We left Coco Island, Costa Rica and headed for the famed Galapagos Archipelago. What your looking at here is our navigation screen. It’s just a larger version of the ones you now see in cars. We don’t have streets….We have Islands, Continents and Reefs!…. Of the four times I’ve crossed the equator by sail, this was the first time it happened in daylight. The Equator…..
We took a photo of our GPS screen readout. The local time is actually Greenwich Mean Time also known as UTC or “Universal Time Coordinated”…..This in deference to the French!.. We crossed the “Line”, just under 90 degrees WEST of Greenwich, England. The Equator…..
It’s a long story which you can read in Cindy’s “Ship’s Log” (diary section) of our website. But we first headed to Academy Bay on Santa Cruz Island 45 miles to the west of San Cristobal. It was so uncomfortable at the anchorage, we left in the middle of the night and were advised that San Cristobal’s “Wreck Bay” was much calmer…..IT WAS!…. Lot’s of our California Sea Lion friends live here. It’s the only place in the tropics on earth where sea lions live. AND yes, they are the exact same guys and gals we have in Southern California….. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
Cindy and I were planning on being off the boat for a week while diving with M/V “Sky Dancer, a live aboard dive boat. We love our sea lion friends, but the “leavings” were none too pleasant so we had to put this managerie up on both our swim steps while we were gone. When we got back, one of the bins full of water was gone!…. Evidence of our pinnaped buddies was found from steps to cockpit. I cleaned up before Cindy got back from “Sky Dancer”…. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
The Galapagos Islands are about 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador and straddle the equator with it’s 17 major islands. The entire archipelago is a national park. For those of you who don’t know, Ecuador owns the islands. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
Welcome to San Cristobal. This is the second most populus of the islands. About 2500 people and a port of entry. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
Thoughout the islands, most of the wildlife is pretty non-plussed by we humans. Most notably our sea lion friends. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
Of course here, where Charles Darwin as a young man spent only 17 days (total!) in the Galapagos; everything is about…..well, Charles Darwin. He truly was perhaps one of the most insightful scientists of all time. But if you think the “Origin of Species” is a riveting read……forget it….I tried! Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
Well, Ecuador is a very Catholic country and as such, right here on Charles Darwin avenue is another opinion. Note the sign is in ENGLISH, not Spanish…… Know thy target audience. Actually Darwin wrote that he put off publishing his works for decades due to his concern over the reaction of the Church. The Captain of “HMS Beagle”, who was a very religious man, respected but strongly disagreed with Darwins findings. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
Here is the graphic of the overall grouping of the major Galpagos Islands. Most notably, “Darwin” and “Wolf” are 130 miles north of San Cristobal. They would become two of our favorites as we saw many sharks and one whale shark. (See Cindy Swims with a Whale Shark in our Video Gallery) Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
The guy on the right is “Balthazar”, he was our agent. It’s lots easier to just pay up and use the agents in many countries when doing formalities. The Galapagos is no exception. The young lady dutifully stamped us in. Due to Galapagain (pronounced Galap-a-gay-in) rules, we were only allowed to have “Beach House” at one island. All other travel had to be via tourist transport. Read that as “Cha-ching”. We’re here to take your dollars!.. By the way, the dollar IS the currency of the Galapagos. If we had gone through exhaustive pre-arrangements we could have obtained an “autographo” which would have allowed us to take “Beach House” to three islands. Most of the islands are off limits to private boats without a very expensive “live aboard” guide!… Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
This is a mix of commercial and private craft. You can see how calm it is here. Santa Cruz island had 6 foot swells rolling in, no fun. Cruisers to the right, locals to the left. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
The main waterfront street is the highlight of the town. Very touristy. Lots of activity here where the cruisers collected at the restaurant right at the foot of the dock. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
This is what the Galapagos is all about…Species! Lots of them. These islands with there slight variations from island to island opened Charles Darwin’s mind to what would become one of the most intriguing theories of all time. He did not coin the term “survival of the fitest” as many people think. But rather, he showed how adaptation allowed species to survive. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
We took a guide and his cab for a half day tour of San Cristobal. There is only so much road on the island and as such, it’s easy enough to do in a half a day. Of course, no tour would have been complete without……SEA LIONS. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
Now here’s something you don’t see everyday. Unless of course your in the Galapagos. The islands have thousands of these algae eating characters. Here, we observe nature!… San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
Only a face a mother could love?…. We were able to get within a few feet of our Iguana friends. The terestial versions are much prettier (as you’ll see later in this gallery). But for sheer numbers, these guys were amazing….and everywhere. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
I really had fun photographing these guys. Nice pose. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
This was the beginning of one of the extinct craters on San Cristobal. There are two volcanos on Isla Isabela (75 miles to the east) that are actually erupting at this time! San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
A pretty good job of describing the sites on signs is found throughout the islands. Always in Spanish and mostly in English as well. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
