One significant element of our trip to the Galapagos was boats. Also learning a new definiton of the word “ferry”. In the United States ferries are generally big boats – often big enough for cars. In the Galapagos ferries were small, with a capacity of 40 people max. We took a ferry from the airport where our luggage travelled on the boat’s roof and a ferry to the island where we started our cruise which was of course, on a boat. For Leigh who gets easily motion sick, all of these boat rides were a testament to the power of the Scopamine patch. Even in the roughest seas her stomach stayed calm.
We started our visit on Santa Cruz, the most highly populated of the islands with 12,000 inhabitants. The goal of our time there was to shop for last minute cruises – the most affordable way to see the other islands without having to take daily, multi-hour “ferry” roundtrips. We traipsed from travel agency to travel agency (usually just a guy at a desk in an office full of snorkeling gear) until we found a great deal on a catamaran called the Millenium. Payment required withdrawing lots of cash from a trio of ATMs but at last our cruise was secured.
We packed our bags and prepared to arise at 5:30 a.m. to meet the “ferry” to another island to meet our cruise. However at 1:30 a.m. we were awakened by sirens and someone banging on our hotel room door shouting “Tsumami alert, tsunami alert!” Blearily we gathered our passports and a few essentials and made our way to the street where we were able to learn that we needed to walk about eight blocks uphill and away from the sea. We found ourselves in a gymnasium on concrete bleachers along with mostly other gringos along with a healthy handful of locals. This tsunami alert was in response to the first of several awful earthquakes in Mexico. Google assured us that only one tsunami had hit Santa Cruz in recent history and that it caused only minor damage.
We sat on our bleachers until about 3:30 a.m. when we trundled back down the hill for a wee bit of sleep before our early start. This time the “ferry” turned out to be a not-so-passenger-friendly speed boat that smacked across very rough seas for more than two hours. (Only one person barfed.) Finally we reached the island of San Cristobal.
Before too long our luggage and we were loaded into a rubber dinghy and motored to the Millenium. There are a total of about 100 cruise ships that are licensed to sail in the Galapagos. Most of them, like ours, are for sixteen passengers plus a crew of about eight. The boat was a catamaran which means it was supposed to be a smoother ride but the sailing was still quite rough. We generally travelled long distances at night and there was so much rocking it was difficult to stand upright let alone move around the cabin.
Each day we sailed to a different island or a different part of the same island. There was usually a land excursion that involved taking dinghies to the shore and taking a hike led by our amazing naturalist Pedro. Other passengers were from Germany, Israel, Australia, and Bolivia. There was also a daily snorkeling expedition which involved jumping from the dinghies into very cold water. James went snorkeling several times and got some amazing photos but Leigh was only brave enough for the cold water once.
We were served three home-cooked meals a day – a smorgasboard of local dishes – along with two snacks. Wondrous wildlife abounded on the islands and in the water as you will see from James’s many photos. We saw sea lions, marine iguanas, giant tortoises, blue-footed boobies, red-footed boobies, Nazca boobies, frigate birds, waved albatross, sea turtles, sharks, dolphins, manta rays, diamond rays and more.
Another species we saw everywhere, including at the airport and restaurants, were different varieties of Darwin’s Finches. Each finch has evolved different characteristics depending on its surroundings including one that uses a short stick to dig in holes in trees for insects!
The cruise lasted six days in total and we were sad to leave our world of new friends, delicous food, and amazing animals. We also both suffered from “mal dembarquement” or land sickness, where everything seemed to be moving for several days afterwards. After one more day on Santa Cruz, we headed for our next destination: Cuenca!
Kathy says:
Where can I see James’s photos?
October 30, 2017 — 7:43 am
Kim says:
That’s a lot of boobies. 😉 Miss you guys!
October 30, 2017 — 7:22 pm
Rick says:
wow! what an adventure, packed with memories to last a lifetime from just 6 days.
November 6, 2017 — 6:28 pm