Galápagos Islands

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15/16th 06/17
London - Bogata - Quilagil - Baltra
(21hr journey...)

Job quit, a load of crap sold / op-shopped, belongings chucked into boxes and distributed among friends, moved out of house, car dropped off at Kev's parents, 2 weeks in the UK catching up with family and friends and finally after months of talking about it we set off on our big Winter trip!

This journey felt waaay longer than the Perth to London trip. We had a tough time getting through Guayaquil immigration, we had a short time between flights so it was a bit stressful when they started asking a million questions about what we were doing there.

On arriving at Galapagos (Baltra), we got our first taste of things to come, with requests for tourist cards and permits meaning we were US$240 out of pocket before we'd even stepped outside the airport!

The airport is small, more like a big hut. We had to wait for dogs to sniff all the bags before collecting them, he was literally jumping all over the baggage! Then he was sent to a barred hole in the wall next to another hole in the wall containing a second dog. Outside was a handy free shuttle bus to take us to the canal. The ferry crossing to Santa Cruz was short and only $1. The bags were chucked on the roof and the boat packed with tourists.

Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz is the second biggest island and the hub for all tours around the archipelago. We needed to get to the other side of the island to a town called Puerto Ayora and knew there was a public bus. We waited and waited until we decided to just pay over the odds for a taxi - then the bus showed up, but we were told it wouldn't leave for an hour....

We were super tired by now so we ended up sharing a ute taxi with some Germans. We were only meant to have 4 in there but we squeezed in 5 of us and hid from the police (a German had to run up ahead and we picked him up!) Later on the driver told me to hide as we went through a checkpoint - it's probably not the best time to get in trouble with the police on day 1 of the trip...!

Puerto Ayora - home for a while

Puerto Ayora is a touristy town with a main strip along the waterfront. This is where all the tour operators live. There's a wide mix of people here, many locals and most tourists Spanish speaking. Compared to Asia there's very few dickhead travellers here, a few man buns but all in all a good crowd!

We decided to sort out a tour straight away and get one of the last minute deals we kept hearing about. The first shop we enquired at offered a 8 night diving trip on a liveaboard, last minute meaning it left midnight that night! It sounded amazing but the cost was ridiculous, even with 60% off. We spent ages toying it up, and being very jet lagged I was struggling to speak properly let only decide if I should chuck a few thousand dollars to the first tour guy we met!

We decided against it, with the time frame we had it would mean we wouldn't have time to explore much of Galapagos (apart from Darwin and wolf island where the cruise went). The journey there took 20hrs alone!
Instead we chose a 3 night nature cruise and decided to do a few dives separately. The aim was to see hammerheads and there were plenty around.

We spent the evening walking around town, and saw heaps of wildlife living in amongst the locals - marine iguanas strewn across the pavement, pelicans and frigates ambushing the fish market, and there was a real buzz around town.

There's a restaurant strip with seating on the road where we found cheap grub. We ordered the $5 meal of the day which was minestrone soup, yum, then fish plantain/banana with rice - not keen. The meals in tourist restaurants were otherwise $10 plus. It seems there's no fresh fruit and veg anywhere to buy, it's all hardcore carbs! The fruit we have seen is old and manky looking. It's not surprising theres so many fatties around.

We stayed at Carliza 2 backpackers (we went to 1 first which was way nicer, ours was in the ghetto). Compared to Asia hostels they seem a bit better, wifi everywhere, although a bit hit and miss, plus hot showers and sometimes even a towel!

17/06 - exploring Santa Cruz island

Los grietos - crystal-clear snorkelling

While waiting for a water taxi at the jetty we watched as a mass of tourists got excited about a sea lion that was sunbathing on a rib. Then max spotted another sealion snoozing on a bench literally a few meters behind the tourists, they were totally oblivious! It was clearly his own bench as it was ingrained with a dark brown dirty colour where he lay. He. was totally chilled and didn't care that there was a jetty full of people around him. We saw other sea lions just hanging out nearby, and it was nice to see everyone respecting the rules of staying at least 2m away. This seems to be the way here, wildlife are treated so well they are safe here living among the people. The islanders totally respect the land and animals and go out of their way to preserve it.

