Blogs from Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos, Ecuador, South America - page 11

Puerto Ayora The main city of Isla Santa Cruz is a busy one, with 300 taxis, and a lot of building going on. The streets are clean and everywhere on the taxi boats, ships and other vessels in the bay it says that grabage should not be thrown into the ocean. So far so good (apart from the taxis, which make me absolute crazy - the sheer number is way too much) but the petrol price is very low compared to swedish standards. Here a gallon (ca 4 litres) cost 1,50 $. That equivilates to 1/4 of the price we pay in Sweden. The emissions are no less here, and there are lots of cars and motos (scooters) that just stand with engine on, while the owner is either shopping or chatting with the café keeper. ... read more

Despite the roosters, it turned out to be a nice day; even the sun had come out! We had to take a water taxi to the boat as the tide was out, then northeastward, through almost unbroken sunshine to Santa Cruz. After jumping off the boat and frying in the heat we jumped into another minibus, up to another tortoise sanctuary; they were a little bit bigger here, but it started to rain again! Nevermind, the next activity was walking down a mostly huge lava tube. I say mostly because there was one point where we had to crawl through the mud as the roof was only 40 centimetres high! The afternoon's activity was a walk to Tortuga (arrr!) bay, a beautiful sandy beach hiding an equally beautiful lagoon. We hopped into a few kayaks, and ... read more

In the morning we had a tour of the Charles Darwin station. Here the Galapagos National Park captures tortoises from other islands when they are babies and most vulnerable. They bring them back to the station for 5 years to care for them untilt they are old and strong enough to fend for themselves. This is done to keep the tortoise population thriving for many years to come. The Charles Darwin station is also home to the famous tortoise "Lonesome George". Being the last tortoise left in his species, the name he goes by is very fitting! One last dinghy boat ride to the Guantanamera meant my trip would soon be over. I said goodbye to the crew and passengers who I had grown very close to in only a few days. For lunch the cook ... read more

The end of the line, for now. I’m back under the grey skies of England, far, far away from the warmth of the equator. I have had a marvellous time on the whole trip and I have some fantastic memories of the places I have seen and the people I have shared some time with. The last part of the trip was the part I had been looking forward to all the way round the Southern hemisphere; the Galapagos Islands. I had carried the “Diary of the Beagle” all the way and kept dipping in to the Galapagos pages everywhere I have been. I was supposed to have been on a four week project at the Giant tortoise breeding project on Isabella island, but the powers that be had cancelled the project and so I went ... read more

Islas De Galapagos, Islas Plazas, 15-10-1990. Swallow-tailed gulls shriek loudly at our progress up to the top of the cliff, a perfect vatage point for watching the multitute of birdlife around us, tropic birds shear by us at alarming proximity, landing nearby on a rocky outcropping to feed its two hungry chicks. Out at sea I can see pirate birds and brown pelicans slashing it out over a scaly body pertruding fromk the pelicans baggy beak. Aerial arcobatics free for the watching and prying eyes of human visitors originating from the other side of Planet Earth. Both the twin volcanic islands of Islas Plazas are absolute wildlife watching sites with huge colonies of sea lions, the males lumbering around on the beach trying to scare away possible male competition from his personal harem of dozing females. ... read more