Santa Cruz Island
Today was already the fourth day of our adventure in the Galápagos Islands. We started our morning with a magnificent view of Puerto Ayora, the biggest human settlement in the Galápagos Islands. From the ship we could see many boats anchored in the bay; some of the houses along the coast and even some people driving and moving about on this vibrant port. We were all very happy and eager to set foot on Santa Cruz!
This morning we visited the Charles Darwin Research Station, where we saw quite a few giant tortoises, land iguanas and of course without any doubt the star of the morning, lonesome George! This tortoise is the last survivor of his race but he is not so lonesome anymore; not only did we see him, but we also saw his two girl friends! Even though lonesome George was surrounded by two beautiful females, he has refused to mate with them and produce any offspring. We all had to cross our fingers when, shortly after we arrived, he started chasing one of the females. To his misfortune, the female was way faster than him and he couldn’t get any closer. Maybe next time, George!
We all had some free shopping time after the visit, so our exploration in town took us to souvenir shops, some of them displaying the most exotic and estrange souvenirs. Santa Cruz is one of the largest islands in the Galápagos, so the second part of the visit took place up in the highlands. We went to look for the Galápagos giant tortoises in the wild. We were all satisfied after seeing these anti-diluvium creatures roam around us just as if we were part of the landscape.
Today was a day for everybody! After the tortoises, our avid bird watchers had the chance to go higher into the mountains to look for the slippery Darwin’s finches and the very elusive vermillion fly catcher. The groups that chose to do so were most successful in their endeavors, I must add!
After such a full day of activities, it was time to come back to the Polaris to catch our breath back and prepare for another fine dinner. If the day activities were not enough, we had a traditional Ecuadorian music entertainment after dinner. A perfect closure to a great cultural and wildlife enriched day!
Today was already the fourth day of our adventure in the Galápagos Islands. We started our morning with a magnificent view of Puerto Ayora, the biggest human settlement in the Galápagos Islands. From the ship we could see many boats anchored in the bay; some of the houses along the coast and even some people driving and moving about on this vibrant port. We were all very happy and eager to set foot on Santa Cruz!
This morning we visited the Charles Darwin Research Station, where we saw quite a few giant tortoises, land iguanas and of course without any doubt the star of the morning, lonesome George! This tortoise is the last survivor of his race but he is not so lonesome anymore; not only did we see him, but we also saw his two girl friends! Even though lonesome George was surrounded by two beautiful females, he has refused to mate with them and produce any offspring. We all had to cross our fingers when, shortly after we arrived, he started chasing one of the females. To his misfortune, the female was way faster than him and he couldn’t get any closer. Maybe next time, George!
We all had some free shopping time after the visit, so our exploration in town took us to souvenir shops, some of them displaying the most exotic and estrange souvenirs. Santa Cruz is one of the largest islands in the Galápagos, so the second part of the visit took place up in the highlands. We went to look for the Galápagos giant tortoises in the wild. We were all satisfied after seeing these anti-diluvium creatures roam around us just as if we were part of the landscape.
Today was a day for everybody! After the tortoises, our avid bird watchers had the chance to go higher into the mountains to look for the slippery Darwin’s finches and the very elusive vermillion fly catcher. The groups that chose to do so were most successful in their endeavors, I must add!
After such a full day of activities, it was time to come back to the Polaris to catch our breath back and prepare for another fine dinner. If the day activities were not enough, we had a traditional Ecuadorian music entertainment after dinner. A perfect closure to a great cultural and wildlife enriched day!