We got a water taxi across the bay and walked to Los grietos. Luckily we were early enough to beat the rush. Los grietos looked very karinjini-like. A narrow gorge with lovely clear water. We snorkelled and saw lots of big fish that looked like parrotfish, max spotted an eel too. Underwater it looked a lot like the dive we did in Iceland (although here I was in a bikini not a dry suit!).

Galápagos Sea lion facts:

• There are about 50,000 living in the islands.
• Bulls can grow to 7ft.
Colony pups live together in a rookery (like a nursery).
• The cow and pup learn to recognise each other's bark to distinguish them from the rest of the colony.

Tortuga bay

We got the water taxi back to the jetty then walked to Tortuga bay. It was a loooong walk, a sturdy path through bush for 2.5km that led to a massive stretch of white sandy beach and clear turquoise water. Very nice.

Swimming is not allowed at first beach due to strong currents and rips. There were turtle nests dotted along the beach, all protected by signs saying to keep a distance.

It was another 20min walk to the second beach (where the crowds were) to a sheltered bay. There were loads of marine iguanas hanging out, they're so bizarre. They're like old crusty volcanic dinosaurs, all black, charred in colour with harsh spikes on their backs like the rocky environment they live in. They were mostly sleeping (conserving energy after being in the water). But we did have one come towards us then plop into the water.

We were told there were baby sharks at the end of the bay but we didn't see any (bad visibility). There was a ranger type guy patrolling the beach, he made everyone take their drying clothes from the trees as they're poisonous. Then he pointed to somebody they had man-made coat pegs they'd set up along the beach, clever!

We got back to the hostel late arvo, had food and crashed. Definitely still jet lagged, we had a snooze that kept getting extended until we had to get up for dinner.

18/06 - Isabela island

We had a horrific 2.5hr speedboat journey to Isabella! It was a small speed boat, that had to handle big swell. My tummy was dropping in each wave, felt like I was on one of those awful pirate ships at a theme park. We got caught sitting at front where it's worse, but there were people vomming all over, and the ones right at back got soaked. I had to concentrate the whole way as not to spew.

We paid the $10 island entry fee, then got a taxi to town ($1). It took a while to find a hostel, it's even more pricey than Santa Cruz. The cheapest we (Max) found was $30 ($39 ozzy). It's obviously cheap by Oz/UK prices but we're used to hostels in Asia where we'd pay no more than 10 ozzy. Unlike Asia, all rooms so far have come with wi-fi, hot water, bedding and towels. They're a bit grubby still but we are in 'budget' accomodation. The 'luxury' hotels must be ridiculously priced.

Flamingoes and marine iguanas

We walked through town, which is a lot more sleepy and less touristy than Puerto ayora in Santa Cruz. We picked up our favourite snack, an empanada (looks like a Cornish pasty but is light and flaky). We walked to 'Iguana Crossing' boardwalk where iguanas were blocking the path. They are literally everywhere in Galapagos so we've become used to stepping around them now. I heard one annoying American say she'd had enough of seeing them and didn't want to see one ever again. I disagree, they're fascinating to watch even when they're just lying there looking dead.

We walked along the boardwalk through mangroves and spotted more marine iguanas (swimming this time), and lots of bright pink flamingoes.
The town has a nice white sandy beach (with iguanas - standard).

The Giant Tortoise

The path led to the tortoise conservation centre ('Centro de Crizianza de tortuga gigantes'). This place is brilliant, it has literally hundreds of tortoises, all a part of the huge conservation effort locals are making towards the survival of the giant tortoise. We were allowed to get close to tortoises of all ages, from the babies to the elderly. Max also spotted a couple mating (he was loud-the tortoise, not Max).

Giant tortoise facts:

• They arrived on Galapagos islands 3 million years ago, with 'Galapagos' meaning 'tortoise'.
• They're the largest tortoise on the planet with a lifespan of over 100 years. They reckon there could still be an old timer that was a hatchling when Darwin visited in 1835. • There are 15 species, 11 of which are still in the wild.
• They can reach 4ft and 475 pounds, big beasts!
• Unlike other tortoises they can survive up to a year without food and water.