There is one tortise reserve on San Cristobal. About 50 tortise are here and they have a breeding program as well. 80% of the eggs survive at the reserve whereas only 20% survive outside the reserve. Predation is the problem. Mostly rats introduced by mainlanders and old sailing ships prior to anyone’s understanding of the impact outsiders could have on the islands. san
San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
Yes they get bigger, but these guys are in the reserve. We saw some about twice this guys size. In the 1600 & 1700’s there were over 200,000 tortise’s in the Galapagos. When sailing ships arrived, they simply collected them, placed them onboard their ships and had a fresh source of meat for months. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
We were fortunate. Apparently the big guys don’t always come out and pose. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
There are actually about 10 species of giant tortise and almost all are specific to an island. This finding was one of the pieces of the puzzle Darwin used to theorize “On The Origin of Species”. Why would these tortises become distinct? In short, environmental adaptation was his answer. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
The tortise often eat the manzanita fruit. It’s poisionous to most species, but they adapted to it and are often seen eating the fruit as well as the stalks. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
Prehistoric comes to mind. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
In fact, the lovable “ET” from the movie was based on this truly unique face. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
Your world is amazing small when you sleep and don’t travel much faster than 1/2 mile an hour. And at that for very short periods of time. Due to their unusally slow metabolisms, they can live over 100 years if left alone. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
To my leather necked friend…. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
Their thick skins protect them from the annoying insects that constantly buzz about them. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
Mugging for the camera….I’m sure…:) San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
This little guy showed up at the tortise reserve and was one of the main players in Darwin’s work. Him and his dozen or so cousins that all diversified based on feeding strategies. Genetically originating from the same bird millions of years ago. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
At about 2-4 years old, the tortise get over a foot long and can fend for themselves. Prior to that, dogs, rats, even some birds can kill them. This guy’s got about a year to go before they let him out of his breeding pen. I’m shooting this through a protective fence. He’s about 10 inches long. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
For a little perspective, you can see the size of a juvenille. They do get up to about twice this size. San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
San Cristobal Island Tortise Reserve – Galapagos
For many visitors, this is the way to see the Galapagos. Live in luxury, short hops between islands and guided tours. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
As the distances between the islands was so great and in the brief period of time we would be in the islands (limit 21 days!), we thought it best to go diving with the locals. “Sky Dancer” is a liveaboard dive boat formerly owned by Peter Hughes who has just been bought out by “The Agressor Fleet”. At about 120 feet, their motto is “Eat, Sleep and Dive”. We and several others from around the world did just that. Isla Santa Fe – Galapagos Islands
This is one of the signature landmarks of the Galapagos which we visted on M/V “Sky Dancer”. We got to snorkel with the penguins here. Again, the only place on earth where penguins live in the tropics. San Bartolome – Galapagos Islands
Geologically, the Galapagos are young and still actively forming. San Bartolome – Galapagos Islands
This is one of the “postcard” shots that most people take if they get to visit here. Unfortunately the light wasn’t ideal….but you get the picture…..:) San Bartolome – Galapagos Islands
San Bartolome – Galapagos Islands
There are something like 385 steps to the top. Obiviously someone needed something to do while making this trek. San Bartolome – Galapagos Islands
The very large salvage ship seen behind “Sky Dancer” was attempting to lift a ship that sank here within the last few years. San Bartolome – Galapagos Islands
Well diving is why were here and dive we did. This is William one of our two dive masters giving a briefing on diving at “Darwin Arch”, Darwin Island. This island is only about one square mile and has sheer cliffs all around. It is a major bird nesting area and the best place for seeing Hammer Head and Galapagos Sharks (See our Galapagos UNDERWATER Gallery) for up close encounters. This is where we saw the whale shark (one dive only!) as well. Darwin Island – Galapagos Islands
This is the famed arch itself. We dove out of large inflatables in two groups of about 8 people including the dive masters. During the late Fall, many encounters with Whale Sharks occur here. We were most fortunate to see a big guy out of season. Darwin Island – Galapagos Islands
Before every dive, the staff would give a briefing of conditions, what we were likely to see, etc. Sometimes entertaining, sometimes not. Sky Dancer – Galapagos Islands
Well, the gang all posed nicely. Karen on the left from London (Honeymooning, Husband not shown) and Johan on the right from Curacao in the Caribbean. The staff pumps your tank, helps you into gear and away you go. Sky Dancer – Galapagos Islands
Angus is from New Zealand and we hope to catch up with him next year in NZ!… Dave is a retired astronaut from San Franciso……Well at least he’s out of this world…..:) Sky Dancer – Galapagos Islands
Our Canadian contingent!….Pauline on the left and “Taz” on the right ( another retired Dentist!…. I just can’t get away from it uh?)…. Sky Dancer – Galapagos Islands
Raul is in the center. He was known as “OPEN THE GATES” Raoul. (This is a reference to the crew to let us start the dive). He also was on the Seven Eleven team in the Tour de France on one of Lance Armstrongs many wins. Raoul took the still photos I posted of the whale shark. Hey, I can only shoot one camera at a time…. Raoul….”OPEN THE GATE”….:) Sky Dancer – Galapagos Islands
