A 10 day trip to Quito and a cruise around the Galapagos Islands with my fellow JREFers! What could be more fun? Well, maybe trying to blog the trip. Can I pull it off, or will I fail miserably? Stay tuned!
Monday, August 18, 2008
Leaving
Sunday morning, and time for us to leave. One last zodiac ride to shore. Then to the Baltra airport. did I mention it before? that’s it in the picture above. And that’s us walking to our plane. As we were leaving, another group was on the ship, seeing for the first time the things we first saw
Sunday, August 17, 2008
My crystal blinks red
Last full day of the cruise, and we spent it at Santa Cruz Island, landing at Puerto Ayora. In the morning, we went up to the highlands, where local farmers grow fruit. We didn’t go to see fruit, but to see the Galapagos Tortoises that walk over to the farms from the National Park to graze on the
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Almost a day of snorkeling
It’s Friday, and you know what that means! More adventure in the Galapagos!. Again, two daily excursions, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, both with snorkeling.
There is a process to the snorkeling here on the boat. When you leave in the zodiac, you take your gear with you then leave
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Lava Flows
Our first landing was at Urbina Bay on Isabela. 60 years ago, the bay was underwater. About 50 years ago the land lifted, moving the shoreline about 1 kilometer out from the old shore. The beach was a mixture of volcanic sand and dead coral.
Our first sight was a flightless cormorant in the
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Penguins
Wednesday morning was a trip to the island of Santa Cruz and Bachas Beach. No hike involved this time, just a quick snorkeling trip. The view was of fish, including Yellow Tailed Surgeon and Parrot Fish.
The afternoon was a zodiac ride followed by snorkeling off the landing beach. While the other
