overyourhead - some irreverent musings by a gay London guy - crawling though technology, love and life... so you don't have to.
Showing posts with label Galápagos Islands. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Galápagos Islands. Show all posts
Friday, December 12, 2014
Sunday, November 30, 2014
Day 10 - Sun 30 November - Cruise Galapagos...
It was the toughest night thus far with one roller almost upending me out of bed. By morning time we had entered a cove though so the boat was calmer. The cove was part of Floreana Island.
After breakfast we took a panga ride to Post Office Bay, a historic site that recalled the days of the whalers coming to the Galapagos for tortoises and water supplies.
First we zoomed along the coast line spotting blue-footed boobies nesting, sea lions playing and climbing trees (no, really), and herons fishing.
Back on the beach we wrote postcards to me, my mum and dad, Stu's mum and dad and Emma and posted them stampless in the beach drop box. Let's see if/when they arrive courtesy of strangers.
We picked up four cards that had been left there for someone in Pimlico, Stevenage and a couple in Essex.
After lunch and a siesta we visited Champion Islet for some more snorkelling and then a short walk.
The snorkelling wasn't the best we'd done as it was of the beach and the water was a little cloudy. We did see a sea turtle though and huge schools of fish and an electric pink and blue fish (whose name I've forgotten).
During our walk we saw flamingos. Did you know the Spanish word for flamingo is 'flamenco'? Hence the flamenco dance steps copy the pink bird's mating dance. Bio-mimicry - man copying nature.
Talking of Spanish... Galapagos is so named because the Spanish word for saddle is 'galapagos' and the giant tortoise's shells look like saddles. There you go fact fiends.
Anyway, back to our walk. Champion Islet itself was amazing, on one side the beach was impregnated with green semi precious stones - green ones - the same ones found on Mars - which helped NASA prove that there was once water on the red planet as the formation of these crystals requires water.
On the other side of the beach was a large sea turtle nesting site. We saw the tracks where the pregnant females had dragged themselves up onto the beach and the sandy mounds where the eggs were current incubating their 120 day stint. The tracks leading up the beach had the telltale caterpillar structures the legs make with a wide central flat smooth area as the tails were fatter due to the eggs inside the females body. The tracks were narrower on the way down after the eggs had been laid.
We also saw a female sea turtle being mounted by a male just of the shoreline. A number of other males were trying to dislodge him and her struggles to come up for air were slightly distressing. She was then attempting to come ashore to lay her eggs leaving her suitors behind. Incredible to witness.
Champion Islet was truly a magical place.
Back on the boat one last time we had our farewell cocktail on the sundeck followed by the disembarkation briefing followed by dinner.
We then settled our account: $287.05 for bar and gift shop bill + $286 tips to be shared between the 42-man crew, naturalists and bar staff.
Packed and in bed by 10pm it had been a long but satisfying day.
After breakfast we took a panga ride to Post Office Bay, a historic site that recalled the days of the whalers coming to the Galapagos for tortoises and water supplies.
First we zoomed along the coast line spotting blue-footed boobies nesting, sea lions playing and climbing trees (no, really), and herons fishing.
Back on the beach we wrote postcards to me, my mum and dad, Stu's mum and dad and Emma and posted them stampless in the beach drop box. Let's see if/when they arrive courtesy of strangers.
We picked up four cards that had been left there for someone in Pimlico, Stevenage and a couple in Essex.
After lunch and a siesta we visited Champion Islet for some more snorkelling and then a short walk.
The snorkelling wasn't the best we'd done as it was of the beach and the water was a little cloudy. We did see a sea turtle though and huge schools of fish and an electric pink and blue fish (whose name I've forgotten).
During our walk we saw flamingos. Did you know the Spanish word for flamingo is 'flamenco'? Hence the flamenco dance steps copy the pink bird's mating dance. Bio-mimicry - man copying nature.
Talking of Spanish... Galapagos is so named because the Spanish word for saddle is 'galapagos' and the giant tortoise's shells look like saddles. There you go fact fiends.
Anyway, back to our walk. Champion Islet itself was amazing, on one side the beach was impregnated with green semi precious stones - green ones - the same ones found on Mars - which helped NASA prove that there was once water on the red planet as the formation of these crystals requires water.
