EC Amazon & Galapagos Day 7

Day 07 - Tuesday, December 9, 2008 - Fly to Baltra Island in the Galápagos--Embark on Galápagos Cruise

Neither of us could get to sleep last night. For me it might have been the excitement of flying to the Galapagos in the morning and perhaps for Gennie it was the anxiety of the close proximity of all of the birds!

Winnie told us that it was probably due to the extreme change in altitude, one of the side effects of being about 900 feet in the jungle and then going up to 9,500 feet in Quito. Either way, it was a short night as our alarm went of at 4:45.

We had a light breakfast at 5:30 and then sorted our luggage. Again, the big bags stayed in Quito and the hand carry luggage went with us on the bus to the airport for the Galapagos Islands.

Antonio told us the exact procedures for our departure. True to his word, he took care of the luggage after it was scanned for any fruits, vegetables or animal products. The conservation of the pristine environment is protected as much as possible.

When all of our bags were scanned and tagged, Antonio checked them in and gave us our boarding passes. He gave me all of the luggage receipts and a package to give to our Galapagos guide Rommel.

Antonio wished us a safe journey and we said our good-byes as we passed through the security area and headed to Gate #2. There was just enough time to set up the computer and take advantage of the free wi-fi for the last time before we get back to Quito.

At 7:50 we got on a shuttle bus and transferred to our Boeing 737-200. There was a short layover in Guayaquil to pick up passengers and to drop off those who were just traveling to the coast.

The flight attendants were very strict about us staying in our seats while they cleaned the plane. There were a few empty seats, so after they closed the doors, we moved around a bit.

Joanne offered the window seat in her row to Gennie who tried to take a few shots during take off and landing. A few minutes before we landed, the crew came though and sprayed for any contaminates we might bring on to the islands.

There was an hour’s difference on time so we changed our watches to 10:25 when we landed on Baltra Island in the Galápagos, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The temperature at the airport was 82º 66% humidity and the wind speed was 13 mph.

There was a long line going through immigration and customs. We met our local naturalist, Rommel (Danny) and he helped us to get through the final stages of our arrival process.

We took a small boat across the straight to the island of Santa Cruz one of the five inhabited islands. We waited for our luggage to catch up with us again and then boarded a small 16 passenger bus for the rest of our journey.

Danny, our naturalist Trip Leader gave us an orientation briefing, including conservation techniques suggested by the Galápagos National Park while we were on the 45 minute ride to Puerto Ayora.

We experienced different varieties of weather as we traveled from one side of the island to another. During the summer and fall, Humboldt Current moves through the Galápagos Islands, cooling sea and land temperatures, and creating a mist that covers the islands-locally known as "garua" (soft rain) during the day.

When we arrived at Puerto Ayora, we spotted many of the local creatures, such as gaudily-colored Sally Lightfoot crabs, a sea lion, and iguanas sunning on the pier. There were frigate birds and pelicans hunting for a seafood lunch.

We boarded two small rubber boasts called pangas and then we were welcomed aboard the Tip Top III ship. This 16 passenger yacht will be our home for the next three nights.

We took off our street shoes and put on our flip-flops. Rommel asked us to call him Danny, his nick name. He showed us a short safety video and then gave us even more information about our adventure here in the archipelago.

At 1:30 we had lunch on board, and then at 2:30 we got back on the pangas to go across the bay to the Galapagos National Park Darwin Research Center. There was a brief orientation video given by a naturalist from Amsterdam. Then Danny gave us a two hour tour of the facility.

The highlight was seeing the giant land tortoise. We were able to view the breeding center where they are helping these endangered animals to survive. We also saw Lonesome George, an 80 years old male who is the last of his species.

After stopping at the gift shop and buying a few post cards we had an opportunity to walk through the town of Puerto Ayora and get a feel for this small island village. Gennie was a little sea sick this afternoon, so we stopped at a pharmacy to get her a few ‘sea calm’ pills to ease the discomfort of the rocking and rolling of our boat.

By 7:00 we were back on our ship and took time to stow away our gear. The cabins are small, clean, cooled with A/C and very efficient. The company website said that there would be wi-fi on board, but the crew told us that the system was going to be installed next month!

We had dinner with Ruth and Howard from Tennessee and then took time to write the journal and look at the photo memories of the day.

Accommodations: Galápagos Tip Top III Small Ship - - - Meal: B, L, D

If you wish to travel with OAT Click Here.

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Day 13: Azores & Madeira: Portugal's Unspoiled Archipelagos

Island Beauties

Island Beauties

Island Beauties

Island Beauties

Island Beauties

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Day 13 - Saturday, April 22, 2022 - Depart for U.S.

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Continue Reading Day 13