Galapagos by boat

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Our home for the seven days we spent exploring the Galapagos by boat was the Yolita II. We´d spent a lot of time and energy back in Quito trying to choose the right boat and the right route. In the end we´d decided that the Yolita was the best size for our purposes and the Western Circuit of islands offered the best chance of ticking the most boxes on our wishlist. Once we´d made our decision we´d spent a lot of money to secure it so there were as a lot riding on the next seven days.

Within a couple of hours of boarding on Sunday morning it was obvious that we´d made a good choice about the boat. The Yolita II was modern, spotlessly clean and comfortably spacious. There were 16 passengers in total - a good number, intimate enough to feel personal and personalities willing to engender camaraderie but not so small that you would always be falling over the same people. In addition there were 9 crew and a naturalist/guide. The cabins were all en suite with large showers and plentiful hot water. John and I were sharing a twin towards the front of the main deck, whilst Penny was sharing with an American lady in the cabin directly above us. What we lost as a result of proximity to the anchor chain (a rude and often unavoidable wake up call when as invariably happened we made our destination in the early morning) was compensated for by increased stability. The beds were comfortable and if the cabins were fairly basic they were more than adequate for sleeping in - practically their sole purpose. The Yolita had a comfortable bar cum lounge cum dining room which was used for eating, briefings and was the social hub of the ship and two sun decks for those courageous or foolhardy enough to brave the fierce equatorial sun.

The experience of exploring the Galapagos by boat as opposed to the day trips we had taken up until now was like discovering a new set of islands. Of course this was in a sense literally true. The route we had chosen and the range of discovery allowed by the boat was taking us into new territory. Away from Santa Cruz, the island with the largest population, and Puerto Ayora, the human footprint quickly diminished. However, there was also a difference in the way in which we would experience the islands. In Puerto Ayora it had been interesting to see the wildlife existing cheek by jowl with the island´s human activity. We could at our convenience retreat back to the comfort of our hotel, reconnect with the outside world through the (admittedly slow) local wi-fi, before heading out to a bar for a couple of sundowners and then on for a fish supper from the local food stalls. The boat was a much more immersive experience. There was no email, no wi-fi, no distractions, just our small group and the wildlife.

We quickly slipped into a regular routine, largely fixed around meal times - the food was uniformly excellent. We breakfasted at 7 - buffet style with cooked and cold options. In the morning we invariably had a landing on one of the islands, a walk led by Jairo, our naturalist, followed by a snorkel. Lunch followed at 12 - 3 courses - soup, followed by a hot main, again buffet style. At around 2 the afternoon´s activities would follow a similar pattern to the morning´s - we often navigated short distances over lunch to new locations. Returning to the boat around 5 we would have ample time to recover before a briefing, reviewing the day´s activities and setting out those for the next day at 6.30, followed by dinner at 7. Invariably we were in bed by 9 - in part this reflected the absence of alternative options, but it also felt like a long day, the sun, the snorkelling and sea air all taking their toll. In addition most of the significant sailing took place, taking us from one island to another, took place after dinner. The sea was never really rough, but on a reasonably small boat the swell could feel significant and for comfort it was often preferable to make sure you were horizontal for the experience.

After an afternoon snorkelling on the north coast of Santa Cruz our route took us initially north to Genovesa, for a day viewing birds and snorkelling. This was the best potential location for seeing Hammerheads whilst snorkelling, but alas they failed to appear. We then navigated over night to Bartolome and Santiago - a beautiful spot for more landings (birds) and spectacular views across the volcanic scenery. The next day we moved on to the south coast of Isabela, the largest of the Galapagos Islands. Over the next three days we would complete a circumnavigation of the island, sailing west around its southern coast and then up the more remote western side, making various landfalls and visiting the youngest of the Galapagos Islands, Fernandina, before sailing around the northern coast and heading back towards northern Santa Cruz, via Santiago and Rabida.

For me the trip divided itself into two halves split by our landing on the southern coast of Isabela. The first half of the trip was a time of orientation. Despite the frequent efforts of Jairo, our guide, to draw attention to the adaptation that the flora and fauna had made to its habitat, the landscape and the animals put me in mind not so much of Darwin as the prehistoric. In part I think this reflected the volcanic landscape of black lava fields, and steep, green slopes. The Galapagos are in geographical terms young islands, those that we saw are approximately a million years old, and in many cases there was evidence of much more recent eruptions. All of this helped to create the illusion of islands that had sprung from the ocean only yesterday, and were as yet undiscovered by man. This illusion is of course something that is carefully fostered - the numbers allowed on land are limited and once on land trails designed to limit the human footprint are clearly marked and the guides go to great lengths to make sure that visitors keep to these paths. In addition our progress was not a solitary one, our path was dogged by the same 2 or 3 ships, ( this was not all bad - they were satisfactorarily slower than us and looking just a little less comfortable than our own) who were obviously following a similar itinerary.

