Galapagos!

 We arrived to San Cristobol in the Galapagos Islands around 6:00AM on May 29^th, after a 3 day passage from Cocos Island.  San Cristobol did not give us the “Wow” factor that the Cocos Island did as it was cloudy, and the islands seemed very dry and a bit dull.  However, as soon as we entered the harbor I knew it would be a very special place.  Everywhere we looked there were sea lions.  They were lounging on the back of other boats, they were along the shorelines and swimming in the water around us as we anchored.  In town, it was hard to find a bench that was not already being used by a sea lion.  

I have so many favorite parts of my experience in the Galapagos, but the sea lions are at the top of my list.  My love affair with the sea lions began the next morning, when we discovered three of them lounging on the boat.  Two even made it all the way up to the bow to have what was probably the most comfortable sleep of their lives on our sunbed.  It was adorable the first time, but after having to spend part of my morning cleaning up the brown stains they left on everything they touched, the cuteness went away pretty fast.  

Click on this link to watch Teal's Sea Lion Broom Chase

Every night, Marques created a barrier to keep the sealions off our deck.  It wasn’t until night 4 when he finally created a system that they couldn’t get through.  The sealions loved the boat, especially in San Cristobol.  We would have at times 20 sealions come and join us at night to play in our underwater lights and in the bubbles that our generator produces.  They let us pet their bellys, and grab their fins as they floated by.  The young sealions are especially playful and unafraid of humans.

            

Our tour of the Galapagos began on April 4^th.  Our naturalist and guide for the tour, Billy, joined us early that morning.  Billy currently lives in Quito, Equador, but lived in the Galapagos for a very long time.  There wasn’t anything that Billy didn’t know about the Galapagos, and we learned a great deal from him.  Our tour was 9 days, and we visited the islands of Rabida, Baltra, Seymour, San Salvador, Sombrero Chino, Bartolome, Isabela, Fernandina, and Santa Cruz.  Our schedule was very strict, and had to be approved by the park before we left.  Most days, we would wake up early and move the boat to where our morning activities would take place.  Our allotted time to be on the island or in the water at our morning location would be from 6:00AM to 12:00PM.  Then, we would move the boat to our afternoon location, where we could be on land or in the water from 12:00PM to 6:00PM.  Our activities would be a hike and snorkel at most of these locations.

            The landscape of the islands in the Galapagos can be very strange.  The Islands were formed from the Galapagos Hot Spot, which is where the Nazca, Cocos, and Pacific plates meet.  The Nazca plate moves about 2 cm a year.  As the plates move, the Hot Spot stays stationary, which is how this cluster of volcanic islands was formed.  It also explains why the oldest islands in the Galapagos are Easterly, and the youngest are to the West.  We saw a wide range of vegetation on the islands.  Some islands, such as Bartolome, reminded me of being on Mars, while others were tropical and lush at higher altitudes.  Many islands we visited were patched with lava fields.  

Bartolome

Bartolome

Bartolome

Bartolome

Sombrero Chino

Sombrero Chino

San Salvador Lava Field

San Salvador Lava

Rabida

Anchored off Rabida

Rabida

Isabella

Isabella and the Wolf Volcano

Isabella 

Isabella

Isabella

Isabella

Pilot Whale Skeleton on Isabella

            While the landscape was interesting to see, the wildlife is what makes the Galapagos so spectacular.  The animals of the Galapagos are not bothered by humans.  Therefore, we were able to walk amongst them, swim amongst them, and stick our cameras in their faces to get some pretty amazing shots. 

            We were also able to witness events that are rarely seen, such as Blue Footed Boobies changing nesting duties,

            Or walking amongst courting Frigate Birds and their nesting sites,

            Or swimming amongst Galapagos Penguins, one of the smallest penguins in the world (video will be uploaded later).

            We watched Marine Sea Iguanas feed on algae.  Marine Sea Iguanas are cold blooded, and have to carefully watch their body temperature.  They wait for the hottest part of the day to feed in the cool waters of the Galapagos.  They have webbed feet and claws to help them swim and grasp coral heads.  

            Watching Flightless Cormorants hunt was also a highlight.  Scientists believe that the Cormorants lost their ability to fly over time because they do not have any natural predators here in the Galapagos.  Now, they are incredibly efficient swimmers and divers.  It is really fun to watch them hunt.  They quickly jab their beaks into crevices of the coral until they find a fish.  They have the most beautiful blue eyes.

           And More Sealion Pics because I love them :)

 

Other Animal Photos:

We had baby sea turtles swimming around the boat one night.

Baby Sea Turtles

Blue Heron

Blue Heron

Sally Lightfoot Crab

Galapagos Dove

Land Iguana and Cactus

Land Iguana

Land Iguana

Galapagos Tortoise

Yellow Warbler

Pelican

Teal and a Galapagos Tortoise

I wish I could have written in more detail about our experiences in the Galapagos.  Unfortunately I am running out of time, as we prepare for our 2 1/2 week crossing to the Marquesas.  But I hope everyone enjoys the pictures.  Marques will be working on a Galapagos video with all our GoPro footage.  Hopefully we can upload that once we get to French Polynesia!  Love to all!