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The Galapagos Islands Aboard the Millennium

After 20 minutes of struggle, the hawk won.

By : Jennifer Crossman
Trip Begins May 30, 2009
Trip Ends June 7, 2009

Galapagos Cruise: We had been wanting to go to the Galapagos for years, and I must say, the experience we had did not disappoint.

May 30 - Hotel EugeniaFlights and Anticipation
May 31 - Santa Cruz IslandArrival in the Galapagos - the Charles Darwin Center
Jun 1 - Santa FeSea Lions, Sharks, and Snorkeling at Santa Fe
Jun 2 - RabidaAs Seen on National Geographic...
Jun 3 - BartolomeLittle Birds in Tuxedos and a Battle over Food
Jun 4 - LobosFarewells, Greetings, and Sea Lion Surfing
Jun 5 - EspanolaSoaring Wonders and a Giant Blowhole
Jun 6 - FloreanaFlamingos, Post Office Bay, and Playful Sea Wolves
Jun 7 - Santa Cruz IslandSaying Goodbye to the Galapagos

See my photos : The Galapagos Islands Aboard the Millennium

Want to go? Millennium: 10 Day Tour

I went to: Galapagos, Ecuador, Bartolome, Santa Cruz Island, Santiago, Santa Fe, South Plaza, North Seymour, Espanola, Floreana, Rabida, San Cristobal, Lobos, Highlands, Charles Darwin Center, Quito, Hotel Eugenia

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May 30, 2009

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Flights and Anticipation

Hotel Eugenia, Quito

8:52 PM
Adam and I could hardly sleep Friday night; we were going to the Galapagos!!

Our journey today started in Great Neck, NY and ended in Quito, Ecuador via two flights (New York to Miami & Miami to Quito) and a taxi. Upon landing in Quito, we went through the usual customs which was then followed up by an interesting screening that only makes sense for the past few months...

As we cleared customs we were directed to a line where two workers were screening passengers for swine flu by aiming a thermal camera at the face of each person. I'm assuming that if your temperature was too high, you'd be pulled aside for further screening but luckily, we didn't have to find out. Then it was off to collect our luggage and look for a taxi.

After gathering our two bags, we walked into the lobby where there were numerous windows where you could get a taxi. We ended up paying $10 for a ride to the Hotel Eugenia. I knew from the guidebooks that you could get there for $5 or less if you took a taxi outside on the street but when it's already dark out, you're exhausted from your flight, and you don't speak Spanish very well...that's when you pay an extra $5 for the convenience.

The Hotel Eugenia was very cozy and nicely decorated, the rooms were comfortably sized, and the staff was extremely friendly and helpful. We arrived at the hotel right around 7pm and Adam couldn't help but mention his stomach was telling him it was past his dinnertime. Although Adam can find an excuse to eat any time of day, we decided to head back downstairs to get dinner in the hotel.

We sat down in the quaint restaurant right behind the lobby. We had two sandwiches and three beers (Pilsener - a light Ecuadorian beer) all for under $20, including tax & tip. I can get used to Ecuador, all that gets me in NYC is one drink, maybe 2 if it's Happy Hour!

After dinner, I was excited to go out and see the city, but seeing as the sun sets just after 6pm and we had arrived on a Saturday, most shops and markets were already closed. We ended up deciding to retire early so the next day would come that much quicker.

May 31, 2009

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Arrival in the Galapagos - the Charles Darwin Center

Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos

9:38 AM
As Adam put it, "Aside from the occasional dog fight, pre-pubescent kid screaming, and drive-by mariachi band, I had a pretty good night's sleep." All kidding aside, the bed was very comfortable, the temperature perfect, and besides the occasional city noise in the night, the Hotel Eugenia was just the place to stay for a good night's rest.

I'm writing this entry as we wait for our second leg of our flight. We are currently in Guayaquil waiting to reboard our flight to the Galapagos.

