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Galapagos Multi Sport

By : Lisa Jagielski
Trip Begins August 18, 2007
Trip Ends August 26, 2007

I can sum it up in one word.... AMAZING!
See my photos : Galapagos, August 2007

Want to go? Galapagos Multisport

I went to: Galapagos, Ecuador
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August 18, 2007
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Arrival

Quito, Ecuador

I flew into Quito from Miami, arriving around 6:45 PM. As usual I had to immediately use the rest room so I was one of the last people to go through customs. I'd read in the guide books about how crazy Quito airport is with people waiting to welcome arriving friends and family. It was a madhouse! Crowds of people were waiting with signs and balloons. I tried not to knock anyone over with my backpack. I got a taxi from the airport to Hotel Eugenia. What a beautiful hotel! The room was really nice. I met the Sage family in the hall who was on the same tour. I was able to use the internet in the lobby to let Mom know I'd arrived safely. Although the room was very comfortable, sleeping was a little tough, in addition to the anticipation of heading to the Galapagos the next day the neighborhood was a bit loud.

August 19, 2007
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Day 1

Galapagos, Ecuador

Our van arrived to take us to the airport and I met my fellow travelers. As it turned out I was the only single traveller. In addition to the Sage family, there were 2 other families, making the total on our tour 11. We arrived at the Quito airport where we met our guide, Fabricio. At first I was a little surprised at how young he looked. He turned out to be an awesome guide, incredibly knowledgable and very enthusiastic. He helped us get our bags checked in then as we waited for our flight he told us about himself and had us all telling each other about ourselves. Unfortunately our flight was delayed by several hours. We finally left Quito, stopped at Guyaquil and continued onward to Baltra. The Baltra airport was another culture shock. Our luggage was layed out under a pavillion and once they opened the gate it was a free for all to find your luggage. From there it's a 10 minute bus ride to a 5 minute ferry ride to another 45 minute bus ride to the town of Puerto Ayora. Our group was split, staying in 2 different hotels. I stayed at the Hotel Red Booby. We'd had a trip to the Darwin Center planned but due to our late arrival that was out for today. It seems a requirement for Galapagos travel is the ability to be patient and flexible. We took the water taxi to Finch Bay Ecotel for lunch (at 4 PM). At the docks we got our first real views of the sea lions sprawled out all over all of the anchored boats. On the short walk to the hotel we got our first look at Marine Iguanas. There were hundreds of young males sunning themselves on a stone wall. Fabricio enthusiatically pointed out all the plant life surrounding us. (I'm not sure I remember the difference between a white, black and button mangrove though.) We ate a several course meal, all of the food was delicious, on the patio, with herons and finches landing all around us. Fabricio was able to coax a finch to land on his hand! After lunch (dinner?) Fabricio took us on a tour of the town, showing us the best places to eat or shop or party. After that I did some shopping and some people watching at the park near the dock. There was a volley ball game and what seemed like a big party going on. Then went to the supermarket for some snacks, then to bed, the next day was to be very busy.

August 20, 2007
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Day 2

Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos

Since we'd missed the Darwin Center yesterday we headed there first thing this morning. Our Galapagos National Park Guide showed us Lonesome George, Diego, Popeye and all their friends. He taught us about the differnces in their shells. We saw the baby tortoises in their sheltered pens.

From there we loaded into little pick up truck taxis for the drive to El Chato Tortoise Reserve to see them in the wild. In a field near where we parked we could see a mare and her foal right next to a giant tortoise. Being a long term horse person I found this to be really neat. We strolled around the reserve searching for the wild tortoises and various birds, we were not dissapointed. We found many tortoises, some wallowing in a big mud puddle. Since it was the dry season and we were now in the highlands we were surrounded by the Garua (fog).

After our walk we returned to the parking area, were fed a snack and were able to examine toroise shells and bones. A few of our group were even able to 'try on' a tortoise shell. (I didn't, I was afraid of getting stuck in there!)

Back into the taxi's and onward to the lava tube. We climbed down some very slippery from the Garua, steps and walked and crawled through the ancient lava tube. There were electric lights strung along the walls. Having been in the ATM cave in Belize this was a bit anticlimatic.

