Galapagos Islands: A Natural Paradise

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Just back from a week spent on the Galapagos Islands and I can honestly say it's been one of the best weeks of my life! For marine wildlife viewing, it can't be beaten in terms of the uniqueness and abundance of species. We spent time camping on 3 different islands, below are some of the highlights from our experience.



Floreana Island

Day 1 - narrowly avoid sea sickness en route to Floreana Island, spot our first wildlife (birds, crabs and sea lions), swim in the sea with sharks, watch sunset from the beach, go for dinner with our group, look at the stars! A great first day 😊

Day 2 - visit the highlands and giant tortoise breeding centre, amazing creatures, so huge, it's mating season, incredible to witness - David Attenborough eat your heart out! Later, go snorkeling with marine wildlife - lots of fish, sharks and giant turtles.



Isabela Island

Day 3 - hiked up the Sierra Negra volcano, the 2nd largest active caldera in the world, with lava fields and moon like landscapes, a great 16km trek. Arrive back to campsite just after dark. Play a couple of games of Werewolf!

Day 4 - one of the best days ever! Went on a boat trip and seen lots of marine wildlife - penguin, marine iguanas, blue footed boobies, then for an awesome snorkeling experience out at sea off the boat. We swam with lots of fish, sea lions, giant turtles and white tip reef sharks, to be inches from all these magnificent creatures was remarkable. I got to swim with giant turtles and capture incredible video footage, such a humbling encounter, then we played for ages with curious sea lions (one in particular kept swimming right up to me underwater, nose to nose). Then we discovered a shark cave with 20+ sharks bigger than me swimming right underneath us, oblivious to our presence. No doubt it's the best wildlife encounters I've had in the underwater world!



Santa Cruz Island

Day 5 - boat trip to 3rd and final island; we visit the flamingo lagoon and giant tortoise breeding centre. Also the Charles Darwin research station, a visit to lava tunnels and more giant tortoises in the wild. In addition, there were dolphins swimming and playing around our boat, lovely to witness!

Day 6 - spent our last day around Tortuga Bay, swimming in the ocean, lazing along the beach, doing aquatic gymnastics, observing marine iguanas, followed by happy hour cocktails! Later in the evening, we go to the marina and watch sea lions, sharks and rays.



The Galapagos Islands are a remarkable place, with both native and endemic species you won't find anywhere else in the world. The marine wildlife is such a joy to witness and hopefully all these incredible creatures will remain protected. A final mention to our Nordic friends, who made the past week even more awesome 😊

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Comments

[Kathy]

Wow !!!
Thank you for your blog .... I'm planning a trip of similar places in Galapagos & wondered if you organised this yourself or with a tour operator ???