Thank goodness for our appointed AdventureLife guide that brought us to Quito Airport. If it wasn't for him, we would never have known the proper procedure for getting our bags pre-screened before getting our boarding passes (a requirement to travel to the Galapagos). Also, he was a saint in helping us get to the front of the line for boarding passes when it seemed that the lines were just not moving. Come to find out, it wasn't that the lines weren't moving, it just happened to be that the people in front of us were tour guides and were checking in 20-40 people at a time. Do not try handle the Galapagos flight arrangements on your own, let AdventureLife take care of it!

I can't wait to get to the Galapagos!!

6:00 PM
After landing on Baltra Island, paying the $100/person park entrance fee (cash only), and collecting our bags, we met up with the person who was picking us up to bring us to the boat.

We boarded a local bus that brought us to a ferry which carried us across a small body of water to Santa Cruz Island. Once landing on Santa Cruz, we climbed into a pick-up truck and cruised approx 42 km through three distinct climate zones (arid, mix, and wet) with unique vegetation. To get from the ferry landing to Puerto Ayora (where the Millennium, our boat, was anchored) you traveled directly up and over the center of Santa Cruz.

We arrived in Puerto Ayora and headed down to a small dock where our panga (zodiac boat) was waiting to take us to the Millennium. The panga carried us out to our boat where we were shown to our cabin (#2) and told our lunch was waiting for us.

After eating a quick lunch of beef and rice, we started to meet some of the other passengers on board, as well as some of the crew. We found out that there were thirteen other passengers on board from all over Europe and North America. The Millennium had passengers from England, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Canada, and the USA on board.

After brief introductions, Jaime, our naturalist guide, explained we would be having a dry landing on Santa Cruz to go visit the Darwin Center and see giant tortoises and the famous Lonesome George.

Let me pause here from telling about the day's events to explain what was meant by a dry landing. During the course of our time on the Millenium, there were two types of landings (disembarkations) we had: dry and wet. As their name suggests, one involved staying dry when getting off the panga, while the other involved getting wet. Both types of landings were quite easy, and the most you ever got wet during a wet landing was below the knee. The main reason these landings were explained ahead of time was so you could plan on the appropriate shoes. Anyway, now back to our trip...

Two pangas brought the Millennium's group of 15 to Puerto Ayora. We boarded a bus that brought us approx 1 km to the beginning of the Darwin Center. From here we hoofed it up to a pen that contained several giant tortoises.

Looking into the pen, the actual size of these gentle giants just took my breath away. I mean, I had seen numerous pictures of these guys and several videos on TV, but when I first laid eyes on these tortoises it was unlike any animal I had seen before.

Jaime let us know we could walk into the pen to get closer to these animals. We walked through a gate and were able to walk down to interact with these walking pieces of history. Did you know that some of these tortoises can reach a ripe old age of 160? Imagine the stories some of these guys could tell...

After spending 20-30 minutes with these creatures, we begrudgingly left the pen and continued on our tour of the Darwin Center. We saw several different types of giant tortoises (including the babies), Lonesome George, and a few land iguanas before walking back through Puerto Ayora to the dock. We had some time to shop in town before we boarded our panga and headed back to the Millennium for the night.

Next day - Santa Fe and South Plaza Island

June 1, 2009

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Sea Lions, Sharks, and Snorkeling at Santa Fe

Santa Fe, Galapagos

1:57 PM
We awoke at 6:30 this morning and, after having some coffee on the sundeck on the top level of our boat, settled in for a 7am breakfast. After breakfast, it was time to pack our daypack (with sun block, cameras, water, and any other essentials we needed for the morning) and prepare for a wet landing at Santa Fe island.

As our panga brought us to the beach where we would disembark, the driver of the panga hugged the small cliffs that led to the beach and we received an up close and personal view of numerous pairs of blue-footed boobies and sea lions basking on the rocks. This was our first experience with wildlife outside of a controlled area and these animals acted as if we were not even there! We got within 20 feet of the rocks and the animals were completely indifferent to us being there. What an experience!!

