Ecuador - June 26, 2023
Galapagos!
We departed Quito last Friday, June 23rd for the next leg of our adventure: The Galapagos Islands. We did a quick trip and returned today Monday, June 26th, but we were able to pack in a lot of fun along the way!
What made this trip extra special was that our friends, Leigh and Brock, were able to join us on this trip. Leigh and I have been friends since our days at SMU and our study abroad in Spain, so meeting up with her and Brock here in Ecuador was so much fun!
Quito
Leigh and Brock did not arrive in Quito until late in the afternoon the Thursday before we left. That didn't leave a lot of time for touring so we opted for a leisurely walk through Carolina Park and an early dinner at De la Llama.
This restaurant had incredible Ecuadorian food. We loved the limonada de coco (coconut lemonade), traditional green plantain and cheese empanadas, and the shrimp ceviche.
For dessert we indulged in chocolate lava cake and crème brulee, everything was delicious!
Isla Baltra
The next morning we all headed for the airport for our flight to Isla Baltra. There are some special documentation and fees associated with traveling to the Galapagos, but once that was taken care of we were off!
Once we landed on the tarmac and went through customs, where they check your documentation and you pay an additional National Parks fee, we headed for the bus. Everyone landing here is funneled to the bus ($5/adult, $2.50/kids) and then onto a ferry ($1/person) to cross the canal to Isla Santa Cruz. This is where the main town is located. Once we crossed on the ferry it was about a 40-minute taxi ride to Puerto Ayora (the port and only real town on the island). Our hotel, Hotel Ninfa, was conveniently one block off the main road and pier (el muelle), a fantastic location!
The first thing we did we head out to el muelle (the pier) to spot wildlife. You can spend hours here looking into the clear water and spotting all kinds of wildlife, or just walk the pier to find a sea lion taking a nap on a bench! We spotted Sally Lightfoot crabs, black tip reef sharks, and juvenile marine iguanas.
We then walked the main road, Charles Darwin Avenue, sipping fresh coconut water and basking in the sunshine and warm weather; quite the contrast to Quito! We had fresh sushi at Midori. Both David and Rick have really developed a liking for sushi on this trip and I think our time in the Galapagos sealed their love of all types of seafood!
We spent the remainder of the evening walking the pier and watching the wildlife.
Day Tour: Galapagos Tortoises
Saturday we were up bright and early for a full-day tour of Isla Santa Cruz and the Galapagos Tortoises. We booked our guide, Jose, through Tours By Locals and had a beautiful day! To access any national park property on the island (which is most of the island!) you must be accompanied by a certified guide. Jose was a wealth of information about how the islands were formed, endemic species found on the islands, and the threats that are posed to these animals today.
The first stop of the day was the Twin Craters. These are two natural sinkhole formations. We did a lovely hike through this area and were lucky enough to spot some yellow warblers and Darwin finches. We also learned that any large blooming flowers are not endemic to the Galapagos, only the very small yellow and white flowers are native to the island.
Next up on the itinerary was Rancho Primicias. Here we saw these adorable barn owls and got to explore a huge lava tunnel! I was amazed at the sheer size of it!
Once we made it to the other side (David was getting worried we would never find the end!), we got to see the tortoises that freely roamed the property. Even though this is a privately owned ranch, they do not own the tortoises and they wander through their land freely. There are no fences nor do they feed them. Since this ranch borders the national park, the tortoises roam here and we were lucky to see quite a few large ones on our tour! They also had an interactive exhibit where we could try on a shell for size!
It is worth watching this video that Richard captured all the way through to the end. We were just casually observing these tortoises when one of the males decided to (slowly) challenge the other male for his spot in the shade! Our guide said that this is really unusual to see, especially because the confrontation went beyond a quick shove. Shout out to Richard for patiently capturing this moment on video!
We began with a walk through the park where we got to learn all about the breeding program here in the Galapagos. The program has been wildly successful at hatching and then fostering the tortoises until age seven (when they can safely avoid the dangers of rats) where they are then released into the wild. I think we all enjoyed seeing the hatchlings and baby tortoises -- they were so cute!
Also at the Charles Darwin Center is a mausoleum in honor of Lonely George, the last tortoise of his species who died in 2012.
We were happily exhausted at the end of the day. Seeing these giants in their natural habitat was truly awesome. We of course when back to the pier to relax and watch for wildlife. Richard's patience and video recording skills once again paid off! Check out this video of a Lava Heron catching dinner:
Beach Day!
Sunday was our last full day in the Galapagos. We packed quite a bit in, starting with taking a water taxi to see Playa Alemanes and Las Grietas.
First, we walked to Las Grietas, which included a guided walk until you arrived at the formation. Due to volcanic activity and shifting tectonic plates, this gorge has formed and the water is very clear.
Once you reach the formation, you walk down several staircases to get to a small dock where you can jump off and snorkel. However, it was very crowded when we went and we almost turned around because of the large groups there. Luckily, a fellow traveler saw that there were young kids around (lots of families besides us) and ushered people into the water so we could sit on the dock edge. Richard helped Rick figure out the snorkel and then he and I took turns swimming in the water. The kids could not go out though because the water was 30 feet deep and we did not feel comfortable with the number of people. Regardless, the formation was absolutely stunning and I really enjoyed the walk to get there!
We then had lunch at Isla Grill right on the waterfront! Leigh and Brock parted ways with us so they could get some rest and relaxation while Richard and I took the boys to Playa Alemanes for some beach time! I have to say this was hands down the best beach for us! The beach is a quiet cove that is very shallow so Rick and David could freely swim without Richard and I having to worry about undercurrents and rip tides. The water was so clear that we walked out to the rocks (again it was shallow the whole way!), perched on the rocks and saw an amazing variety of fish. We saw dozens of purple fish with yellow-tipped fins and one bright teal fish! On shore, we spotted a huge marine iguana, a blue heron, and a White-cheeked pintail duck! We ended up staying for over two hours, it was perfection.
You would think that the boys would have been tired after this very busy day, but as soon as we got to the hotel they wanted to jump in the pool!
Quito Again!
On Monday it was time to pack up (after a morning stroll down the pier of course!) and head back to our temporary home here in Quito. We are already talking about wanting to come back for a longer stay so we can explore some of the other islands in this unique part of the world. Both boys were teary when we left, Rick especially said he was going to miss seeing the sharks. Seeing how much they loved this experience made myself and Richard appreciate it one hundred times more.