Onward to Media Luna, but first a delicious lunch of sandwiches, Oreos and Pringles. Now we were off on our 3 km hike (mud wallow?). The landscape was eerie, I was not sure if I was still on planet Earth. The plant life was so strange and colorful. As a group we decided on no rest stops, although I think we soon regreted that. Hiking through the mud was tough. We climb a steep hill and finally stopped to rest. The scenery was, well, fog. Apparently in the wet season the view is really quite amazing. Somehow we all made it back to the bottom in one piece and back to the taxis for our last drive to the start of our mountain bike ride back to town.

We quickly spread out, all travelling at our own pace, with the taxi's following behind for support if we got tired. One small mishap, as we came into the highland town, I noted a sign which, with my high school Spanish, I was able to translate as 'slow your speed'. Well 12 year old Jake didn't, he sped down the hill and around the corner and.... wipe out! Fabricio was quickly by his side with his first aid kit, while I, the Paramedic watched (I was on vacation!). He did a great job of cleaning and bandaging the 'road rash', luckily no serious injuries.

That night when I returned to my hotel I think I was the dirtiest I had ever been in my life (It was great!). After a long hot shower I was ready for bed, but instead took another walk around town, shopping for souvineers.

August 21, 2007
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Day 3

Santa Fe, Galapagos

Today we dapart by boat for San Cristobal. I've never had a problem with sea sickness so I did not take anything, big mistake! The water was rough, by the time we got to Santa Fe for a short stop for snokeling I was not feeling too well. I took some dramamine and jumped in the water. BRRRRR!!!!! What a shock! Much colder than Belize! After a few minutes to get accustomed to the cold I was off. We immediately had a few snokeling buddies. Two or three sea lions joined us. They swooped by inches from us. They seemed to enjoy showing off for us. We were in the shadow of Santa Fe so the cliff and rocks were also interesting. Then we got back on board and took a slow trip through Barrington Bay, where we were able to see an entire sea lion colony lounging on the shore, while Frigate Birds floated above us.

Now on to San Cristobal. The rough seas continued and everyone but the crew, fabricio and 16 year old Drake was feeling sick (my advice, take lots of Dramamine). We arrived at the dock at Puerto Bazquiero Moreno and walked the short distance to our hotel, Hotel Teclas. We took over the whole place. I had a beautiful room on the third floor, with HUGE sliding glass doors facing the bay and a window in back facing the town. Luckily everyone recovered in time to eat a huge lunch. Our intinerary had planned kayaking for after lunch but Fabricio tought we'd all had enough of the ocean for the day so we hiked to the top of Frigate Bird Hill instead. We saw lava lizards, Blue Footed Boobies dive bombing into the sea and of course Frigate Birds. The weather changed from cloudy and drizzley to sunny and hot and back again. We stopped at Darwin Bay and watched some sea lions playing, only Fabricio braved the cold water to snorkel. The rest of us watched the playing sea lions, floating frigate birds and sally lightfoot crabs. That night dinner was on our own. I walked through the town, found a Pharmacy, bought Dramamine and found an internet cafe to let everyone at home know I was still alive. There are sea lion colonies on the beach right in town. Also sea lions lounge on the beach right outside Hotel Teclas. I slept very well that night.

August 22, 2007
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Day 4

Leon Dormido, Galapagos

I woke early to the sound of barking sea lions from the front of the hotel and roosters crowing from the twon side. I walked along the shore in town and spent time watching and taking pictures of the sea lion colony right there. I had a private show of a se alion playing with a long stick in a pool among the rocks right near shore. Some things I learned about sea lions. Number 1 is, they stink! Number 2 is they can get comfortable anywhere. They sprawl over the rocks in the silliest positions, they climb over other sleeping sea lions to find a comfortable spot. Number 3 is that for as quick and sleek as they move in the water, they are pretty dopic on land. The sea is definitely their element.