Concha de perla - Snorkelling with a sealion!

Concha de perla was a noted highlight of the area, and being free we knew it would be busy so we headed there late afternoon hoping to miss the crowds. It was a beautiful spot but spilt by the bus loads of tourists screaming and shouting, flapping around in the water in life jackets. So we stepped over the sea lions on the boardwalk entry and made our way in to the water. We swN away from the tour groups to explore a quiet area and before long a sealion came to join us! He was awesome, so playful and quick on the water. The best thing was that only 100 yards away were the mass of tourists who had no idea the sealion was there.

19/06 - hike up Sierra negra volcano.

We were wary that we might book this trek only to get to the top and not be able to see anything. We risked it and it paid off. After a couple of hours of brisk walking we got to the top of Sierra negra where we walked along the rim of its MASSIVE crater. We were so lucky with it being such a clear day, it was stunning.

Volcano Chico

We went on to walk on volcano Chico. It was like walking on another planet, a huge expanse of black volcanic rock, nothing living apart from the odd cactus.

It last erupted in 2005, you could see where the lava flowed and from the colour of the rock which parts were older. Volcanic rock is very light and crumbly so we had to be careful not to stray from the path in case we slipped into one of the many deep holes we walked past. There were steam holes where we could feel the heat from the earth rising, bizarre.

20/06 - Diving Gordon Rocks to see some tiburon! (Sharks)

We booked with Nauti Dives who charge $150 per day (2 dives). Simon was the boss, with Marco our guide, and Luis the dive master. The boat looked like a pirate ship inside, all wooden and old. It was a big boat with a few cabins ready for anyone seasick.

The journey to Gordon rocks was an hour and half, we had a full on dive brief with a very serious instructor. He put me on edge from the start. I knew it wouldn't be an easy dive as they restricted it to divers with their advanced qual or higher. We got loaded into the rib and had a battle getting everyone suited in huge swell, with waves crashing around us. As soon as we rolled off the rib we had to descend quickly or the waves would take us. We all rolled off, limbs going everywhere. It was on descending that it turned into a shambles. On both dives the guides has issues - losing divers, not seeming to know where to go and on the second dive his tank even came off! He clearly hadn't checked his own equipment and he definitely didn't check anyone else's as the girl next to me found her air wasn't even turned on. The 1st dive was average, made stressful by the guide, but the 2nd dive amazing. For most of the dive it was just me, Max and the guide, everyone else ran out of air really quickly.

Since this time we have found out that Nauti Dives have a bad reputation - our fault for not doing enough research before booking.

Scalloped Hammerheads

We saw about a dozen hammerheads plus a few Galapagos shark and white tipped reef shark. Hammerheads came in a school and circled past us, and sometimes just the odd one would cruise past looking curious. Some came within 5 metres, they were definitely interested in us. Hammerheads mostly swim alone but also in schools of up to 100, apparently for females it's protection from males who bombard them if alone! They select which males to allow to swim with them.

Galápagos Green turtles

I also loved the turtles, they're so graceful and we're not worried about getting close to us. Turtle fact - Just behind each eye is a salt gland. Their salt glands help sea turtles to maintain a healthy water balance by shedding large ‘tears’ of excess salt.

The guide spent most of the time filming for us which was great, but he ignored the rule of 'don't follow the fish' and it took forever to get his attention to let him know how little air I had left as he was so busy chasing the fish! We also saw a ray, pipe fish, big bumper head parrotfish and hundreds of small fish in massive shoals, although I found myself forgetting to look at them as my eyes were pinned on sharks!

All in all it was one of my best dives for sharks, but it had to be the most chaotic!


21/06 - Santa Rosa wild tortoises, lava tunnels and swimming with a spotted eagle ray!

Los Gemelos - 2 enormous craters.

We took a taxi to see these craters, they were pretty impressive, we walked around part of the rim and we got to go really close to the edge.

Reservo el chato - wild giant tortoises and lava tunnels.

