Santa Cruz Island
The first impression we all had today in the morning was awe-inspiring. The beautiful round contour of Santa Cruz Island was totally exposed since not a single cloud blocked our view. We felt the heat of the equatorial region as soon as we disembarked; nevertheless we enjoyed the visit to the Giant tortoise’s corrals at the Galápagos National Park Service (GNPS) headquarters. It was a big deal for everyone to get to know a lot about the tortoises and moreover to watch them all the way from babies to adults. Also, this morning’s visit gave our guests hope for they all understood the importance of such a program as the protection of the Galápagos Giant tortoises, and the relevance of this kind of activities for the entire World. It may sound trivial, but to lose the tortoise populations could cause a tremendous impact on this last place largely still untouched by humans.
During the afternoon our goal was to check on the Giant tortoises in the wild, and we were successful. We found eight individuals. Three of them were heavyweights, but of those three, one was the biggest tortoise I have ever seen. It was huge. The sighting was confirmed to all of us when a GNPS Park ranger who was patrolling the area, stopped and stared at the giant with a big smile on his face and said: “This is a big fellow!”
After the visit to the highlands some of our guests found some time to go around downtown Puerto Ayora. By six o’clock in the afternoon we were all on board and soon the National Geographic Islander was navigating once again.
Behind, we left the lights of the last human settlement that will be seen for the rest of our expedition. Behind, we left a wonderful day as well. Ahead of us was the promise of more fantastic adventures amidst the younger lavas that are found in the western realms of the archipelago.
The first impression we all had today in the morning was awe-inspiring. The beautiful round contour of Santa Cruz Island was totally exposed since not a single cloud blocked our view. We felt the heat of the equatorial region as soon as we disembarked; nevertheless we enjoyed the visit to the Giant tortoise’s corrals at the Galápagos National Park Service (GNPS) headquarters. It was a big deal for everyone to get to know a lot about the tortoises and moreover to watch them all the way from babies to adults. Also, this morning’s visit gave our guests hope for they all understood the importance of such a program as the protection of the Galápagos Giant tortoises, and the relevance of this kind of activities for the entire World. It may sound trivial, but to lose the tortoise populations could cause a tremendous impact on this last place largely still untouched by humans.
During the afternoon our goal was to check on the Giant tortoises in the wild, and we were successful. We found eight individuals. Three of them were heavyweights, but of those three, one was the biggest tortoise I have ever seen. It was huge. The sighting was confirmed to all of us when a GNPS Park ranger who was patrolling the area, stopped and stared at the giant with a big smile on his face and said: “This is a big fellow!”
After the visit to the highlands some of our guests found some time to go around downtown Puerto Ayora. By six o’clock in the afternoon we were all on board and soon the National Geographic Islander was navigating once again.
Behind, we left the lights of the last human settlement that will be seen for the rest of our expedition. Behind, we left a wonderful day as well. Ahead of us was the promise of more fantastic adventures amidst the younger lavas that are found in the western realms of the archipelago.
