In other pens, there are lots of babies.  Each has a sign showing their subspecies and the date they hatched.  They are so cute!  They stump around like toddlers exploring their world.  Amazing to look at them and know that, given luck, these babies will live 200 years and weigh 500 pounds.  

We wish them all luck and leave the Darwin Center.  It is a long walk out.  And it's really really HOT now.  We were all drawn as if by magic to the first place we came to that sold beer.  Some time later we are revived enough to continue to the pier where we will be picked up by our panga.  

Oh good -- a parade!  They love them in South America.  They all must feature local beauty queens and this one seems to have a large blue footed booby.

Home, James!  

Galapagos Adventure Day 3, Bartolome Island and Sullivan Bay

Bartolome Island - It was up early as usual and after breakfast, we left for our hike.  We were going to one of the most breath-taking panoramas in the Galapagos.  There are striking rock formations in shades of shimmering black, red and green and one of the most recognized landmarks, Pinnacle Rock.  But for the best view of it all, you must go to the top.  There are stairs to make it easy -- except there are 380 of them.  Probably not a recommended activity in the heat of equatorial high noon, but quite lovely in the morning.

You just can't take too many pictures of this view!

Next, we change locations and are off on another hike.  Lava!! My favorite thing!  I don't know why I love it, but I do -- in all its many forms.  This is Pahoehoe lava -- ropy, billowy, smooth.  It fascinates me!

Mud burps, whole highways of patterns, small pictures on the ground -- all frozen for all time.

Siggy and Glen have a little fun in one of the lava tubes.  By the end of the hike, the soles of Siggy shoes were melting off in the heat.  Our on-board doctor glued them back on for her -- another of his many services!

 

 

 

Sullivan Bay  Oh my gosh, after two hikes under the sun, are we ready for a snorkel!! 

  

We plunged in ...

... directly on top of some white tip reef sharks that were sleeping on the bottom!  Of course, I know these sharks as I have watched shark week for many years.  So I feel pretty expert here.  (all that is kidding -)  Anyway, I know they are relatively benign creatures and one of the few sharks that can pump water over its gills allowing it to rest on the sea bottom.  Having 32 tourists suddenly dumped on them was enough to wake them up rather quickly and they all began cruising around -- an arresting sight. 

I keep telling myself that they are white tips and not dangerous, but still, they do look very shark-ish and that tends to trigger something in the pit of your stomach.

Our group had pretty quickly scattered once in the water.  We watched fascinated as the sharks circled and cruised about in the rock formations.  I was watching the largest one as it went away from me (good) and then turned to go around a tall formation that would lead it back around to me (not so good).  I watched it disappear as it went in.  I noticed that I was alone in the water -- no one else in sight -- and I wondered if I should beat a hasty retreat ... somewhere.  There really is no such thing as hasty in the water.  Basically you are flailing and making a spectacle of yourself.  No good.  I decide to hang as still as I could in the water.  Around he came and made the next slight turn directly toward me.  Um -- can these things see straight ahead?  Be a real story if it simply ran into me.  But of course not -- another slight course correction and he cruised past me.  I could see his eyes then.  Dead eyes as mentioned in "Jaws" and completely disinterested in me. 

Yeah -- check out the eye.  Yikes.

 

 

 

 Back on the ship for some cuter creatures -- the creations of our talented crew!  We all looked forward to the new critter that would appear on our beds every night.  And the galley staff was very creative, too. 

 

 

 

 

Day 2 - Urbina Bay and Targus Cove, Isabela Island

 

 

With modern technology of these days, a child could put out a blog.  And if you happen to have a spare child we could borrow for a day or so ...  Well, soldiering on here, Day Two of our trip to the Galapagos Islands:  We are settled into our routine on board the Evolution and getting to know each other and our crew.  There are 31 "adventurers" as they call us, from the US, Canada, Australia and Denmark.  We are lucky -- it's a good group.  To take care of the 31 of us, there are 20 crew.  The crew, across the board, was wonderful -- every one of them.  Our routine was breakfast call at 7:15, breakfast at 7:30, board the pangas for the day's first land or sea adventure 8:30 a.m.  No, this is not a "cruise".  You are busy and there are things to do that can be challenging.  But we had a doctor with us.  He was a cardiac surgeon (very cute).  Amongst ourselves, we had two ER docs, a dermatologist and a psychiatrist.  That about covers anything that could come up! 

 

 

 We land at Urbina Bay and our goal is to see land iguanas.  The penguins are a bonus!

These are sea turtle nesting sites.

 We happen upon this tortoise youngster on our hike.

 He is young so he still has bands on his shell.

Hmmm.  Evidence of larger tortoises.  Would this be a turtle pat?  Careful about what you bring back to the ship!

Omar explains the delicate, complex balance of nature to the group.  And Laurie sees a ... bird? 

A flycatcher.  Maybe explains why I didn't retain more scientific information.

Or could have been a Darwin's finch

Or grasshopper.

But here is a real find -- our first land iguana!

They are huge!  The size of an overweight dachshund!

This one just getting some color.  There are pink ones, too, but on another island that we did not go to, so ... something still out there.

 A bit scary!

We return to the ship and move to another location.  Along the way we see whales!  Humpbacks and the rarer Brydes whale.

We have our snorkeling gear with us so we are ready for our next adventure.

Oh my gosh!  I didn't get a lot of great underwater pictures, but I got this one and I am thrilled with it!  Marine iguana eating algae from the rocks with his stunningly blue friend!

Aw, is this cute or what!

And here come the sea lions!  They could not resist taunting us!

Here comes the crochety Auntie Cormorant.  Out! she says! Out!  That's Bob on the receiving end. 

And me!  Little bugger!

 

!!!!!!!

 

This is late afternoon in Targus Cove.  We are hiking to Darwin Lake.  That's a newer and maybe fancier boat in the foreground, but we love Evolution.

At Darwin Lake

The end of another wonderful day.  Our ship rocks us to sleep as we travel overnight to Bartolome Island.