On the other side of the beach was a large sea turtle nesting site. We saw the tracks where the pregnant females had dragged themselves up onto the beach and the sandy mounds where the eggs were current incubating their 120 day stint. The tracks leading up the beach had the telltale caterpillar structures the legs make with a wide central flat smooth area as the tails were fatter due to the eggs inside the females body. The tracks were narrower on the way down after the eggs had been laid.
We also saw a female sea turtle being mounted by a male just of the shoreline. A number of other males were trying to dislodge him and her struggles to come up for air were slightly distressing. She was then attempting to come ashore to lay her eggs leaving her suitors behind. Incredible to witness.
Champion Islet was truly a magical place.
Back on the boat one last time we had our farewell cocktail on the sundeck followed by the disembarkation briefing followed by dinner.
We then settled our account: $287.05 for bar and gift shop bill + $286 tips to be shared between the 42-man crew, naturalists and bar staff.
Packed and in bed by 10pm it had been a long but satisfying day.
Saturday, November 29, 2014
Day 9 - Sat 29 November - Cruise Galapagos...
The rocking of the boat continued - due to adverse weather and tides - which meant the night cruise was slower than expected so we arrived at Santa Cruz Island later than planned.
The day ashore was to have included a cycle ride but that had to be cancelled. Still, it didn't take anything away from the day as we were there to see giant tortoises!
First we visited the Charles Darwin Station to see the tortoises: one year old ones, some two year old ones, a few 60 year old ones and also a couple of 120 year old ones. Sadly Lonesome George had passed away a couple of years earlier but old timer Super Diago was still around. He had fathered 10,000+ offspring - the dirty dog.
All the tortoises were kept in corrals and had numbers painted on their backs to identify them. The numbers themselves were of different colors to indicate which island they had been removed form as eggs.
Once their habitat is cleared from non-native species they were all going to be reintroduced back to their original islands. A process that would continue until they all have healthy tortoise populations. The target date to do this by is 2050.
The main non-native species being targeted to be cleared are goats and rats.
Pirates had originally put goats on the islands to breed so they had food sources when they stopped by. Goats are omnivores and had numbered 40,000+ so were eating the tortoises out of house and home. The plan was get rid of them all. Relocation was too expensive so a cull was ordered. A single shot to the head. All were shot at a cost of $20m (10x the original estimate) from helicopters using hired snipers from Australia. Female goats were tethered to stakes and when the males appeared they were gunned down en masse.
Next for eradication were the rats. They had come off passing ships and were eating the tortoise eggs so they had to go too.
The rats were all poisoned by the park rangers. Unfortunately the iguanas also ate the poison so the Galapagos hawks - who dined on both the rats and the iguanas - got doubly poisoned and died in vast numbers. So along with the tortoise breeding program there is now a hawk breeding program too. Sigh.
For lunch we headed to a farm which incidentally has a few pet giant tortoises in their gardens. Then to visited an enormous underground lava tube - 400m long and about 5m wide and high. Impressive!
Finally we visited an area that had wild giant tortoises roaming wild. They were very amazing. Some were wallowing in mud, others grazing on grass and but all seemed happy to pose for photographs. If you got to close though they let out lots of air and retreated back into their shells. It was very special to see them.
The swell was still high when we returned to the ship which made for a hairy transfer back to the ship I can tell you.
In the evening after dinner we were treated to a Galapagean band complete with pan pipes and three local dancing girls. Charmingly quaint.
The day ashore was to have included a cycle ride but that had to be cancelled. Still, it didn't take anything away from the day as we were there to see giant tortoises!
First we visited the Charles Darwin Station to see the tortoises: one year old ones, some two year old ones, a few 60 year old ones and also a couple of 120 year old ones. Sadly Lonesome George had passed away a couple of years earlier but old timer Super Diago was still around. He had fathered 10,000+ offspring - the dirty dog.
All the tortoises were kept in corrals and had numbers painted on their backs to identify them. The numbers themselves were of different colors to indicate which island they had been removed form as eggs.
Once their habitat is cleared from non-native species they were all going to be reintroduced back to their original islands. A process that would continue until they all have healthy tortoise populations. The target date to do this by is 2050.
