To dream is to be alive!
Ever since I was a little girl I dreamed about visiting the Galapagos Islands. Little did I know, that one day I would achieve that dream, not from Montreal where I was born, but from the Yukon, in northern Canada.
All dreams have their origins and mine was inspired on a cold winter night while watching the northern lights dance across the sky. While marveling at the green and violet hues of the aurora swirling overhead I realized that there were many wonders in the world that I had yet to experience.Yukon winters are long, dark and cold and provide many oppportunities for scheming trips to warm, sunny locations.
My opportunity came when I decided to volunteer at an International Park Ranger Congress in Bolivia. Afterall, the Galapagos is only a hop, skip and a jump from Santa Cruz.
Well the day finally arrived! I boarded the airplane in Quito with my natural history of the Galapagos guidebook in hand. Images of boobies, penguins and turtles abounded in my head. I had to pinch myself as the plane landed and I was about to commence this great adventure.
In the airport terminal I quickly scanned the passengers wondering with whom I would be spending the next 8 days onboard the Flamingo. Would it be the group standing in the corner casually sharing stories, or the three people standing by the door?
I was soon to meet my fellow travellers, new friends with whom I would share my adventure. There were 14 of us in total - faces beaming, anticipating the wonders we were about to experience. Off we traipsed to the Flamingo, our home for the next 8 days, where we met the captain and crew - an integral part of our journey.
After a gourmet lunch we embarked on pangas (zodiacs) and headed to shore. Although it was cloudy, windy, drizzly and too rough to snorkel, it didn't matter, as I was at the Galapagos !!!! On shore we were greeted by sea lions, magnificent frigate birds and Galapagos mockingbirds. After dinner we circumnavigated Lion Rock and Kick Rock marveling at the cliffs, populated by frigate birds, nazca boobies and shearwaters. Then we cruised into the setting sun, enroute to Genovesa Island.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.