San Cristobal, Galapagos

We have been here in the Galapagos for only ten days and yet when we contemplate the amount of wildlife we have seen, and the adventures we have had it is almost overwhelming! We are definitely very happy with our decision to get an “autografo” permit which allows us extra time here in the islands. I won’t describe each day that we’ve been here, but some of the highlights so far…

We shared a taxi/guide with some folks from “Pipistrelle” and spent a day touring the highlands of San Cristobal Island. We visited the “Galapaguera” or the Tortoise breeding centre, where hatchlings are raised and returned to the wild. We also hiked around the old volcanic crater of “El Junco” which is now lush and green after recent rain and had lots of Frigatebirds (both species: Magnificent and Great) splashing in the water to clean their feathers.

We’ve spent several mornings walking the trails near the visitor centre, trying to decipher the different Darwin Finches, not easy without calipers for some species! We’ve also spent a few days with a picnic lunch on a beach called “La Loberia” (sealion beach) where we snorkeled in a natural pool, sheltered from the swell by lava rocks. This pool was filled with fishes and we’ve patiently managed to identify most of them. But the real highlight here was four very relaxed Green Turtles. They rested on the bottom while several wrasse cleaned their shells or they grazed the algae on the rocks while we hovered near them taking photos.

Stephen and Green Turtle in La Loberia

Yesterday we splurged on a scuba diving tour and visited the infamous “Kicker Rock” which is an interesting vertical rock formation, with a small channel running through it. We did two dives here and lost count of the Galapagos Sharks and we saw a few Hammerheads!

Now we are heading off to Isabel, the largest island in the Galapagos, where we hope to see some penguins!!!