The main non-native species being targeted to be cleared are goats and rats.
Pirates had originally put goats on the islands to breed so they had food sources when they stopped by. Goats are omnivores and had numbered 40,000+ so were eating the tortoises out of house and home. The plan was get rid of them all. Relocation was too expensive so a cull was ordered. A single shot to the head. All were shot at a cost of $20m (10x the original estimate) from helicopters using hired snipers from Australia. Female goats were tethered to stakes and when the males appeared they were gunned down en masse.
Next for eradication were the rats. They had come off passing ships and were eating the tortoise eggs so they had to go too.
The rats were all poisoned by the park rangers. Unfortunately the iguanas also ate the poison so the Galapagos hawks - who dined on both the rats and the iguanas - got doubly poisoned and died in vast numbers. So along with the tortoise breeding program there is now a hawk breeding program too. Sigh.
For lunch we headed to a farm which incidentally has a few pet giant tortoises in their gardens. Then to visited an enormous underground lava tube - 400m long and about 5m wide and high. Impressive!
Finally we visited an area that had wild giant tortoises roaming wild. They were very amazing. Some were wallowing in mud, others grazing on grass and but all seemed happy to pose for photographs. If you got to close though they let out lots of air and retreated back into their shells. It was very special to see them.
The swell was still high when we returned to the ship which made for a hairy transfer back to the ship I can tell you.
In the evening after dinner we were treated to a Galapagean band complete with pan pipes and three local dancing girls. Charmingly quaint.
Thursday, November 27, 2014
Day 7 - Thurs 27 November - Cruise Galapagos...
Overnight we sailed to Isabela Island, the largest of the group. The one that looks like a seaside riding a fish.
Stu and I got up early to watch the sunrise as the boat crossed the equator. Fabulous.
After breakfast we got kitted out with wetsuits and snorkeling gear. Very fetching if a little... er... snug.
We then enjoyed an hour long boat tour of Punta Vicente Roca spotting penguins, marine iguanas, sealions, fur seals, more blue-footed boobies and flightless cormorants.
After that did an hour of deep water snorkelling seeing mating seaturtles, sealions and penguins swimming and hundreds of brightly coloured fish. It was simply amazing.
In the afternoon, we explored Punta Espinoza on the Island of Fernandina, the youngest island and the most volcanically active of the islands. The landscape was weird - blackened lava fields with mangroves by the shoreline, large red rock lined crevices containing ferns, the small odd lava tube and water filled crators.
One of the mangrove lagoons was home to some sea turtles which we saw swimming about majestically.
We saw massive colonies of marine iguanas on the rocks, red crabs, sealions, pelicans, more flightless cormorants and a Galapagos hawk eating an iguana. Spectacular.
Back on board we enjoyed a well earned complimentary dinner complimented by a bottle of complimentary wine from one of our rooms.
Stu and I got up early to watch the sunrise as the boat crossed the equator. Fabulous.
After breakfast we got kitted out with wetsuits and snorkeling gear. Very fetching if a little... er... snug.
We then enjoyed an hour long boat tour of Punta Vicente Roca spotting penguins, marine iguanas, sealions, fur seals, more blue-footed boobies and flightless cormorants.
After that did an hour of deep water snorkelling seeing mating seaturtles, sealions and penguins swimming and hundreds of brightly coloured fish. It was simply amazing.
In the afternoon, we explored Punta Espinoza on the Island of Fernandina, the youngest island and the most volcanically active of the islands. The landscape was weird - blackened lava fields with mangroves by the shoreline, large red rock lined crevices containing ferns, the small odd lava tube and water filled crators.
One of the mangrove lagoons was home to some sea turtles which we saw swimming about majestically.
We saw massive colonies of marine iguanas on the rocks, red crabs, sealions, pelicans, more flightless cormorants and a Galapagos hawk eating an iguana. Spectacular.
Back on board we enjoyed a well earned complimentary dinner complimented by a bottle of complimentary wine from one of our rooms.
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Day 6 - Wed 26 November - Join the Cruise...
Next we were off to the Galapagos Islands - what we expected to be the highlight of our trip. We weren't disappointed.
