(Friday-Wednesday, 10-15 July 2009)
Google map: http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=pt-PT&geocode=&q=galapagos,+ecuador&sll=-0.2108,-78.654556&sspn=2.691385,5.603027&ie=UTF8&ll=-0.626208,-82.814941&spn=10.750135,22.412109&z=6
I thought about it and debated with myself quite extensively whether or not to go to the Galapagos islands. I mean, on the one hand the islands are “just next door” from Ecuador’s mainland, and are definitely considered to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity not to be missed when it’s so close to you. On the other hand, you are afraid of regretting.
Why regretting?
Well, first it’s a considerable investment. Of money, as going to the islands multiplies your thin backpacker’s weekly budget a few times. But also of time, as you need to commit a significant period – of, say, at least a week – which you could spend elsewhere doing other things.
Second, it’s the type of trip you're required to do. You cannot really go around the islands and just visit the natural park on your own, the way you want. You need to be in the company of an authorised naturalist guide (who explains you the things, and checks how you behave!), which in practice means you need to be on a tour. On a boat tour – when you sleep and eat on a boat that takes you from island to island – or a land tour – when you’re based inland and take day-trips to the islands around. But always a tour... So, the worst fears took shape in my mind: a Disney-like experience, where you don’t feel you’re in a natural place but rather in a zoo, with so many old American tourists around you, dressed like they’re about to start a month-long adventure in the deep jungle, and taking pictures while seating on a turtle…
Well, despite the nightmarish fears, I decided to give it a try - the argument of “once-in-a-life-time opportunity” just next door was just too strong. I’m glad I did.
My fears of encountering a Disney fair were unfound. Yes, there was the huge boat of National Geographic, with more than 100 old American tourists dressed exactly as I imagined them, paying 3 or 4 times more than I did only to live in a cruise-like luxury, have a glass-bottom small boat to be able to see the sea life, and a cinema projection room to watch movies about the wildlife in the Galapagos, as some of them aren’t even in physical conditions to step out of the boat and visit the islands!! Go figure why they went there in the first place…
Yes, there are large boats like that one of National Geographic. And there are quite a few boats overall, big and small. But the natural park regulates “who’s where when”, which means that each boat has the opportunity to be on a particular spot at a certain time of the day without being troubled by anyone else. And my boat was as small as you can get, with only 10 passengers, all of them quite young and likeminded – I guess the fact you’re sleeping in tiny places with no luxury at all, and you pay a fraction of the upper class fees, helps “filter” the type of traveller you meet onboard. This meant I could always visit the places in quite a small group, with interesting and fun people around who can behave and make of the short walks fairly natural experiences.
And there was, of course, the natural life. It’s mind-blowing how pretty much all the animals are ABSOLUTELY FEARLESS of men. Such fearlessness doesn’t feel artificial, like the animals got used to people – or were trained to get used to them – only to enrich your tourist experience. No, you actually feel like Charles Darwin felt in 19th century: that these animals live in a completely different environment, are so used not to have many predators around – and men in particular! – that they seem almost too stupid not to move away from you…
But what does that mean – that you can get closer to the animals and take great pictures? Well, actually more than that…
By travelling around the islands you happen to see species that exist only in the Galapagos, and you can witness extraordinary examples of evolutionism, of how animals and plants populated a deserted archipelago millions of years ago and slowly got adjusted to its unique environment, often showing nuances of adaptation from island to island. The fact you have a naturalist guide explaining all those stories to you when you’re eye-to-eye contact with the animal in question makes you understand things differently. I mean, if I had seen all this in a movie or read about it in a magazine I would have probably forgotten most of it by now; instead, I think I’ll keep some of the nature stories I heard in the Galapagos for years to come.
