The wonderful Galapogos!

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Helloifor the last time!

It was with great excitement that we contemplated our trip to the amazing Galapagos. A very early start saw us on the coach to the airport a 2 hour flight to Batra some 1000 kms from the Ecuadorian coast . It is a very arid small island that was the base for the US during the second world war. A further coach trip to the port where we took a taxi boat across the bay, another coach across the island of Santa Cruz one of the 5 inhabited islands amongst the 16 that make up the Galapagos. And that is when the rain started ! The final port destination was in chaos , what with road repairs carnival time and elections pending. The coach couldn’t get through the road works so we walked in the pouring rain to catch the zodiac boats to our 18 cabin boat moored in the bay. We were absolutely soaked , no safety briefing on how to get into the zodiacs but at least they gave us life jackets!!! So not a wonderful start. And our luggage had yet to appear !A The boat is much smaller than our last one and small cabins to go with it. After an average lunch off in the zodiacs again to the Darwin Centre to see the work they are doing to breed iguanas and giant tortoises and repatriate them into the wild . The eco system is so delicate and man’s introduction of goats , rats dogs and other animals is threatening the indigenous species. We stopped off as you do for a cocktail before heading back on the zodiacs . I slipped as I was getting in and skidded into the boat breaking my sun glasses- Oh dear how ungainly but it wouldn’t have happened if the guides had been doing their jobs properly. I was not a happy bunny !!!

Things improved as we moved through the days , the crew of 10 for 36 of us are really very friendly and helpful , the engineer mended my glasses beautifully !! We have a bit of an issue with one of the guides who though very knowledgeable and speaks several languages is not a people person and really this is not the job for him!!

We have visited 7 of the islands including Foreana where we posted cards for passing travellers to deliver if they lived near by.It may take a few years before anyone sets eyes on them, let alone take them to an addressee. -. We have walked along pristine beaches, and across amazing lava formations from volcanoes , that are still regular spouting their stuff. We have snorkelled off the shore, and some of us have attempted the deep sea bit though not me this time.. Those that went and we had several opportunities said it was great and they saw shoals of fish of different varieties, rays and sea lions but you can’t do everything well at least I cant!!! I pushed myself in the hiking challenges and the group were great at helping me , Anna was brill and coped wonderfully .I have been challenged by the walks and climbs and have done them all!! Though not without help from the group . One in particular really tested me and I would have gone back to the boat if the group hadn’t encouraged me to “ give it a go” – Bloody hell- I saw myself slipping down the rocks into the sea!! I didn’t!

What is so amazing about this place is the abundance of wildlife and their lack of fear. We have walked amongst sea lions and watched the pups nursing, we have spotted blue footed and masked Boobies by the dozen, a beautiful Hawk, seen a huge variety of other birds including frigates , the males with red chests that puff out when they are courting, pelicans diving head first into the bays to scoop up water and the fish it contains in their huge bills, flightless and true cormorants and night fishing Galapagos doves that follow the boat and dart into the sea to feed the only birds to do this. We have been privileged to see giant turtles mating in the sea and the indigenous penguins very small and sweet and duck like!!.

Most of the islands are absolutely pristine although 16,000 people live here permanently. Visitors cannot come to the islands independently , you must have a registered guide and Ecuador struggles to keep permanent resident numbers down while acknowledging the rewards that tourism brings and the need for a local population to support it in the right way . It is a delicate balance.

The Galapagos have some species that are not found anywhere else in the world and they have developed in isolation influenced by the environment. And I have been lucky enough to see and learn about them. This was the place that Darwin visited in the 1830s and where he began to develop the Origin of Species published in the middle of that century. I have followed his path from Tierra del Fuego and now must head home.

What a wonderful 5 weeks this has been , and very active too. Think I need a bit of a rest!

As you may have gathered this will be published after I get back as no wifi or broadband, So hopefully talk with you soon

xxxxx

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