There are said to be 1000 tortoises here all roaming freely. There was a marked trail to follow where tortoises were literally everywhere. The larger ones gave out a low hiss if we got too near, they sound like dinosaurs. They were very active around us, hauling themselves out of the mud pools and didn't seem too worried with us being there.
The lava tunnels were also interesting. There were 3 that could be walked through.

Tuneles El Mirador

This is near the town we are staying, it's a lava tube formation created by lava cooling and hardening on the surface, insulating the lava beneath and allowing it to continue to flow and create the tube. Worth a look and another free attraction (which is not normal here!).

Playa Estacion

We went for an afternoon dip at a nearby beach, Playa Estacion. We took the snorkels just in case and came across a spotted eagle ray! Normally rays dart off if startled but this one must have liked us as he stuck around and we swam with him for a while before he got bored of us!

Pelican/Frigate fish market

On the way back to the hostel we stopped at the fish market again to watch the Galapagos brown pelicans and frigates hanging out for the scraps. The pelicans look hilarious all lined up waiting to be served. We saw an iguana having a sneaky munch on some fish under the counter.

Frigate facts:

•The 'frigate' is pretty impressive to watch, with wingspans over 2 metres.
•They can stay airborne for up to a week at a time.
•They can't dive for food like the pelican so they use their acrobatic skills to catch fish jumping out of the water, or grab hold of other birds tails and shake them until they regurgitate their food which the frigate can then steal - think that's a serious form of bullying...!
Mating:
•The male has a red pocket of skin under its neck that it can blow up to the size of a football. The bigger it is the more attractive to the female. (The female has a white chest). It looks like a character from an American doco I watched about feeders, where the fatty balanced their dinner tray on their belly.
•It can take half an hour to blow up.
The male then looks to the sky to get the attention of the flying females overhead, when he sees one he spreads his wings wide.
•When the female has chosen her male they leave the island for privacy elsewhere.
•They don't mate for life.

Lazy flip-flops

I've got this thing where when I'm tired I fall over my own feet. It's happening quite a lot and every time I wonder how I manage it. I've only got small trotters, not much to fall over.


22/06 - Darwin centre and snorkelling with sharks (joined the nature tour)

Today was the first day of the 3 night/4 day nature cruise. We got picked up in a rib and taken to the boat, 'Aida Maria'. I had low expectations as I thought knowing our luck it'll be a tin shed that floats. But its turned out to be the best accomodation we've stayed in so far! It has a big dining/chill out area inside where the daily briefing and meals happen. There's also free tea, coffee and hot choccie. There's plenty of outside decking area to relax and each cabin has ensuite. They're very small but we're just happy we're getting a hot shower! (This morning in Carliza hostel there wasn't even any water for a shower, worst $30 spent).

We met the other 14 guests and everyone seems nice so far. There's a real mix of people of all ages and nationalities. An ozzy couple, kiwi couple, kiwi ladies who have travelled together the last 30 years (not lezzas), 2 Canadian brothers (bit odd), German mother and daughter, an echoed Ian girl who looked like a stripper and always ready for a night out, and a German couple. There was also a girl we'd shared the taxi with in the way from the airport (Austrian). She's vegan and likes to talk about how she won't put anything chemical in her body, I.e she'll nibble ginger instead of taking sea sickness pills...she could be the only annoying one. We also saw her eating sweets even though she 'did not eat refined sugar' (and they're not vegey anyway).

Our 'friend' from the agency messed up by telling us we'd be going to the Darwin centre this afternoon. In actual fact they'd gone already this morning and were doing el chato this arvo. He must have known the itinerary but still told us to do el chato yesterday. We've realised there's a few things he's not been totally honest about and max wanted to go and duff him up (not really, we just went back later in the day and money back from the taxi we paid for to go to el chato). The boat guide said his company were no good, seems 'Best Option' may be the dodgy option. We later went back and got $40 back for the wasted taxi to el chato and made him feel bad.

Charles Darwin Centre

While the group went to El Chato we went to the Darwin centre on our own. It's entirely not for profit and relies on donations (and assuming our pricey permits help too). It's a brilliant place educating about the flora and fauna of the islands and the negative effects of human influence, particularly the introduction of harmful pests. It was interesting to learn about all the conservation work going on to protect their islands and create a sustainable environment.