And then you have the possibility of just seating somewhere for a long time, looking at the animals going about their daily lives, without interfering with them. And by just staring for long you’re suddenly allowed to “enter” in their world, and notice things you’d never notice otherwise. For instance, that a booby bird has to dive 7 or 8 times before it catches a fish. Or how sea lions sleep quietly in the golden sand up to the moment when the tide gets too high and a first wave gets them wet – at that point, barely awake, they move a few centimetres further up, only to be awaken again by another wave a few minutes later and repeat the short, slow and sleepy movement. And they do that over and over again, for as long as the tide rises or there is dry sand to move to.
Google map: http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=pt-PT&geocode=&q=galapagos,+ecuador&sll=-0.2108,-78.654556&sspn=2.691385,5.603027&ie=UTF8&ll=-0.626208,-82.814941&spn=10.750135,22.412109&z=6
I thought about it and debated with myself quite extensively whether or not to go to the Galapagos islands. I mean, on the one hand the islands are “just next door” from Ecuador’s mainland, and are definitely considered to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity not to be missed when it’s so close to you. On the other hand, you are afraid of regretting.
Why regretting?
Well, first it’s a considerable investment. Of money, as going to the islands multiplies your thin backpacker’s weekly budget a few times. But also of time, as you need to commit a significant period – of, say, at least a week – which you could spend elsewhere doing other things.
Second, it’s the type of trip you're required to do. You cannot really go around the islands and just visit the natural park on your own, the way you want. You need to be in the company of an authorised naturalist guide (who explains you the things, and checks how you behave!), which in practice means you need to be on a tour. On a boat tour – when you sleep and eat on a boat that takes you from island to island – or a land tour – when you’re based inland and take day-trips to the islands around. But always a tour... So, the worst fears took shape in my mind: a Disney-like experience, where you don’t feel you’re in a natural place but rather in a zoo, with so many old American tourists around you, dressed like they’re about to start a month-long adventure in the deep jungle, and taking pictures while seating on a turtle…
Well, despite the nightmarish fears, I decided to give it a try - the argument of “once-in-a-life-time opportunity” just next door was just too strong. I’m glad I did.
My fears of encountering a Disney fair were unfound. Yes, there was the huge boat of National Geographic, with more than 100 old American tourists dressed exactly as I imagined them, paying 3 or 4 times more than I did only to live in a cruise-like luxury, have a glass-bottom small boat to be able to see the sea life, and a cinema projection room to watch movies about the wildlife in the Galapagos, as some of them aren’t even in physical conditions to step out of the boat and visit the islands!! Go figure why they went there in the first place…
Yes, there are large boats like that one of National Geographic. And there are quite a few boats overall, big and small. But the natural park regulates “who’s where when”, which means that each boat has the opportunity to be on a particular spot at a certain time of the day without being troubled by anyone else. And my boat was as small as you can get, with only 10 passengers, all of them quite young and likeminded – I guess the fact you’re sleeping in tiny places with no luxury at all, and you pay a fraction of the upper class fees, helps “filter” the type of traveller you meet onboard. This meant I could always visit the places in quite a small group, with interesting and fun people around who can behave and make of the short walks fairly natural experiences.
And there was, of course, the natural life. It’s mind-blowing how pretty much all the animals are ABSOLUTELY FEARLESS of men. Such fearlessness doesn’t feel artificial, like the animals got used to people – or were trained to get used to them – only to enrich your tourist experience. No, you actually feel like Charles Darwin felt in 19th century: that these animals live in a completely different environment, are so used not to have many predators around – and men in particular! – that they seem almost too stupid not to move away from you…
But what does that mean – that you can get closer to the animals and take great pictures? Well, actually more than that…
By travelling around the islands you happen to see species that exist only in the Galapagos, and you can witness extraordinary examples of evolutionism, of how animals and plants populated a deserted archipelago millions of years ago and slowly got adjusted to its unique environment, often showing nuances of adaptation from island to island. The fact you have a naturalist guide explaining all those stories to you when you’re eye-to-eye contact with the animal in question makes you understand things differently. I mean, if I had seen all this in a movie or read about it in a magazine I would have probably forgotten most of it by now; instead, I think I’ll keep some of the nature stories I heard in the Galapagos for years to come.