Our panga approached the beach where we could see 40-50 sea lions sunning themselves on the sand. As soon as we were on the beach, Adam had his camera out and started capturing some shots of the sea lion colony we were now in midst of. It was absolutely amazing to be able to get within a few feet of a whole colony. I know, some of you may thinking, isn't this dangerous? Well, Jaime did a great job of letting us know what areas on the beach to avoid in order to keep away from the bulls(male sea lions) that may be aggressive.

After getting some great pictures of these sea lions and a few nesting pelicans, we headed up the rocks to the left of the beach to see if we could find any land iguanas. During this hike, we saw several large land iguanas, many lava lizards, some baby sea lions sleeping in the shade of the small mangroves, as well as many different types of birds.

Towards the end of our hike, we walked down to another sea lion beach. As we were walking down, Jaime noticed some dark objects in the water and had us climb out on some rocks that jutted out into the water. From this viewpoint, we saw that the dark objects were actually white-tipped reef sharks that were patrolling the shallows right below where were standing. As we watched these sharks, the playful attitude of the sea lions became evident. A few sea lions shuffled off the beach and into the water, where they began to circle around and tease the sharks. Now I know what your thinking, wouldn't these sharks try to attack the sea lions? Actually, these sharks were about the same size as the sea lions, hunt nocturnally, and eat small fish, so the sea lions were safe.

After staying at this beach for a while, we walked back to the original disembarkation point and headed back to the boat. We then prepared for our first snorkeling excursion. Our panga took us back to the small cliffs I first mentioned at the beginning of this day, and we were able to snorkel with an assortment of fish and the sea lions!!

When on land, sea lions relax and seem to be the least graceful animals around. When they're in the water, however, they are anything but. The sea lions were so entertaining!! They would swim at you, sometimes even upside down, and just when they were within a few inches of your face, propel themselves around you and away with unbelievable speed and ease. What an amazing experience!!

After snorkeling, we reboarded the Millennium for lunch before moving to South Plaza Island.

5:30PM
We just got back on board from South Plaza Island. Who says this isn't a "real" cruise; after every excursion Rambito (our bartender and server) has cold drinks and hors d'eurves waiting for us!! Anyway, let's talk about what you're really reading this for, the excursions.

For the afternoon, we had a dry landing on South Plaza Island. When we tried to disembark on the stone "dock," we were greeted by a sea lion that was just too content sunning himself on the dock to move. We stepped right over him and moved up onto the island to wait for the other panga to disembark. It was during this time that the sea lion decided to have a little fun.

Jaime was sitting on the edge of the dock, right in front of the sea lion. When his back was turned, the sea lion would shuffle up a few feet towards him. As soon as Jaime turned back to look at the group, the sea lion would lay down and give a look like, "What? I was lying this close to you the whole time..." This continued for a couple of minutes until the other panga arrived.

Once the other panga landed, we started to climb up a small hill towards the cliffside of the island. Along the way we saw numerous land iguanas snacking on various plantlife. We reached the top of the hill and were looking out over a drop-off to the see. There were so many different types of birds: frigates, red-billed tropic birds, blue-footed boobies, swallow-tailed gulls, as well as others. Adam was able to get some good pictures of these birds as they continually circled around us.

After watching these birds for awhile, we headed towards what Jaime described as the "Bachelor Colony." This area of the island was where all the male sea lions that didn't win a portion of the beach as their own retired to in order to get back their health and strength before trying to take a beach again. In order to get to the "colony," they must climb up a steep embankment to reach the rocks on which they rest. I don't think I could climb the embankment; it's amazing these sea lions can do it.

We sat up at the Bachelor Colony for awhile watching the bulls climb the embankement before heading back to our boat for the night.

Next day - Rabida Island and Santiago

June 2, 2009

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As Seen on National Geographic...

Rabida, Galapagos

11:45 AM
What a morning!! If we had to leave today, I would already say this trip was well worth it. I just can't believe what we saw today!! Let me tell you about it.