After another yummy breakfast we went sea kayaking. I am a kayaker, never been in the sea before though. I picked a single kayak, but most people were in doubles. We paddled along the shore. We had curious sea lions popping out of the water around us. We had pelicans dive bombing around us. And blue footed boobies plunging into the water. It was a little freaky at first to see out of the corner of your eye things falling out of the sky into the sea! Along the shore we saw nesting boobies and pelicans and a still white baby firgate bird in it's nest.

All this time we were shadowed by the boat which had brought us here. Some of the group got tired and were able to board that boat. After kayaking for a couple of hours we all boarded the boat. We traveled a bit further to a cove with a big sea lion colony, on the way we saw swimming Marine Iguanas. And no one got seasick! The sea was calm, the sun was shining. It was a beautiful day. We had lunch on board and tehn back into the water to snorkel with the sea lions. I had my video camera in a waterproof case and got some great shots of them swooping past. All to soon it was time to get out and move on.

We next travelled to Kicker Rock with plans of snorkeling, but according to Fabrico the water there was too murky and we would not have been able to see anything. So we slowly floated around the Sleeping Lion. There were all kinds of sea birds nesting and flying around, and more sea lions sleeping on ledges near the shores. The pictures I took do not do it justice, it just towers above you.

Our next destination was a cove where we could snorkel from shore. On the way we saw a whale spouting from it's blow hole. We tried to get closer but it had either dived deep or swam away. We cruised by Isla Lobos and saw more Blue Footed Boobies and Marine Iguanas. Then we moored near the shore and were able to relax on the beach or snorkel. Here the water was much warmer so I snorkeled. There were not many fish but there were some interesting plants.

That night I had pizza at a restaurant at the opposite end of town from Hotel Teclas. There was a sea lion colony on the beach right across the street. I was able to see a new male come in to try to take over. He waddled up onto the beach and the current male woke up and chased him from the colony. They waddled to teh waters edged, yelling at each other and once they hit the water they flew at top speed.

August 23, 2007
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Day 5

Isabela, Galapagos

Again another great night to sleep and awakened by the sea lions and roosters. This morning we will be moving to Isabella. First we had breakfast and did a tour of the interpretation center. I had a chance to go say goodbye to my early morning stroll buddies the sea lions and finish my souvineer shopping. Then we took taxi's to the san Critobal airport. I was sad to leave, I'd realy enjoyed my time in Puerto Bazquiero Moreno and at the Hotel Teclas, but I was excited to see what was yet to come.

We were the only group at the airport, it was closed for large planes, only open for the small planes. Our group was to travel in 2 planes to Isabella. I was with the first group in an 8 seater plane. I sat next to the pilot. What a cool experience! The take off and landing were the smoothest, I'd ever experienced.

From there we were taken to our new homes. I stayed at the Casa De Marita. Others from our group stayed 2 minute walk away at the Wooden House. We had another delicious lunch at Casa De Marita and then went by boat to Sendero de Tintoreras to see the White Tipped Reef sharks. On the way we saw spotted eagle rays and sea turtles.

Sendero de Tintoreras is an area of volcanic rock with lichen growing on it. There are hundreds of Marine Iguanas and Sally Lightfoot crabs here. In the channels between the lava are resting sharks. The iguanas look like left over dinosaurs. They climb over and lay on top of each other.

We also visted a sea lion colony. Mother and babies were sleeping under the Mangroves. The male and a few females were playing in the surf. Here we were able to sit down right beside the sea lions and they didn't mind.

August 24, 2007
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Day 6

Isabela, Galapagos

Today we go horse back riding. The day is a bit cloudy here at the hotel. Fabricio warns the ride will be dusty and we should bring a bandana for our face if we have one. We took taxi's (little pickup trucks with benches in the back) to the meeting point. As we climbed the hills we again entered the Garua. We stopped a few times to photograph intersting plants and some Vermillion Flycatchers sitting on a fence. As we approached the starting point we came upon the herd of horses we were to ride. They were being herded along the road.

