On Saturday afternoon we had an opportunity to do some kayaking thru the mangroves (the morning was a hike and snorkel at China man’s hat). Then the boat stopped in Baltra to refuel and restock and afterwaed sailed to Borreo Bay for Kayaking and swimming from the yacht. We saw lots of baby hammerhead sharks while kayaking. Hammerhead baby sharks grow up in a nursery protected by lush mangroves and reefs in the Galápagos Islands. James (our naturalist) said it was rare to be

Somewhere between Urbina Bay and Moreno point we did a snorkeling from the dingy trip into a sea turtle colony. There were turtles everywhere!! I have never seen so many! The Galapagos is so rich with sea life!! I have more video from go pro to upload ......

Isabela Island This morning activity was a 6.2 mile hike to the see crater Serra Negra left from the 2019 eruption. The hike would have been lovely if it wasn’t pouring rain. The entire time. The guide thought we would hike above the clouds, but the clouds were just too low today. The hike was wet, slippery, and failed to reward. Serra Negra Crater After the hike we dingied back to the boat to strip off our soaking wet clothes. It poured for most of the hike and all of us wer

In the afternoon, we headed to Moreno Point. A panga ride took us to this place, where we visited crystal tide pools, and brackish pools, where flamingos and white cheeked pintails can be seen. After this activity, we headed back to the yacht for dinner and rest. Camilo (our Dingy pilot) slithered into the mangrove forest in an effort to spot more species. We were able to see flightless comoranta drying their wings after fishing, pelicans sitting on eggs, button rays, a sch

First activity of the day will be heading to Urbina Bay, located at the western site of Isabela Island, you will arrive at this place by a dinghy ride and once here, you can take a short trail to observe land iguanas and Galapagos hawks, and you can also snorkel and observe species like marine turtles, rays and tropical fishes. We had a wet landing at Urbina Bay during the morning of Day 3. Here we were able to see large land iguanas and medium size giant tortoise. The hike w

Espinoza Point - Fernandina Island No foreign species have ever invaded Fernandina Island, and therefore it is one of the world's most pristine island ecosystems. The volcano “La Cumbre” dominates the landspace with lava fields reaching the ocean. The island's highlight features the flightless cormorant nesting site. This area provides a great opportunity to see the Galapagos hawk. In the PM of our first full day we went to Espinoza Point to see a massive iguana colony. We al

Vicente Roca Point - Isabela Island Located on the northwestern coast of the island and comprised of two separate coves, this site is a large bay with spectacular sea life. Seahorses, sea turtles, and the strange yet fascinating mola-mola (sunfish) may be spotted here. This bay is great for diving and snorkeling Last night we crossed from the Southern Hemisphere into the Northern Hemisphere and woke up back in the southern Hemisphere. That's what happens with the equator lite

North Seymour - Island Galapagos Sea Lions, Blue-footed Boobies, land iguanas and Magnificent Frigatebirds are abundant on North Seymour Island. The island was formed by a series of submarine lavas containing layers of sediment that were uplifted by tectonic activity. The island is characterized by its arid vegetation zone. We boarded a livaboard yacht today for a week long trip to many of the uninhabited islands of the Galapagos. Included in the package is 2-4 landings each

A gorgeous swimming hole Las Gretias is a beautu swimming hole created by fissures from an ancient lava flow. To get there from downtown Puerta Ayoya you must take a water taxi ($1) across the bay. A water taxi across the bay Once across the bay the walk to the national park ranger station is about 10 minutes. You will pass Finch Bay hotel and this lovely beach. Feel free to stop for a swim here… Beach just outside of the Finch Bay Hotel The cost for a guide is $10pp (and you

Top of Cerro Mesa Today we rented mountain bikes ($15 for the day) from a vendor on Baltra Avenue near Charles Darwin blvd. We started to rent at “bike and smiles” but that was a sh*t show. Bike brakes malfunction, worker couldn’t release the lock, helmet cracked, etc… I would recommend you avoid. Once we got our bikes, helmet, and emergency repair kit (all included for $15) we hired a driver to take us to casa messa ($15) . Unfortunately, with the language barrier, he took u

This guy was approximately 200 years old A must do while you were on the island of Santa Cruz in the Galapagos is a day trip to visit the Highlands. The trip includes a short hike to the twin sinkholes that are several hundred feet deep. From there you hike in ancient lava tubes. I will write up our experience with the sinkholes and lava tubes in another post because the star of the show is the giant tortoises and they deserve a stage of their own. Tortoises literally fill th

The highland tour in Santa Cruz consists of three stops- the giant tortoises, lava tubes, and visiting two gigantic sink holes. The giant tortoises are the star of this tour and have their very own blog page, but lava tubes are pretty cool too! A very tall portion of the lava tube The lava tubes and sink holes are geographic evidence that the Galápagos Island formed approximately 5 million years ago from a hot spot on the Nazca Plate. The plate continues to move east today c

Largely untouched by man, the unique environment of the Galápagos Islands is where Charles Darwin conducted his research to develop the theories of Natural Selection and Evolution. It was an honor to spend the day learning with fellow researchers at the Charles Darwin research Center (then we hung out at the beach and went to the bar :)) A visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station is a must do when visiting the island of Santa Cruz. The day is an opportunity to learn abo

Our second stop on this month long adventure was a week in Puerta Ayoya on the island of Santa Cruz. We elected to stay at the Hotel Coloma located in a good area where everything was in walking distance. This is a quirky but adorable little hotel in a very good location. I was able to contact the office manager and arrange transportation directly from the Balta Airport. Because I was a bit nervous of taking the bus to the ferry to the taxi, the hotel had a driver meet me rig

Arrival in Balta- first thing you will notice is they you are o of the equator Getting to the Galapagos from Quito is no small task. Lots of moving pieces. Planes, buses, ferries, and a taxi. I’m going to write up our experience as if you were a 6 year old child because I wish someone had done this for me. Your downtown Quito hotel is about 40 minutes from Quito international airport. They recommend 3 hours early which means you leave the hotel about 4 hours early. For us tha

Representing the D in the Q Considering we fly to Maui annually, the flight to Quito was reasonably quick. Seven hours in the air with a 3 hour layover in the first class delta lounge in Atlanta. Let’s just say the mimosas were free flowing. Thanks to my churnjng game, I’m a ridiculous lounge lizard.. Before arriving in Ecuador there are some things you will need to complete. First, the Ecuador “visa”. It’s free and done online, but the language is Spanish with no option to t

Planning for the Galapagos was pretty intense. I typically like to book with people who contribute to online communities so my first contact was with Heather at CNHTours because she is a wealth of information on the trip advisor forum. Sadly, she just wasn't the right agent for me. She was really pushing the Samba as her agency has an affiliation with that boat. The Samba looked ok, and I'm sure that the Naturalist on the Samba would have been great, but the dining arrangemen

Blue Footed Boobie Planning for the Galapagos was probably the most challenging (and expensive) trip I have ever put together, but that is to be expected when visiting such a remote area of the globe. After interviewing several tour operators and travel agents from the Galapagos, we decided to book with Jacky from Happy Gringo. Unlike one of the agents I worked with, she did not push a single boat and gave me lots of choices (certain agents like to push the Samba). She was a