After a wet landing at Rabida Island, the action was quick to come to us. We were all standing around the beach drying our feet, when a small marine iguana went scurrying between Adam's legs and ran smack into the foot of our boatmates; the marine iguana didn't even slow down. It continued to run until it reached some snorkeling equipment that had been left on the beach by a group that had arrived 15 minutes earlier. At this point, it found itself a nice little place to hide in the foot area of a flipper.

Not a moment later, as we were wondering why this iguana would run right at us, a Galapagos hawk swooped in only a few feet above our heads and perched itself right above the snorkeling equipment, on a cliff about six feet off the ground. We then watched for the next 20 minutes as the hawk jumped to the ground, started looking in all the equipment, found the flipper and the iguana, shook the iguana out of the flipper, killed it, and took it away to feed its young.

I have never in my life witnessed anything like that, nevermind from as close as twenty feet. Before this, the only time I saw anything hunted was on the National Geographic Channel. What an amazing experience!! Adam got the most amazing picture of the hawk with the iguana in it's beak!!

There were many other interesting sites on Rabida Island, but after seeing that hawk hunt down that iguana, it seems dull in comparison. After walking around the island watching sea lions and blue-footed boobies we headed back to the boat to prepare to snorkel.

Once we were ready, the panga brought us over along a cliff face where we dove in and started to explore the underwater wildlife. About fifteen minutes into snorkeling, Jaime got everyone's attention by yelling "Manta!! Manta!!" Adam and I quickly swam over to where he was and looked down. Approximately ten feet below us, I saw this large dark mass. It took me a minute to focus before I realized that this dark mass was a gigantic manta ray gliding effortlessly through the water. This giant creature of the sea was approx. ten feet wide and simply stunning!!

It wasn't long before the manta swam out of view and we headed back to the boat for lunch and now we are waiting until we arrive at our next destination: Santiago.

6:25 PM
This afternoon, we had a wet landing on Santiago Island. This area is known for its large population of marine iguanas and fur seal sightings.

We hiked up a trail away from the black sand beach we landed on over to the rocky outcroppings where we found the marine iguanas basking in the sun. It was as if we were walking into Godzilla's nest with all of the babies running around. The new version of the movie must have used these guys as a model for Godzilla's face, because the resemblance was uncanny.

Jaime explained to us that in order for the marine iguanas to eat underwater (the only iguanas in the world to do so), they must bask in the sun for hours on end to regulate their body temperature. We had arrived right at the time when most of the larger iguanas were making their way back to the black rocks to warm up before the sun set. They were all over the place, intermingled with a large population of Sally Light-Footed Crabs.

We continued to walk down this rock beach until we reached what looked like a natural well, only much wider. There were small ledges on the walls of this well and resting upon them were three fur seals. To add to this picturesque scene, a green turtle just happened to pop its head out of the water for a breath at the bottom of this well. What a sight!!

After finishing up our hike on Santiago, we snorkeled fom the black sand beach. There was an assortment of parrotfish, a few cow-nosed rays, as well as a few white-tipped reef sharks thrown into the mix of wildlife on display at this beach.

Thirty minutes later, we were headed back to the boat for our debriefing, dinner, and a good nights sleep before our next adventure.

Next day - Bartolome Island and Seymour Island

June 3, 2009

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Little Birds in Tuxedos and a Battle over Food

Bartolome, Galapagos

2:15 PM
Just waking up from a nap while our boat refuels at Baltra Island. Next stop: Seymour Island. Before I fill you in about that though, let me tell you about Bartolome.

I awoke this morning and went about my usual routine of getting coffee and heading up to the sun deck before breakfast. When I arrived on the deck, I couldn't help but feeling a sense of deja vu. We were anchored right off of Bartolome and the scenery was all too familiar. Not only is this spot the most common scenery shot on post cards of the Galapagos, it was featured in the movie, "Master and Commander." I took in the scenery for the next ten or so minutes before heading back down for a quick breakfast and to board our panga.

