Galapagos: Day 6 - Snokelling

A local chica brought me to a sort of hidden gem on the island. We rented bikes and went to a little laguna where we could swim and climb vines.

Even the walk there was surreal. The mangroves grew into each other and over the path, creating a tunnel effect.

We rode our bikes a little further to see the "Wall of Tears". Soldiers made the prisoners build the very wall that enclosed them, and many died doing so. Appropriately, they named it the Wall of Tears.

We booked a snorkelling tour for the afternoon, but supposedly it was a snorkelling AND hiking tour. The first half, we hiked around some small volcanic island. We were worried we got on the wrong bus at first.

We got to see the usual iguanas and seals.

We also got to finally see the famed Galapagos Blue-Footed Boobie bird. This picture sucks, but his feet are a really bright blue colour. Like everything else here, it is very unique.

The snorkelling was fantastic though. I got to see some ______ fish (can anyone help me identify them?)

a blue starfish,

a huge Stingray,

a friendly sea turtle,

the iconic sea lion,

some ugly-ass fish,

a spotted ray,

and some puffer fish.

As for tonight, it's the usual drinks at Casa Rosa (a bar that bleeds out onto the beach and has slacklining, hammocks and live music.) and then dancing at the Iguana bar at the end of the pier.

I love Galapagos.

Galapagos: Day 5 - Volcano Hike

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Sailing Across the Pacific Ocean 2013 (Part 10) - Exploring Isabela

Our next excursion took place early this morning. We had a quick breakfast at 7am, and then hopped on a bus for our 8km hike up the world's second largest volcano (in circumference I think) Volcán Sierra Negra.

It was breathtaking and had a good 8km diameter.

This was some 'holy tree'. I can't really remember what he said about it, but it used to be worshipped in Hawaii for some reason. Pretty neat looking though.

The lava wiped out all plant life when it erupted. Cacti and some ferns are all that has been able to grow there since.

We ate our lunch with a really nice view of the narrowest part of the island. That is the Pacific ocean on both sides.

Galapagos: Day 4 - Isla Isabella

We saw a sea lion sleeping on a bench on our way back to the boat last night. We took some fun photos with him.

Minnie and I took a water taxi over to Isla Isabel (Puerto Villamil) to stay there for a few nights. We got this package deal that includes transportation, lodging, food, and a bunch of excursions. There was even a guy waiting for us when we arrived with our names written on a little sign (like you see at the airport sometimes). I have never had that before. I felt really important.

The water taxi ride was a brutal two hour ride at over 30 knots, motoring directly into the waves.

It was totally worth it though, Isabel is marvellous.

Our first excursion took us to this brine pit where flamingos are commonly seen. There are usually a ton here, but there were only a few when we went.

Galapagos: Day 3 - Playa Tortuga

We ran out of water on the boat last night, and since we are at anchor, we cannot just fill up with a hose. So, we ran the watermaker for a few hours today and it worked great...at first. It stopped working a few hours in and we have yet to figure out why. Hopefully this doesn't delay us too much. It is not a convenience that I want to lose on our big passage a week from now.

Jan, Minnie and I walked to Playa Tortuga today (Turtle Beach?). It was the best beach I have been to yet. There was a nice 2.5 km walk to the beach.

It was an absolutely stunning white sand beach, the type of thing you'd see in a movie with only a handful of people on it.

It seems like all animals here have been 'touched by the volcanoes' in some way, even the seagulls.

We walked around and saw a ton of big, black marine iguanas that were strangely great swimmers.

You came to the wrong neighbourhood motherf$#&@$#...

There were a ton of black and red crabs crawling on the lava rocks everywhere.

There was a forest made entirely of cacti.

We rented some kayaks and paddled out to some great snorkelling spots which were rich with sea turtles, rays, sharks, sea lions. The whole gang was there.

It was one heck of a day. We met a guy from France who we are going to meet up with tonight for some drinks.

Tomorrow, we are going to start venturing to some of the other islands here. Looking forward to it!

Galapagos: Day 2 - Tortoise Porn

Our agent came to the boat this morning with all the customs guys and had as all cleared in. So we are free now to tour the islands!

We walked back to the Darwin Research Centre this afternoon with Jan and Gary during opening hours. There seems to always be something exciting happening at the giant tortoise pit. This time, there were two having the loudest, slowest, most awkward sex I've ever seen. It was...disturbing to say the least. The lighting is not so great in this picture, but it's happening...

We walked past an open fish market where fisherman were cutting up wahoo that they had JUST caught. There were seals and pelicans hovering around, waiting for scraps. This place is so cool!

It is amazing how 'dog-like' these sea lions are. You really get a feeling like you are interacting with some sort of sea-dog with them.

Tortoiseman never really 'took off' like Batman did.

Advanced scientific techniques have allowed humans to differentiate black sand from white sand.

Don't go licking mysterious trees here. Some are poisonous.

Minnie and I are looking at leaving the boat for a few days and checking out some of the various islands here. They have hostels at the bigger islands we can stay at.

Minnie is flying out on the 8th and Jan is flying out on the 9th of April, so Gary and I will be staying until around then. After that, it's just the two of us on the biggest adventure of our lives! Crossing the pacific!

Galapagos: Day 1 - Arrival!

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Sailing Across the Pacific Ocean 2013 (Part 9) - Exploring Santa Cruz

We arrived at around 10:00am this morning.

The Galapagos is such a cool place. There were so many sea lions/seals and huge sea turtles in the water as we approached the island. Supposedly the sea lions will climb up on your transom when at anchor and sun bathe.

Santa Cruz Island (where we anchored)

You have to hire an agent before you arrive to take care of the extremely complicated customs here. Galapagos is a VERY expensive place to drop anchor. Something you'll only ever do once in your life (if at all).

Minnie and I decided to snorkel off the boat and verify that the anchor had truly set.

It was a long way down.

We decided to jump off the boat instead.

Some fish that were swimming beside our boat.

Minnie, Jan, and I took a walk around Puerto Ayora after the anchor was set. The standard of living here is much higher than I had expected. It is a really nice little town.

This was a REALLY nice sushi restaurant on the water.

Minnie and I went to the Darwin Research Center and saw some huge iguanas (much bigger than in Mexico)

and some beaches that were covered in these red/black volcano crabs.

We were in the research center after hours and the outdoor Giant Tortoise pit had no supervision. These "parents of the year" nominees put their 5-year-old in the pit and were encouraging him to climb on them and drum on their shells.

He was almost attacked by one of them.