'Lonesome George'

We visited 'Lonesome George', a celebrity of Galapagos. He was found in 1971 and taken to Santa Cruz where they tried to reproduce, and failed. He died in 2012, the last giant tortoise of Pintan island. He was shipped over only recently as he's been embalmed In the US. Now he stands in a big glass box under careful watch. Time is limited to 6 minutes with George. It felt like the time we went to see old Ho Chi Min in Vietnam-although we didn't have to queue for an hour and a half to see Georgie.

Land Iguana

We also saw lots of other tortoises (alive) and a land iguana, there's 2 endemic species in Galapagos (everything's endemic in Galapagos it seems!). He's pretty cool, bright yellow in parts with a flaky scaly head. He snorts sap, rather than salt water of the marine iguanas.

Snorkelling with reef sharks

We had some time to kill before heading back to the boat so we went for a snorkel at the beach nearby. It didn't take long before I spotted a black tipped reef shark, it looked like the ones I snorkelled with at Dirk Hartog island in WA. I followed him for a bit then saw people getting excited near the beach and there was another one. I also saw a huge pipe fish and heaps of shoals.

Back on the boat we had a great dinner, looks like we'll be fed like kings while we're here. We actually got fresh vegetables which was amazing. And dessert too which felt like a treat. It's funny how good food becomes a big deal when you're made to change your diet.

There's a lot of activity around the boat at night, quite a few little sharks and a couple of pelicans are hanging out. Not sure if they think they'll be chucked scraps or if it's the sewage they're after...

The boat doesn't leave until 1am and when we wake we'll be at Floreana island!

23/06- Best day ever! Swimming with penguins, sea lions, dolphins, sharks and rays!

Today we really saw why they call Galápagos a mecca for wildlife.

It was a full day, starting at 6am when Reuben the guide took us on an 'unofficial activity'. We jumped in the rib and went for a cruise around Floreana island. It was a great time of day to see the animals and a good taste of what was to come.

Post office bay

After we filled our bellies with another delicious meal (I was still full from yesterday's feed), we headed out for the first activity, with the bell ringing indicating it was time to go. Unfortunately Max and I were not around when the group was told to bring a postcard...no one knew why until we got there. This is the oldest postal system in the world and more efficient than the official ecuardion postal system. Just off the beach there's a small postbox filled with postcards without stamps. The idea is that you find one where the address is near to where you live, and deliver it in person and make a friend. Alternatively you can just post it from home.in return you put your own postcard in there and hope that someone will pick it out and deliver it to you in the same way. A great tradition that will hopefully continue.

Extreme Snorkelling!

This was the best snorkelling I'd ever experienced, the wildlife just kept on coming!

The Galapagos Penguin:
The best animal was probably the penguin, as I didn't expect to actually swim with one, let alone a few. The Galápagos penguin is the third smallest penguin, after the New Zealand and Australian penguins. They live closer to the equator than any other penguin species. They have one mate in their lives and only 1 of their chicks survives each year.

The penguin is super quick in the water, darting in and out of shoals of fish just taking its pick of the bunch. It ate LOADS! Like every other animal we've encountered it didn't care that we were all clustered around staring wide-eyed.

Galápagos sea lion:
These guys are amazing, so playful and so curious. Every time we saw one we would duck dive under the water and spin around and they'd come right up to us and spin around too. At one point we were swimming with a sealion and penguin at the same time.

Galápagos green turtle:
Turtles were EVERYWHERE we looked, to the point where I almost crashed into one when swimming after a sealion! They ranged from big to very big, some individuals and some in small groups.

Other fish:
The big stuff got all the attention but we saw animals that on a normal snorkel/dive would get far more attention. Like an octopus. Normally when I see octopus they don't move so much, keeping as far away from people as possible. But Galápagos octopus are of course fearless, and walking (whatever the word is) along like we were not there.
We also saw black tipped sharks, rays and colourful parrotfish and large shoals of smaller tropical fish.

Snorkelling at Devils Crown

Devils crown was a little boat ride away so most people chose to have a siesta after lunch until we arrived (this felt like a real treat as Max and I don't tend to rest at all when travelling).