These islands are a unique living museum of evolutionary change and provide the chance to get to know a variety of exotic species endemic to this Archipelago. They are the perfect setting for witnessing the evolutionary changes which have led to a new understanding of life on earth. Animals unafraid of man, and so different from any others found elsewhere, make visitors wonder about their own existence on our planet. Among the animals found are the different species of giant Galapagos Tortoises that gave the islands their name, a variety of birds and marine mammals such as iguanas, sea lions, dolphins and whales, as well as a great number of fish. Among the flora, the most distinctive are mangroves and the endemic cacti.
Our flight to the Galapagos Islands was a two stage affair - the first was to pick up more passengers on the mainland at Guayaquil, the second took us the 735 miles straight out to sea.
Once landed on one of the islands, Baltra, we witnessed our suitcases being sniffed by dogs looking for fruit and then we transferred by first minibus and then panga (a flat bottomed rubberized launch) to join the MV Santa Cruz for our five-night cruise.
The boat was a 95 capacity high-end ship with all mod cons. In fact our upper deck cabin was large, comfortable and well worth the slightly extra £95 we paid for 'Darwin Elite'. Floor to ceiling windows gave us a spectacular views of the sea throughout the voyage. We also got given a goodie bag which contained a sun hat, snorkel and book. Our package also included free soft drinks, turn-down service, better bedding, free wet-suit hire, a free bottle of wine and a free beer with every dinner. Nice.
The crew were very friendly and after a buffet lunch transferred us by panga to visit North Seymour Island.
Dennis was to be our guide for this and almost every other trip during our cruise. He was a local chap and knew the place like the back of his hand taking us to all the special places and giving us the inside info.
On North Seymour Island we spent three wonderful hours trailing through a magnificent barren landscape of brown volcanic rock and petrified silver trees to get right up and personal with (i.e. a couple of feet away from) nesting blue-footed boobies, sunbathing marine iguanas, mating frigates with their puffed out red chests, and suckling sealions. The sealion pups were utterly adorable. It was a life changing experience.
After sunset and back on board we had a fire drill followed by a four course dinner and then an early night exhausted from the marvels of the day.
We were going to enjoy this trip.
These islands are a unique living museum of evolutionary change and provide the chance to get to know a variety of exotic species endemic to this Archipelago. They are the perfect setting for witnessing the evolutionary changes which have led to a new understanding of life on earth. Animals unafraid of man, and so different from any others found elsewhere, make visitors wonder about their own existence on our planet. Among the animals found are the different species of giant Galapagos Tortoises that gave the islands their name, a variety of birds and marine mammals such as iguanas, sea lions, dolphins and whales, as well as a great number of fish. Among the flora, the most distinctive are mangroves and the endemic cacti.
Our flight to the Galapagos Islands was a two stage affair - the first was to pick up more passengers on the mainland at Guayaquil, the second took us the 735 miles straight out to sea.
Once landed on one of the islands, Baltra, we witnessed our suitcases being sniffed by dogs looking for fruit and then we transferred by first minibus and then panga (a flat bottomed rubberized launch) to join the MV Santa Cruz for our five-night cruise.
The boat was a 95 capacity high-end ship with all mod cons. In fact our upper deck cabin was large, comfortable and well worth the slightly extra £95 we paid for 'Darwin Elite'. Floor to ceiling windows gave us a spectacular views of the sea throughout the voyage. We also got given a goodie bag which contained a sun hat, snorkel and book. Our package also included free soft drinks, turn-down service, better bedding, free wet-suit hire, a free bottle of wine and a free beer with every dinner. Nice.
The crew were very friendly and after a buffet lunch transferred us by panga to visit North Seymour Island.
Dennis was to be our guide for this and almost every other trip during our cruise. He was a local chap and knew the place like the back of his hand taking us to all the special places and giving us the inside info.
On North Seymour Island we spent three wonderful hours trailing through a magnificent barren landscape of brown volcanic rock and petrified silver trees to get right up and personal with (i.e. a couple of feet away from) nesting blue-footed boobies, sunbathing marine iguanas, mating frigates with their puffed out red chests, and suckling sealions. The sealion pups were utterly adorable. It was a life changing experience.
After sunset and back on board we had a fire drill followed by a four course dinner and then an early night exhausted from the marvels of the day.
We were going to enjoy this trip.
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