Our panga didn't just head right to our dry landing today; we went penguin hunting. Jaime had explained to us the night before that, if we were lucky, we may see a penguin as we headed towards the island. As we were traveling towards a cliff-face, Adam noticed that there was a small object standing on the rocks below. The panga moved us closer and closer, and we soon realized that the object was nothing other than the only penguin known to live at areas north of the Equator. I had been waiting the whole trip to see a penguin and here it was, only a few feet in front of me, posing for our photo shoot. We stayed around this little guy for about five minutes before departing towards our disembarkation point.

I was just coming down from the excitment of seeing a penguin in the wild when Jaime pointed to three little bumps moving steadily along the water's surface towards our boat; it was three penguins swimming!! They swam right past our panga and awkwardly climbed/slid their little bodies up onto a nearby rock. The total number of penguins on this rock quickly went from three to five as two of their buddies soon joined them. Our two pangas spent the next 10 minutes maneuvering around this rock trying to get the best viewing angle possible before heading, again, towards the rock dock at Bartolome.

We disembarked onto Bartolome for a 360 step ascent to the top of a long dormant volcano to get a better view of the surrounding area. At the top, Adam snapped a few shots of the surrounding islands (and had pictures taken of us) before we headed back down to snorkel.

We jumped into the water around the corner from where we had spotted the penguin, and before I knew it, Adam had disappeared as he made a beeline towards where we had last seen the penguins. By the time I had caught up to him, he was scouring the waters near the penguin sighting. It was about this time that we heard a shout from one of the Belgians on board; he had found a penguin!!

We swam over to where he was to take pictures and videos of our close encounter with a penguin in the water. Adam and I spent the next 10 mintues following this guy around, enjoying this rare encounter (especially for a couple from NY) with a penguin in its natural habitat.

After a while, Adam let me know that he was getting cold and climbed up into the waiting panga; I wasn't ready to head back (did I mention that unlike Adam, I was smart enough to stay warm in a wetsuit). No sooner had Adam finished climbing into the boat when another member of our group started yelling "Shark, Shark!!" I swam towards him as fast as I could and when I looked down there was a white-tipped reef shark swimming below me!! It's so funny to look back on the situation now and wonder where my fear of water and sharks had gone. When someone screams "shark", aren't you usually supposed to swim in the opposite direction? Then again, nothing is "usual" about the Galapagos. For the next few moments, any fears I had had were completely overshadowed at the amazing sight I was now viewing. I was chasing a shark in water!!

The shark, being much quicker than me in the water, soon disappeared out of sight and I made my way to the panga with yet another amazing snorkeling session under my belt.

6:15 PM
Wow... Our group really has been lucky so far - watching a hawk hunt, a manta ray sighting, swimming with sharks, frigate birds on the boat, sea turtles, etc..., and now an iguana fight!! That's right, I said it, an iguana fight!! Let me tell you the story...

We had a dry landing at Seymour Island to see blue-footed boobies and frigate birds nesting, but saw so much more!! As we were walking along the trail looking at all the male frigate birds making their nests and inflating their big, red neck sacs, we stumbled upon a large, male land iguana. Our group began taking pictures as he made his way towards a bush where another male land iguana was enjoying a late lunch.

The larger iguana approached and they both started quickly bobbing their heads to warn the other that they were not happy. I asked Jaime if they would fight, but he said no seeing as it wasn't mating season and the argument was only over food. Well, in this case Jaime couldn't have been more wrong!!

The two iguanas moved into position next to each other with one's head nearing the other's hind leg and vice-versa. They began circling around each other hissing, trying to grab the other's hind leg. This fighting 'dance' continued for several minutes until the larger one gained the advantage by finally grabbing the other iguana's hind leg in his mouth. As soon as he got ahold of the leg, he began to violently shake the other iguana. The other iguana would have none of this and quickly retreated away from the bush; he may not have won this fight, but he would live to see another day. What an amazing experience!!