And then you have the possibility of just seating somewhere for a long time, looking at the animals going about their daily lives, without interfering with them. And by just staring for long you’re suddenly allowed to “enter” in their world, and notice things you’d never notice otherwise. For instance, that a booby bird has to dive 7 or 8 times before it catches a fish. Or how sea lions sleep quietly in the golden sand up to the moment when the tide gets too high and a first wave gets them wet – at that point, barely awake, they move a few centimetres further up, only to be awaken again by another wave a few minutes later and repeat the short, slow and sleepy movement. And they do that over and over again, for as long as the tide rises or there is dry sand to move to.
.
Those moments are what made of this a once-in-a-lifetime experience. One to remember.
=== DAY 1 - Isla Seymour ===
Pelicans - a constant company by the boat; I guess they liked the crowds of fish that gathered to feed from the animals and algae attached to the bottom of the boat
A marine iguana. Dark as the volcanic rocks, it feeds in the sea where it can stay underwater for up 1h and go deeper than 10m. This is for the males, as females and cubs feed closer to shore. They're much smaller than their land "cousins", but there is something "dark" about this animal that seeds respect in you. I don't know, they make me think of... Darth Vader. Or Jeff Vader, better said!
A blue-footed booby. You can't imagine the number of different t-shirts with stupid jokes around this animal ("I love boobies, regardless of their colour" kind of thing...) that are sold in the Galapagos. Anyway, if you see a bird launching itself from really high to dive deep in the water in order to fish, it's likely to be one of these...
A baby blue-footed booby. No, its curiosity doesn't come from its young age. That's how animals are in Galapagos - birds, iguanas, sea lions, you name it! - completely relaxed about human presence, continuing with their lives (hunting, feeding, mating, sleeping) as you wouldn't be there (OK, some of them might divert their attention to the camera!). It's really how you see it on TV...
Mum and baby, reunited
Male magnificent frigatebird. What's the big red "thing"? It means he's looking for a partner and is showing off...
Land iguana. As I said, these are much bigger than their marine cousins! They feed from cactuses' fruit, so you have the males fighting hard for a place under the shade... of a cactus. They don't see that well, but have quite good hearing. They can identify a fruit dropping from a cactus from very far. But if you drop a rock, trying to emulate the fruit dropping, the animal won't even move. Call it stupid!
Gnome vs. sea lion. First encounter, round 1
Like I said before - a sea lion behaving like you aren't there. OK, it helps it's not an alpha-male...
Frigatebirds, always flying close to the boat. By the way, these ones don't have their red "things" inflated, meaning they're not flirting while looking for a mate
Great day, wasn't it gnome? Don't think more about it..._
=== DAY 2 - Islas Plazas & Isla Santa Fe ===
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The one on the right: I want to bring him home! I'm kidding here, but people find these animals so lovely that ofen want to pet them. It's stupid to do that with an adult - you shouldn't interfere with any animal! - but even more so with a club. When they're a few months old only, their mothers will reject them if they sense a new smell. That's why you often see the bodies of small dead clubs close to the trails where visitors can walk. Stupid, stupid people!
Yes, they're "doing it". As I said, like on TV...
A few seconds after this photo, the iguana was trying to climb up my leg. For no clear reason, they seemed to like my shoestrings. I didn't move at all, steady as a stone - you're told not to interfere with the wild life, right? The iguana gave up on its intentions and moved on shortly after
Many, many iguanas. They all heard a cactus fruit falling...
... but only the winner gets the spoils!