In these early days it was the landscape and the birdlife that really grabbed the imagination. The snorkelling was good but not exceptional. On Isabela our midway point we had a shore day planned - in part this was to allow for a change of personnel - we would lose and gain three passengers - and also in theory visit the caldera of Sierra Negra - which at a diameter of 10 kilometers is the third largest intact caldera on the planet. However, the weather and with it the lack of visibility put paid to these plans and instead we compensated with a brief return to civilisation and the England v Ecuador friendly. (More than enough incentive, if any were needed, to turn our backs once more on the wider world).

The second half of the trip - along the more remote, western coast of Isabela and then back to Santiago and Santa Cruz was much more about our contact with the marine life. It may have been coincidental but the more remote we became the more we seemed to increase our chances of seeing turtles, sea lions and sharks - ultimately the things we had come to see... Anyway in the interests of achieving comparative brevity and in no particular order here are my personal highlights.

1. The first landing at Genovesa

The wildlife we´d seen on Santa Cruz and Floreana had been reasonably contained in number. Nothing had prepared us for the sheer number and variety of birds on Genovesa and Santiago during those early landings. Of course you could see the Frigates and Boobies wheeling overhead but it was only when you got up passed the beach and into the shrubland and saw several birds in every bush that you fully appreciated the scale of the colony. There were frigates trying to bully red footed and masked boobies into surrendering their catch, red-tailed tropic birds gracefully crossing the sky, swallow-tailed gulls paired off and grooming one another and a stately great blue heron overseeing it all like a benign school teacher, and all of it within an arms reach, the birds themselves much to busy concentrating on their feathered rivals to pay much attention to people.

2. Birds under the water

It was one thing, once we´d got used to the number, the variety and how close you could get to see birds on land or from the boat, quite another to see them when snorkelling. I have two abiding memories - penguins and cormorants.

The Galapagos Penguin is much smaller than its cousins in the Antarctic (and fewer in number) they waddled around on the rocks looking ungainly and a little circumspect when it came to getting on the water. Once in the water they often bobbed around inspecting our panga (zodiac) and grooming but once under the water they they showed themselves to be master swimmers. Occasionally in a mood to play or to fish around the rocks they would dart around snorkellers like small torpedoes. My only experience was to see one in open water when he was moving so fast it was only after the event that I realised I´d just narrowly avoided being sunk by a 40 cm penguin exocet. Vyeing with the penguin in the speed stakes was the Flightless Cormorant. Endemic to the western side of Isabela, its wings are now almost vestigial, instead it has sacrificed flight to pursue fish at speeds of up to 40 km an hour. Seeing a duck speed by whilst you are engrossed in an underwater world is in equal measure surreal and superb.

3. Swimming with Sea Lions

When you first head out for the Galapagos one of the big ticket highlights they promise you is the chance to swim with sea lions. Everyone tells you how friendly and inquisitive these animals are and how graceful they are in the water, and of course from the moment you are told about them you are on the look out, so that for every snorkel you wonder if the sea lions will appear. In our case they kept us waiting for a few days and then towards the end of the trip appeared in abundance. For all the world it seems they are revelling in the opportunity to show off their agility and speed, swooping in on snorkellers before corkscrewing away at the last moment or flipping back at 180 degrees to head off in the opposite direction. My favorite encounter was with a small cub only a couple of feet long (although it seemed a lot bigger in the water), who hid behind a rock, looking out uncertainly before plucking up the courage and again and again dashing out to scope its visitors with increasing confidence, always returning to the safe harbour of the rock in swirl of turns and bubbles.

4. Marine Iguanas on land and in the water

After a while we started to take marine iguanas for granted. We saw an awful lot of them, but then on Fernandina we had the opportunity to snorkel whilst they were feeiding in the water and this was an experience of a whole different order. Seeing them cling onto rocks with their prehistoric claws, their crested heads magnified by the water, we could finally appreciate what they had evolved for.