Once the fight was over, we continued along the trail to witness blue-footed boobies doing their mating dances and feeding their young. Adam was shocked at how close you could get to these nests and the boobies acted as if you weren't even there. Time seemed to fly as we walked along the trail, absorbing all the sights it had to offer. Before I knew it, the group was back at the dock ready to head back to the boat.

Next day - Lobos Island and San Cristobal

June 4, 2009

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Farewells, Greetings, and Sea Lion Surfing

Lobos, Galapagos

11:43 AM
We had a dry landing on Lobos Island this morning. Lobos Island is a small island that is a resting place for sea lions and a few frigate birds. The island itself wasn't much to look at; the waves that were crashing into the rocky beach were.

These waves would be a surfer's paradise. This was clearly shown by the incumbent sea lion population that were surfing the waves!! Just like human body-surfers, these sea lions would catch the wave right in front of its break and ride it into shore. Very entertaining to watch.

After clamoring back onto the boat, we started to travel to San Critobal Island where eleven of the fifteen passengers were disembarking to continue their journey to other parts of the world. The way the trip was setup there were two embarkation points to start the cruise, San Cristobal and Santa Cruz. People that arrived on a Thursday would board at San Cristobal, while people arriving on Sunday boarded at Santa Cruz... Back to the trip.

Adam and I decided to head up to the sundeck for our ride over to San Cristobal. Just as Port Baquerizo was appearing off our bow, I noticed some animals breaching the water of our starboard side. These were the dolphins I was waiting to see!! I shouted out to Adam to come look, but it was at this time that I realized it was only a few sea lions. What a disappointment... I turned to sit back down on the sundeck when I saw another object break the surface of the water on our port side. It was a dolphin!! In fact, it was a whole pod of dolphins.

Adam rushed down off the sun deck to alert the rest of the boat of the sighting. We then clamored to the front of the boat just in time to see a pair of dolphins riding the bow of our boat. They stayed there for a few moments before breaking off from the boat to rejoin their pod that quickly disappeared from sight. Even though it was a short encounter, I was psyched!

The boat arrived at port no more than twenty minutes after the dolphin sighting. The eleven people that had started their journey last Thursday disembarked and headed to the airport while we now waited for our new shipmates.

6:27 PM
We had two couples join our boat this afternoon; one from Switzerland and one from Belgium. For the next three days, only eight passengers would be on board.

We spent most of the afternoon walking through the Interpretation Center. This center is a museum that depicts the history of the islands from their formation many, many years ago up to the recent influx of tourists and residents.

After the Interpretation Center we had a few hours to walk around the small town. Adam and I shopped around for souvenirs before settling down a a bar that overlooked the port. WE enjoyed a couple of cervezas before heading back to the boat.

Next day - Gardner Bay (Espanola) and Punta Suarez (Espanola)

June 5, 2009

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Soaring Wonders and a Giant Blowhole

Espanola, Galapagos

12:00 PM
Man am I cold!! We just got back from snorkeling and it was very chilly. Normally, the sun is out and helps to warm you as you float around gazing at wildlife, but today there was no sun in sight. I can't speak enough kind words about my wetsuit today. Adam must have been freezing...

This morning we had a wet landing at Gardner Bay on Espanola where there is a large sea lion colony. I would have to say that these guys were the definite highlight of this landing.

For some reason, this colony had quite a bit more young sea lions than the previous colonies we had seen. I guess it goes without saying that with youth comes energy and curiousity.

The young sea lions had no issue waddling right up to you and sniffing your leg. I guess if they liked what they smelled, they'd plop right down at your feet and lay down, because that's what several did to myself and Sarah, one half of the German couple that was with us. If the sea lions had an ounce of timidness in their bones, they weren't showing it!! This allowed Adam to get some great close-up shots.

Just like the sea lions, the Galapagos Mockingbirds are not afraid to get right in your face, literally. One of them tried repeatedly to hop up onto Adam's back when he was squatting down to take a picture.