Many have asked what I shoot underwater. This is my erector set. It weighs 20 lbs. out of the water, but is fortunately weightless in the water. It’s still a beast to swim with. But if you enjoy the underwater photos, it’s worth it. Camera, arms and two strobes. In Spanish, “Cangrejo” means crab. I of course had to chose whether to bring the video or the still camera on a dive. When I chose the still camera, the guys said, he’s diving with the “cangrejo”….(The Crab)…. Sky Dancer – Galapagos Islands
When we arrived in Santa Cruz on our last day. I saw this sign and couldn’t resist. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
This Frigate bird apparently needed a rest on the way back to Santa Cruz en route to San Cristobal Sky Dancer – Galapagos Islands
This is the National Geographic vessel that does boutique Galapagos tours. We first saw them in Magdelena Bay in 2007 doing whale watching tours. San Felipe Island – Galapagos Islands
Near the end of the ride, we did some more land touring Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
An insurance salesman here? Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
These gaggles of iguanas were a common site. Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
I’m not sure which one is the dive master in this group, but I was sure there was a dive briefing going on. Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
You know the rest… Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
No she didn’t, nor we’re we allowed to touch. But as this range they do look cute. Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
The biomass of the islands is diverse and extensive. The Ecuadorians have taken draconian policies to keep it that way. Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
This is the Sally Lightfoot crab. Quite striking. I have no idea where it got it’s name. Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
This is a Fur Sea Lion. We all want to call it a fur seal, but Divemaster/Naturalist Edwin Alba corrected us if we slipped. Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
This is an unusally large member of the copepod family. This guy is about 4 inches long. There are literally billions of these in the ocean, but mostly planktonic in size to a few millimeters. Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
This is an unusally large member of the copepod family. This guy is about 4 inches long. There are literally billions of these in the ocean, but mostly planktonic in size to a few millimeters. Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
Santa Fe Island – Galapagos Islands
This is the main port at Isla Santa Cruz. 90% of all Galapagains live on this one island. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
This is a very busy quasi commercial and tourist port. The site of our original land fall. Calmer now, but still not a comfortable anchorage. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
This was the main and largest market in the entire Galapagos. Cindy and I took advantage of our free time to provision for the crossing to the Marquesas we would be doing within the next week. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
The primary function of the navy here is to prevent illegal fishing. There is a 200 mile exclusion zone around the islands which have been declared by the UN a World Biosphere. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
We went with the Sky Dancer gang and Edwin Alba who is a certified naturalist as well our head dive master. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
Lonesome George is a cult figure in the Galapagos. He is the only known member still living of his species of Giant Tortise. So far unsuccesful attempts have been the result of trying to mate Lonesome with his nearest genetic relatives. If no success is achieved, they will attempt to clone him. An entire industry has risen in the islands around this one tortise. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
Yes indeed he does exist and this board tells all about him. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
I actually saw Lonsome George, but his rear end would have not been appropriate for small children to view on our site….:) Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
This is the breeding program at the Charles Darwin Center. At around 4 years old, they will be released on the island. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
The only place we saw a land iguana (of which there are at least two species) was here at the Darwin Center. Thousands of marine iguanas, but only this one land iguana. We were told they are prevelent on certain islands. Santa Cruz Island – Galapagos Islands
This was the internet cafe (very slow) that I tried desparately to update the website from. Cindy is seen here speaking over Skype internet telephone to LINDA of Los Angeles. (Okay, No.Ho., but it sounded better)……. Wreck Bay, San Cristobal Island – Galapagos Islands
We were getting “Beach House” ready for the arrival of friend Mike Lonnes from Redondo Beach who would be making the 3000 mile sail from the Galapagos to the Marquesas with us. Speaking Spanish at one end and French at the other….Whew!… When Mike arrived, we thought after taking two days to get here, he should at least see some of the islands. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
No, this is not Palm Springs. These three wind turbines provide up to 40 % of the power for the island of San Cristobal. Weather depending!… San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
We pretty much did the tour all over again so Mike could see the sights. We missed the Coffee plantation on the first trip, and got to see it and it’s vast machinery on this second tour. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
At the “Coffee Shop” bridge… San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
The Swiss Family is alive and well on San Cristobal Island… San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
The day after the “Night of the Iguana” (Richard Burton – 1960’s rent it on DVD!)….. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
If I approached, he got testy. Since he smelled like fish, I didn’t get too close anyway. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
A fitting Goodbye to the Galapagos. We had fun, but now we’re off on an even bigger adventure. Sailing “Beach House” 3000 nautical miles half way across the Pacific in one trip to the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia. Adios Galapagos…. San Bartolome – Galapagos Islands
We pretty much did the tour all over again so Mike could see the sights. We missed the Coffee plantation on the first trip, and got to see it and it’s vast machinery on this second tour. San Cristobal Island – Galapagos