Devils crown is a large circular volcanic rock formation jutting out of the ocean, quite an incredible sight. We were told that there were strong currents here and that anyone uncomfortable should wear life jackets. It's a drift dive so we'd get dropped off at one point and drift with the current to another point where we'd get picked up.

The first go would be around the outside of the crown. As soon as we dropped in I felt the strength of the current, it was too strong to try swimming against. We all floated along like plankton, taking in the mass of fish around us. The visibility was unreal, so clear, and the sheer amount of fish was staggering. It was amazing to see how some shoals swam with the current (like us) and others were swimming against, it looked like a freeway! It was hard to take it all in as we were swept along. As we turned a corner I looked out of the water and saw some sea lions chilling on the rocks above. What a place to live!

We got picked up and taken back to the top of the crown, this time snorkelling through the inside. Like Reuben said it's like being in a goldfish bowl. The currents again guided us to the other end, all over too quickly.

Dolphins

While getting to the end some dolphins were spotted, so we jumped back in the rib quickly and sped off in the same direction. We saw a couple leaping around the dingy. Then we got the ok to jump in and Max and I legged it towards their echo sound and straight away the pod swam right in front of us, there must have been 20 or so. They were so close and so fast, adrenaline was high! We got to swim with them in the wild in WA before but this totally trumped it. At one point a sealion appeared and joined in the fun! The guide said that it is not usual to see dolphins around here so we were very lucky.

After a while we were called back and pleaded for one more go. We were allowed one last time and taken to the other side of the crown again and we got to drift along the outside again, we saw eagle rays and more sea lions, and loads and loads and loads of fish!

Beach walking to see land based animals

We were buzzing after all the marine life but the afternoons activity meant see stuff on land. We pulled up to a beach and took a walk to see some flamingoes. We saw a family including a baby but they quite far away. There was a stunning backdrop, the island Is beautiful. One thing I've noticed about Galápagos is that it's never crowded. They restrict the number of boats at the islands, so we never bumped into another tour group. The environment is untouched by humans.

We walked along a beach and saw 'the great blue heron', it was stalking out the turtle nests, waiting for baby turtles to appear. We also spotted a Galápagos shark in the shallows and it caught a ray. It only takes a minute of looking around before you spot something here.

We also saw blue footed boobies, a sea lion basking on the beach and some red crabs and iguanas.

All in all an amazing day, I could do it everyday!

24/06 - Espanole island - the day of the albatross!

AM: Walking tour at qantas suarez (spelling not right).

Last night I slept a lot better, either I was exhausted or I'd got used to the rocking of the boat and the slight queeziness of the tummy (despite having took sea sickness pills). We'd stashed a bottle of red wine but I don't think it would go down well...the kiwi couple have been having sneaky vodka oranges at 'happy hour', I.e. whenever we got back from our last activity!

We had a 6am start so that we could get out early to see the wildlife in action. We jumped off the boat for a dry landing at a little bay with a small lighthouse. Like everywhere we'd been on the tour, there were no others around. Straight away we saw a load of marine iguanas and sea lions chilling out on the rocks and beach. Dotted around were red crabs and lizards.

We walked along a path uphill until we came to an area full of albatross. The albatross were all paired up and busy in their courtship rituals. It was exactly as I saw on David Attenborough, with the funny noises and smacking off the beaks. The area overlooked a tall cliff with waves crashing on the rocks below where we could see sea lions and marine iguanas on the rocks and in the surf.

Eagle

We also saw 2 Galapagos eagles, they're fairly small but still impressive when they spread their wings.

Albatross airport

We walked around the albatross hangout, which was more like a brothel, with birds paired up everywhere you looked. There was one solitary guy hanging around I felt sorry for, must have been waiting for his partner to return from feeding. Before long we were told to stop, wait and watch as this was the albatross airport! Sure enough, one by one they waddled up to edge of the cliff like big fat men, hesitated a couple of seconds then launched themselves off the cliff with a couple of little kicks. They're awesome in flight, so graceful unlike when they're on land.