On the same day we also made a landing on Fernandina towards dusk to see the iguanas nesting together. Jairo had explained that they group together for warmth, but nothing prepared us for the heaving mass of iguanas that met us on the rocks above the beach, as they nested in their thousands

5. Galapagos Hawks on Santiago

The Galapagos Hawk is the primary predator in the Galapagos, as such he has little to concern himself with accept for catching his prey. At various times we saw several hawks hovering in the thermals, scrutinising the ground below or swooping for dinner. They would hover a few yards overhead or come to rest a few yards from where we were standing. However, the most impressive of our sightings was landing on a beach on Santiago towards the end of our trip. The beach was lined with red mangrove trees and each tree seemed to have its own resident hawk, who seemed content to spend the warm morning perched drowsily on a branch, sublimely indifferent to the gaggle of excited photographers it attracted.

6. Turtles at Elizabeth Bay

Elizabeth Bay is a marine reserve, a series of lagoons created by mangroves on the west coast of Isabela. Its status as a reserve means that activities are limited to panga rides. Up until this point we´d seen evidence of green sea turtles but the animals themselves had proved elusive. On the way in fromthe Yolita we´d seen penguins playing around the rocks and once we were in the mangroves it took a while for things to happen. The eye played tricks and every shadow that crossed the water looked like a potential turtle. But in the end our patience was rewarded. Once we´d got our eye in and seen one turtle resting in the mangroves or making its leisurely way across the millpond smooth surface of the lagoon we saw dozens.

7. Sharks off Santiago

By the time of our penultimate snorkel I was beginning to despair of seeing sharks whilst we were in the water. The hammerheads had refused to appear and despite being told at the start of each snorkel that there were likely to be sharks in the area they seemed reluctant to show themselves, despite our best efforts - frequently we dove down to investigate likely nooks and crevasses but all to no avail. And then at last the were spotted - two small white tipped reef sharks sleeping under a rock off an atoll. Unfortunately the call of shark brought snorkellers from far and wide - perhaps only in the Galapagos can the call of "shark" rather than resulting in a mass exodus of bathers lead to a convergence of snorkellers in such numbers - and it was difficult to get a close look. However, swimming on a little John spotted 3 large adults, sleeping on the ocean bottom, and for a minute or two ,before the rest of scrum got wind, we had them to themselves.

8. Any blue-footed booby

The poster boy of the Galapagos. The frigates can puff out their chests, other boobies may have greater numbers, but only the blue footed manages to combine the comedy name with the bright blue comedy feet. A bird that with its long face and beak that manages to look beautiful, funny and sad all at the same time - as if it had just stepped in a can of luminous blue paint and now feels a bit shame-faced about the fact.

9. Frigates flying in formation above the Yolita II

An unlooked for moment this as we navigated from Santiago to Isabela. I just happened to look up and there flying in formation, wingtip to wingtip were a dozen frigates, only a few yards above our heads. The birds kept pace with our boat, occasionally wheeling in mass to investigate something in the water, before beating their way up along the side of the boat, flying at eye level with us, to resume their original positions. Of course they may only have been doing what frigates have done for centuries and diving for scraps from the boat, but it was no less impressive for its somewhat mundane purpose.

10. Snorkelling with Turtles off Isabela

I´d be hard pressed to pick one memory as a favorite, but on balance I think this would be it. I´d seen turtles in the water the previous day both at Elizabeth Bay and later when snorkelling, although on that occasion visibility had been poor and the water choppy, so you practically swam into one before realising it was there. However, on this particular snorkel we went into the water direct from the pangas and swam with the current along a series of rocky inlets. The visibility was superb and from the first moment as our eyes adjusted to the light it was obvious that there were turtles wherever you looked, at all depths and of all sizes. There must have been literally hundreds - the most I counted seeing at any given time was 8 - not bad for a 20-25 metre stretch of water. It was a privilege to spend an hour swimming with them, and for sheer number of turtles and our proximity to them this was difficult to beat.

All in all, it was a fantastic, unforgetable trip. Despite the very many special experiences we´d enjoyed I think most of us would have happily stayed on board and gone round again. The snorkelling especially and the other-worldly volcanic landscape made it a truly unique experience and the shared excitement and camaraderie made it probably the most enjoyable week of my trip so far. Galapagos by boat had been worth every penny,

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Thanks for doing the research
it sounds like you did your research and the trip was great. We look forward to doing the same trip. What an amazing experience.