Snorkeling today, as mentioned before, was cold. But, that was quickly forgotten when we were joined by five to ten sea lions that were in the mood to play. It was funny to watch Jaime dive down below the water and imitate the sea lions. When Jaime did this, it made the sea lions even more playful. A couple of times I swear I was within an inch of getting a sea lion kiss!

I can't wait for this afternoon; Jaime says it's his favorite landing on the whole trip.

7:00 PM
Punta Suarez was fantastic!! Our dry landing was extremely diffcult going into big waves and then it was a hard walk all along rocks, but we saw Nazca boobies, swallow-tailed gulls, red-billed tropicbirds, many types of finches, and the Waved Albatross. Almost all of the world's 15,000 nesting pairs make their home on this island. Their wingspan can reach in excess of 7 feet; they are absolutely enormous!! I'll get back to the Albatross in a minute; let me tell you about the hike.

From our disembarkation point, we made our way along the shore to an area where there were large cliffs. It was a perfect nesting spot for numerous species of birds. We also walked right along a sandy area of the beach where the marine iguanas made their nests. From there, we made our way slightly inland to see the multiple nests of the Waved Albatross. I had heard of their immense wing span, so I was surprised to see that when on the ground, they were about the size of a swan. It wasn't until I saw one flying low overhead that I was absolutely floored by its wingspan!! Jaime explained that these birds have been known to glide for forty-eight hours without flapping their wings once!

We continued to walk through the nesting area. Off in the distance Adam noticed a rainbow that kept appearing and disappearing. It wasn't until we got closer that we noticed the water forming the rainbow was from a blowhole that had been made in the rocks from the waves continually smashing into them for thousands of years. As we neared the blowhole we began to realize just how high it reached. I'd say that with a good wave, the water that was ejected out of this hole easily reached over 100 feet in the air. Jaime decided that we would sit here for awhile to take the sights in; what a tranquil place.

After the stop, we continued along the cliffs to what was called "The Runway." This spot was a flat surface that led up to the edge of the cliff where the Albatross would take off from. Some of the Albatross would walk hundreds of yards just to get to this place, where a strong headwind and a steep drop-off aided in their launch into the air. I can only describe their take-offs as something like a hanglider. The Albatross would line themselves up perpendicular to the cliff, extend their wings, get a running start, and launch themselves off the edge. Very entertaining to watch!!

Making our way back inland, we came upon a dense Albatross nesting area. It was here where we witnessed their mating dance. What a sight it was! A male and female would stand facing each other and begin by clacking their beaks together. They would then raise their heads, open their beaks, pause, then bring their heads back down and clack their beaks once again. I'm not doing the dance/ritual justice, you should just check out the video I shot. Ignore my laughing; I just couldn't help it.

After witnessing this dance several times, we headed back to the boat for our debriefing and dinner.

Next day - Cormorant Point (Floreana) and Post Office Bay (Floreana)

June 6, 2009

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Flamingos, Post Office Bay, and Playful Sea Wolves

Floreana, Galapagos

That's right, I said Sea Wolves. The people who live on the Galapagos call sea lions 'Lobos.' The translation for Lobos is wolves, so I guess if I stretch it a bit, we swam with wolves... I know, I know, it's a bit far-fetched but let's forget about that and talk about the day.

10:15 AM
We had a wet landing on Floreana this morning. Cormorant Point used to have thousands of flamingos, but like Rabida Island, the lake is dying, so we only saw three. What I found to be the most interesting part of the island was the fact that we were surrounded by around 50 dormant volcanoes, far more than any previous island we had visited.

Towards the end of our visit on this part of the island, we visited a beach where the green sea turtles nest. Even though we did not see any turtles, we saw evidence that one had nested the night before and had left. We didn't see any babies hatching since it was daytime, but I guess if we had they would have been eaten by the frigate birds circling overhead. So that was a good thing.