Looking down from the cliff we watched as marine iguanas came in on the surf. They were getting chucked around a lot, no wonder they spend most of the day laying flat out on a rock, they're knackered!

Popcorn for lunch?

We had a new dish today, ceviche (raw fish) salad with rice and popcorn. The ceviche goes on the rice with the popcorn on top. It was lovely, I'd never have picked it but I'd have it again.

PM Gardner bay: sea lion colonies

The afternoon started with a trip to Gardner bay. It's a long stretch of white sand with pristine clear, turquoise water. The only others were a colony of sea lions basking on the beach, with the pups playing in the water. We spent a fair bit of time just hanging out with them, making sure we didn't get too close to the males who could get grumpy.

Snorkelling tour

Then the dingys picked us up and we went to shark island for our first snorkel. We were warned it wouldn't be as good as Devils crown yesterday but it was still amazing snorkelling. Soooo many fish with great visibility and it's so nice to see the marine environment unspoilt.

The second snorkel was around a rock near the sea lion bay, again great conditions and we saw 3 white tipped sharks, one was huge, the biggest white tip id ever seen. They were poking their heads out of a shallow cave, every now and again one would come out and circle around, maybe sussing us out. We saw loads of rays too before swimming to shore and hanging with the sea lions again. One of the pups was particularly playful and kept jumping up to people trying to take it's picture.

Back on the boat and a 4 hour cruise to our next destination, Cristobel Island.

Since being away I've felt quite rough with bad headaches and sickyness. Since being on the boat I haven't felt ill at all (apart from a bit of a churny tummy from the boat rocking). I'm not sure whether it's because we stopped using Doxys (apparently there's no disease on the islands), or maybe because we're eating a proper diet.

25/06 - Los Lobos (last day)

Today was the last day of the tour. We had an early start so that we had enough time for a morning walking tour.

We were anchored at Los Lobos, a little island off San Cristobel. Again we saw no other tourists, apparently it's because the national park restricts the number of visitors at any one time. So there's 80 boats in total and only 4 are allowed at an island at one time (or something like that). There's officials everywhere so I think they must be quite strict.

Booby colony

We'd seen a good few of these birds before, but only the blue-footed and Nascar booby. The red-footed live further away and not seen so much. Here we saw a whole colony of blue and nascar. I love the colour of their blues feet, it's like a bright baby blue.

There was a sandy path that went around the cliff edges which was made for people but the birds were using it as a nesting spot, must have been soft on their bottoms.

We saw a few with babies and discarded egg shells scattered about. They were ok with us being about 2 metres away, any closer and they'd get pissy. We saw one baby on its own, it was white and fluffy, it was calling out to it's mum and soon enough a couple of boobys flew in.

Blue-footed booby facts:

• They get their name from them being 'stupid'. The original settlers thought they were dumb as they could easily be caught.
• They get the blue colour from their diet.
• Apparently the more fish they eat the bluer their feet get (not sure about this)
• The blues eat near the coast, the NASCAR further inland and the red far away.
• The bluer they are the more attractive they are to females.
• in 1998 there were only 105 red-footed boobies in Punta pinta. The population has now reached up to 604.

PM: Overnight at San Cristobel - swimming with sea lions and lots of walking.

We said our goodbyes in the morning and jumped off the boat at the port (Puerto Baquerizo Moreno). We headed off to find a hostel and found Casa de Laura, a lovely place on the edge of town with a little garden where Laura tended to her plants and flowers. In the morning I was searching for a knife to spread some jam on our dry French toast (budget travel at its best-not many options in the local supermarket), and I saw a goat in the garden wearing a footy jersey! I was taking a photo when she came running out yelping, with a young guy in tow. The goat was in trouble for eating her garden and the man who must have owned it led it off looking very sheepish.

Las Tijeretas

We were recommended this place by Reuben the tour guide, so we set off but not knowing quite what to expect...it was a long way!

We walked first to the interpretation centre which was a kind of museum dedicated to the history of the Galapagos. It was interesting reading about something other than Darwin! Well worth a visit. Then we carried on a path to Tijeretas, a bit of a trek uphill with a couple of viewing spots on the way. We actually looked down on the cove without realising that it was where we wanted to be, and instead carried on another 2km to another bay. The path was nearly all big jagged rocks. Not suitable for thongs and supplies were needed. We were seriously hungry by the time we got there.