Just snorkelling in the Galapagos is better than any diving I have done anywhere else. In this paradisiacal bay in Isla Santa Fe I swam with sea lions and two huge turtles. Perfect visibility, incredible diversity of animals (fish, mammals, reptiles) - all of them as fearless and curious of you as their land counterparts
Sea lion colony, in the same bay in Isla Santa Fe. We didn't swim wirh these sea lions in particular earlier in the day - we were told not to get close to the beach, as the alpha males that rule the colony can get quite defensive of their privileged spot. A sandy beach provides the perfect place to rest (and reproduce!), with easy entry & exit to the sea... The sea lions sleeping on the rocks (who are either small clubs, females or loser males), are far friendlier and the ones who come to you in the water to play
I was absolutely amazed here. After returning from the sea lion colony, the captain of the boat pointed to a large group of spotted-eagle rays (http://carlaperson.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/spotted-eagle-ray-xx.jpg) swimming around the boat. Apparently they come to this beautiful bay at dusk, to seek protection from sharks during the night. I didn't think twice: got the snorkelling gear back on (you need a wet suit - the water is not that warm!) and swam for 20 minutes with dozens and dozens of eagle rays around me. They're so gracious, elegant and peaceful! What an experience! When I took this photo I had just gotten out of the water a few minutes ago and, as I said, was still absolutely amazed..._
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=== DAY 3 - Isla Española ===
=== DAY 3 - Isla Española ===
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Marine iguanas. Many, many of them! They get so close together to try and warm up with the sun. These ones, native from Isla Española, are recognisable by their red colour. It's one of those evolutionism tricks of the Galapagos - one species, spread out on a few islands, is led to develop into different shapes and forms in each of the islands, as each environment is somehow different from the next, and the new "breeds" are no longer in contact with eachother. And thinking there are people trying to teach their kids that evolutionism is a lie. God bless the bible!
Nazca booby. Yes, there are many different types of boobies in the Galapagos... This is the biggest type, and nests often close to the cliffs, and is particularly abundant in this island as there are no natural predators around
This is what I mean about the fearlessness of the animals in the Galapagos. Try to do this to a wild bird back home...
Albatrosses - did you know that they keep their partners for life? And that if one dies, the other will soon look for a new mate? Not much widowing going on there! Isla Española is a great nesting place for the albatrosses, with the males migrating in January, but the females staying behind a bit longer to ensure the safety of their babies. Once the cubs' heads turn yellow, it means they're mature and can mate. Interesting fact: if when the young males become mature they are surrounded only by other males, they rape each other!
The landscape in the Galapagos is not particularly attractive - a part from a few nice bays and beaches, the islands look more like the moon than anything else: rocky, arid, unappealing. This bit of shore in Isla Española, from where the albatrosses take flight, is an exception to the rule. It reminded me the shoreline around Peniche, Portugal: wild and beautiful. Interesting facts on the albatrosses' flight: they're very large birds, so need a lot of thrust to take off and land - they often take as long as 4h to land, as they need the wind to help them break on their way down; as to taking off, it's easier - they just jump off these windy cliffs...
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=== DAY 4 - Isla Floreana ===
This lake is flamingo land. Can you see any?
Staring at paradise, in flamingo land. Although inviting, the sea water is not recommendable here - sting rays tend to lie on the shallow water, to protect themselves from predators by hiding in the sand. If you step on them, it will hurt. I could see many, many, many of them
I told you - flamingo land! I finally saw them on our way back from the beach. Did you know they get this colour from the shrimp they eat? And that if you feed them in captivity, even if with the same diet, they will never turn pink, and remain white all their lives? I didn't...
The best kept to the end: "the devil's crown". This is what is left of a volcano's crater (it's submerging bit by bit) and it's now a paradise of sea life. Despite the strong currents, snorkelling here is like visiting a giant aquarium. Huge variety of fish, rays, turtles... and sharks! Yes, a fantastic sighting of a white-tip reef shark (http://farm1.static.flickr.com/99/303368824_a2e99a0dc4.jpg). Harmless sighting, but still impressive!=== DAY 5 - Diving around Isla Santa Fe ===
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This is what I mean by sea lions playing with you in the water. And that's why I want to bring one home!_
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Spotted-eagle rays' "group dance". Like I said before: gracious, elegant and peaceful!
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