Right now, I'm on the boat preparing to go snorkeling for the second to last time of our trip.

5:14 PM
Ahhhh, there's nothing like a Galapagos Sunset from a lounge chair on the top deck... It doesn't get much better than this.

During our first snorkeling session of the day, we saw some sea turtles and a couple of penguins. The penguin sighting was unusual at Floreana due to its warmer water.

After lunch, we had a wet landing at Post Office Bay where the crews of multiple ships were playing soccer. We walked over to the Post Office Barrel and started going through the mail looking for any post cards that were close to our home.

(Post Office Bay contains a wooden barrel that travelers put their post cards into. The way it works is travelers arriving look through the existing post cards and look for any that are near where they may be going. If there is one, they take the card with them and hand deliver it to the recipients)

We found two post cards that were less than twenty minutes from our home. I took these and plan on delivering them with a picture of the Post Office.

After dropping off our own two post cards, we headed back to the beach for our last snorkeling session. We walked into the water from the beach and were greeted instantly by the local sea lion population. I have to say, without a doubt, that the sea lions here were the most playful we had seen on our trip. I almost got a few kisses!!

After snorkeling for about thirty minutes, we climbed back onto our panga and headed back to the boat. Adam's napping next to me as I take in the last sunset that we'll witness on the Galapagos.

Next day - Santa Cruz and Quito

June 7, 2009

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Saying Goodbye to the Galapagos

Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos

What a trip!! I can't believe we saw what we did in such a short time!! I only hope future trips can compare to what we saw here.

2:45 PM
We're on the plane in Guayaquil waiting to depart for Quito. While we're waiting, I'll fill you in on this morning.

We woke up this morning and had breakfast at 6 a.m. Usually, breakfast is at 7, but because we wanted to get to the Tortoise Reserve before our flight, we left an hour earlier than the rest of the group. Our guide this morning was Pato, who was the same person that brought us from the airport to our boat on the first day.

We traveled to the highlands to a farm where we saw six giant tortoises in their natural habitat. It was nice to see these guys in their natural habitat, but they weren't nearly as active as the ones we saw at the Darwin Center. The reserve is actually a farm, and on the farm there were three tortoise shells from giant tortoises that had acutally "gone to the farm." I climbed in one for a photo op and guilted Adam to do the same.

After touring the reserve, we didn't have time to go to the lava tunnels, but we were able to go to Los Gemelos (the twins). These are two giant craters created from the land collapsing around a volcano. Pato led us up to the top of one for a stunning view of the surrounding countryside.

We took in the views, climbed back into the truck that was bringing us to the ferry, and made it to the airport around an hour before our boarding time. Pato brought us over to get our passports stamped with the Galapagos Tortoise stamp and we boarded our plane.

8:35 PM
We're back in our hotel room at the Hotel Eugenia in Quito.

We landed around 4 p.m., waited around for our guide, then headed to the hotel. We checked in and rushed back out to Mercado Artesenal to buy some souvenirs. We ended up picking up a couple of bright, woven handbags, a pasmina scarf, and a couple of cigars for the bachelor party Adam was heading to when we got back.

Once we arrived back at the hotel, we hoofed it about two blocks away to a local restaurant called La Rondo.
The restaurant was adorable. Where we sat it looked like an outdoor square with murals all over the walls. The food was absolutely delicious - Ecuadorian and extremely filling.

After dinner, we decided to take a taxi back after the doorman stated, "La ciudad es muy peligrosa." The ride came to two dollars and, in my opinion, was well worth it for piece of mind.

We settled into our hotel room for the night, exhausted but utterly amazed at the fantastic trip we had just taken.

Tomorrow morning we'll take a flight back from Quito, to Miami, to New York, but I'll save you the boring details and end my journal now.

This trip was one of those 'once in a lifetime' trips; but I'm only 24 so I certainly don't plan on stopping now. In fact, we're planning our next trip already and I hope it's as fantastic as this, so much for once in a lifetime, right?