When we eventually got there we were surprised to see 2 others there, then we saw they were topless and quickly ran to their towels to put clothes on (much to Max's disappointment).

Sea lions

There were a few sea lions snoozing under bushes and marine iguanas sunbathing. We went for a snorkel and saw a few turtles and as we got out a sealion swam in behind us, so we played around in the shallows with it. Then she started barking and we saw a baby at the other side of the bay come darting through the water, straight past us and up onto the beach where it followed its mum to a nearby bush where the male was hanging out.

On the way back we stopped at Tijeretas where we had another snorkel with sea lions - just can't get enough of them!

We stopped off and bought a snack as we were famished, BBQ chicken and chorizo on a stick, best snack ever!

Our 2nd beer of the trip!

When back in town we thought we'd treat ourselves and bought a couple of beers from the local corner shop. We sat outside overlooking the jetty and felt like chavs. But it tasted so good! Along came the kiwi couple and they went and bought a couple and joined us too!


26/06 - Diving Kicker rock

We booked 2 dives with 'Wreck bay diving' to kicker rock ($150 as standard), a huuuge rock just off San Cristobel. The crew were great, really professional from start to finish. We even had a test dive which I don't think I've done since my open water course! This was only 10 minutes while he checked our weight belt and could see that we could locate regulators and clear masks. But while we were down some sea lions came to play with us, circling us and swimming up to our faces. When I chucked out my reg, one came up and started sniffing around it, they seemed desperate to play and the dive master had to My only worry was on the first dive when the guide couldn't descend and had to duck dive to get down!

On the boat were 6 divers and 6 snorkellers. The dives went to 28m, most of it was swimming with the current along the wall (which was 100 metres). The wall was impressive in itself, so much life living in its cracks and crevices, although we spent most of the time looking in to the dark depths for signs of sharks.

We saw the same as at Gordon Rocks - sharks (hammerhead, Galápagos and black tipped), but here it felt very eery so due less visibility. It was dark and cold and my body was shuddering uncontrollably (I'm soft). The temperature felt similar to diving in a Perth winter.

Sharks!

We stopped at a rocky outcrop and found a bit of rock to hold on to (to stop the current pulling us away). This was a cleaning station where the bigger fish would hang out to be cleaned by smaller fish. The wait paid off, the guide suddenly got excited and pointed out into the darkness, and sure enough appeared some large bodies, as they got closer I could make out the shape and saw it was a hammerhead. Then more and more came, circling in front of us among other sharks and turtles.

On the way back the guide stopped at various points on the wall to show us resident fish that he'd come to know. He pointed out a bright orangey/yellow seahorse, a moray eel, a bright orange frogfish (such a weird fish), and a leaf-something (can't remember what now).

The dive was a success, and we were lucky to get a massive lunch on board after, of rice, spaghetti, veg and chicken.

Naturalist walk

The boat had a naturalist on board who had been a guide for the snorkellers. After lunch we were dropped off at a beach where he took us for a walk around the bay and told us heaps of interesting facts about the flora and fauna, mainly boobies, crabs (ghost and sally light-foot) and mangroves. I learned loads about crabs...

Sally light-foot crab:

• When the crab grows too big it grows a new shell underneath and climbs out of the old shell backwards.
• You can tell when it's producing a new shell as it releases bubbles.
• When they mate, the female goes on top (you can tell a female by the indented shape of the bottom shell).
• Crabs are carnivores, so mating is a dangerous business. The male is vulnerable underneath, so he puts a claw over the females eyes so that she can't see him! (This sounds untrue but I like it so I believe it!)
• The young ones are a boring brown but grow to be bright red with a blue front.
• I asked about the origin of the name, and he didn't know but said it was something to do with a dancer called sally!
• They have gills to breathe, and they can survive out of water as long as they're damp (to get enough oxygen).

27/06 - leaving Galápagos

It's been less than 2 weeks, but we've packed in so much it feels like longer. Now off to Panama!

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