#WhenIn Galápagos

Yuan Nielsen
Aug 9, 2017 · 6 min read

The Galápagos Islands make up an astonishing archipelago of gorgeous volcanic islands, full of absolutely fascinating creatures. No wonder Charles Darwin learned so much here, as it is the only place in the world where you will find flamingos and penguins cohabiting, marine iguanas foraging in the sea, drinking salt water (apparently, they filter it in their bodies and sneeze out the salt), and the Galápagos giant tortoises (the undisputed king of the tortoise family) that look like something the dinosaurs left behind…

Where to stay:

Well, the Queen of the Galápagos (a first-class catamaran) makes for an extremely comfortable and truly wonderful experience… however… apparently it sunk on June 10th, 2017 (with no casualties or anything), sooo I guess an equal-class catamaran would do the trick…

How to get around:

Boats are the only way to get around. The Galápagos Islands are a highly-protected archipelago, and most islands (except for Santa Cruz, San Cristóbal, and Isabela) do not have hotels, so you basically live, eat, and breathe on your sailing craft.

Where to eat:

Onboard the boat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (so pick a good boat — that hopefully doesn’t sink) unless you dock at one of the larger islands with small, local restaurants.

What to eat:

Grilled lobster, fish, and vegetables are a must when you go for lunch on your own, and otherwise you are in the (hopefully capable) hands of your chef onboard.

What to do:

Visit South Plaza Island, which is one of the smallest islands in the Galápagos, but it has one of the largest populations of land iguanas. Here you are met with beautiful rainbows and can walk around in the gorgeous cactus forest to spot land and marine iguanas, swallow-tailed gulls, and red-billed tropicbirds.

Visit North Seymour Island, which has vast sea lion colonies, marine iguanas, frigate birds (this is their nesting site, so they get pretty pumped up and frisky), and blue-footed boobies (their little foot dance is pretty cute).

Visit the Chinese Hat, which is an island that is actually a volcano, and you walk around in the black volcanic scenery to spot marine iguanas, colorful crabs, and sea lions.

Visit Las Bachas to snorkel, relax on the beach, and see the trails of the many thousand baby sea turtles trying to reach the ocean before getting snatched by predators (only about 1 in 1,000 hatchlings will actually make it and survive to adulthood).

Visit Santa Cruz Island to see giant saddleback tortoises getting nurtured by preservation specialists at the Charles Darwin Foundation and then go off to the highlands to walk among more giant tortoises in the wild. Later, you can go to Puerto Ayora and fight sea lions and pelicans for your lunch.

Visit Punta Cormorant on Floreana Island to spot flamingos, various shore birds, and little cute penguins, and then go snorkel by Champion Island with playful sea lions. Floreana also has a very interesting and bizarre history, and I highly recommend reading the Galapagos Affair before going there.

Visit Punta Suarez on Española Island to see the waved albatross during their mating and nesting season (April to December). Española is the official nesting site to virtually the entire world population of this species, and the big, awkward albatross chicks are quite a sight. There are also large numbers of blue-footed boobies, marine iguanas, sea lions, and Nazca boobies; plus a hike to the top of the cliff makes for spectacular views of cliffs and blowholes.

Visit Cerro Brujo on San Cristobal Island to relax on the beach with friendly sea lions and look at pelicans. Then boat through Leon Dormido, also known as Kicker Rock (that has steep vertical stone walls rising 150 meters from the ocean).

What not to do:

Don’t engage a beach master sea lion — you’re thinking “that’s a funny piece of advice, why would I do that?”, but hey after looking at all the cute animals everywhere, you might just wanna go “kuchi kuchi” on the wrong sea lion (I, of course, only engaged the right ones)...

Yuan Nielsen

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