We arrived at the meeting place and were assigned our horses. I've been riding for most of my life and I was bit leery when I saw my horse. He was small, well they all were. As I looked at his confirmation I knew I was in for a bumpy ride. The tack was like nothing I'd ever used before. The horse although small appeared in relative good condition(I knew since I was in a third world country they are not cared for as I was used to and I'd been a bit nervous of what I would find). And although they were not the well bred stted I was used to they all seemed healthy.

We started out in a mad rush, they were definitely herd bound. My mount 'Montato' tried to stay at the front of the group. At first I was bit nervous as no one seemed to be controling their horses but the horses were just basically a stampeding herd. But that's what these horses are apparently used to so it all worked out. As we traveled on and spread out a bit I felt a bit more comfortable. We passed out of the Garua and into the sun and the dust. Fabricio was right, I was glad to have the bandana tied across my face. We rode along the edge of Sirra Negra. On the trip out we could not see too much of it, due to fog.

We arrived at a clearing. and dismounted and had a snack. The horse masters took control of our mounts, a few were tied to trees but most just hung out with their herd of buddies. Good old Montato found his buddy and just hung out.

We hiked into the volcanic area under a hot sun. Omar, our GNP guide for the day pointed showed us areas where we could put our hands near the rocks and feel the heat. We saw a few scattered plants. I was amazed at all the different colors of the hardened lava. The colors come from different minerals in the lava. Again I felt like I'd been transported to another planet. We hiked for some time and stopped at the edege of a drop off. There we sat and rested. At Fabricio's request we all sat quietly for several minutes just taking it all in.

The ride back was bit more peaceful. We rode back at our own paces (and yes all of Montato's were bouncy). I ended up all alone for about 20 minutes. Just me and my trusty steed, riding through the Garua. It was eerie and peaceful at the same time. I thought about enjoying it for as long as possible, since I'd most likely never be here again. I was disappointed when the trailing group caught up with me and disturbed my peaceful ride. Trusty little Montato got me safely back to the starting point.

On the return we stopped at the Tortoise Breeding Center and saw more varieties of tortoises. As we were about to leave we saw tortoises mating.

After lunch it was time to snorkel again. It was something not on the itinerary but recommended by Fabricio. We walked a short distance through the Mangroves near the dock to a sheltered cove. Again the water was cold, but it was worth it. We saw many colorful fish and plants. Unfortunately we did not see the spotted eagle ray that Fabricio says frequents the cove.

From there it was time for dinner and bed. We had an early start for the trip home.

August 25, 2007
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Day 7

Galapagos

Returning from the Galapagos is an experience. We left the dock shortly after 6 AM, heading for Santa Cruz. (I was sure to take Dramamine prior this time.) Again the seas were rough, but we all managed to not get seasick. After the three hour boat ride to Santa Cruz, we got on the bus to the ferry to the bus to the airport. The airport was packed and our plane was late. As Fabricio had warned Galapagos runs on it's own time and being impatient will not get you anything but frustrated, just go with the flow. We flew back to Quito, where it was raining and were escorted back to Hotel Eugenia for our last night in Ecuador. Since I had a very early flight I went to bed early.

August 26, 2007
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Day 8 and 9

Quito, Ecuador

After leaving the hotel at 3 AM for the airport, checking in, going through customs, waiting in the freezing cold departure lounge I finally boarded the plane. We began to taxi and turned back to another gate, Uh Oh! That's not right. What did we forget? Well to make a long story short, our plane was broken, they could not fix it and had to fly a part in from Miami that night. After waiting in line to get our new tickets etc, we were put up at very nice hotels, I stayed at the Radisson Royal Quito Hotel. Unfortunately I was too tired to enjoy my extra day in Ecuador.

But although the ending was a bit nerve wracking (definitely not the fault of Adventure Life) the entire trip was amazing. I saw so many unique animals and landscapes and did so many fun things. Even now, more than a year after my trip I am still in awe and so enthusiastic to tell the story of my trip. There are so many interesting places to see in this world and Galapagos is definitely one of them. I am very glad I had the chance to make this trip. I am even contemplating going back in 2011. I'd like to try a cruise during the wet season to see some more and different aspects of the islands. Of course I'll be going with Adventure Life again.

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