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Published: January 5th 2015
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I decided to skip breakfast, which in hindsight was a great decision. A day of scuba diving lay ahead at Gordon Rocks, just off Santa Cruz Island and the sea was rougher today causing some of us to feel a little sea sick. We stopped off near the dive site so that the new divers could check their gear and be briefed on hand signals. In the meantime we admired the sea life by the rocks. The blue-footed boobies, frigate birds, sea lions among others. On the boat was a biologist, who passed me his binoculars pointing out all of the animals. It was a really great to hear about all of the animals from an expert and to see them so close.
We approached the rocks, where the current felt much more strong and the see more rough before preparing to dive. We got into the water and dived down to find a spotted eagle ray and some hammerhead sharks. The currents were strong which was quite disorientating. I felt very dizzy under the water , but nevertheless continued with the dive and saw lots of great marine life and sharks. It was fantastic to be swimming with so much
sealife and particularly the hammerhead sharks! After the dive I felt even more seasick, which is unusual - normally after entering the water the feeling disappears. It appeared I wasnt the only one as two other divers were badly sick at the back of the boat due to the currents. We snacked rested and suited up for the second dive. It was much better. With the experience of the first dive, we were much better prepared and saw more fish - six hammerhead sharks swam past us as well as black tip sharks, flocks of mobula rays and spotted eagle rays and even a mysterious fish called a sunfish, which is shaped like a giant flat disc with a flipper on the top and bottom. We followed it down to a depth of over 30 metres before ascending back to a safer depth. The dive was brilliant and better than I could have expected. We ate lunch on the journey back before arriving in the port at Santa Cruz.
The trip to Gordon Rocks didnt take as long as anticipated, so I had some time left to see more of the island. I decided to follow a trail towards Tortuga
Bay, one of the islands best known beaches. The trail was fantastic with birds, lizards and insects all around and cactus trees, a tree trunk with cacti growing from the branches which is unique to the Galapagos. The beach at the end of the trail was one of the nicest beaches I have ever visited. The sand was white and fine, the beach was flat with waves, perfect for surfing and there was an area with Marine Iguanas basquing in the sun and crabs sidestepping across the sand. At the end of the beach there was a beautiful quiet and secluded lagoon where a couple of people were snorkeling. The beach was tranquil and very relaxing after a day's diving. After visiting the beach I returned to puerto ayore, drank a fruit smoothie, picked up some Ecuadorian chocolate and walked around the port visiting tour shops to find a tour to visit Isabela island. I ate in a local outdoor market in the street which served luxuries such as lobster and fresh fish. I decided to eat and orderef the local recommended dish - mottled scorpion fish (I had to look the official latin name up to find its name
in English). It was without a doubt the tastiest fish I have ever eaten and was freshly caught that day.
After dinner I went to my bed early again. The tour starts at 6.30am in the morning, earlier than the diving tours, so will require an even earlier wake up, but I have heard good things about the Isabela, the biggest and most famous island in the Galapagós.
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