Santa Cruz Island
The morning started out with us heading to shore by Zodiac, on our way to the Charles Darwin Research Station at the far end of town. The giant tortoises from Espanola Island, as well as Lonesome George from Pinta, some males of unknown origin and land iguanas were all out and active, because Wednesdays are a day for feeding!
By the time the visit had been completed, people were off to walk through town and some serious support for the local merchants had taken place. Energy was expended in carrying shopping bags, but also used for walking and biking along the gravel road up to the restaurant before lunch. Swimming in the pool as well as a volleyball game prepared us for a fortifying lunch followed by excursions into the highlands.
The unique ecosystem of the “Gemelos,” or “pit craters” provided us with an all-to-brief look at what the lush native vegetation is like. Originally this would have covered a much more extensive area of the highland region, and today the Park system is doing wonders recuperating it from introduced plants. Vermillion flycatchers and woodpecker finches made appearances and onto the checklist.
An additional visit took us to an area where the giant tortoises of Santa Cruz Island still wander freely, and a pair of mating tortoises added a new sound to the repertoire we were hearing. And speaking of sounds, our evening was finally filled with music from a local group playing the Andean pan pipes, “charango,” guitar and flutes.
The morning started out with us heading to shore by Zodiac, on our way to the Charles Darwin Research Station at the far end of town. The giant tortoises from Espanola Island, as well as Lonesome George from Pinta, some males of unknown origin and land iguanas were all out and active, because Wednesdays are a day for feeding!
By the time the visit had been completed, people were off to walk through town and some serious support for the local merchants had taken place. Energy was expended in carrying shopping bags, but also used for walking and biking along the gravel road up to the restaurant before lunch. Swimming in the pool as well as a volleyball game prepared us for a fortifying lunch followed by excursions into the highlands.
The unique ecosystem of the “Gemelos,” or “pit craters” provided us with an all-to-brief look at what the lush native vegetation is like. Originally this would have covered a much more extensive area of the highland region, and today the Park system is doing wonders recuperating it from introduced plants. Vermillion flycatchers and woodpecker finches made appearances and onto the checklist.
An additional visit took us to an area where the giant tortoises of Santa Cruz Island still wander freely, and a pair of mating tortoises added a new sound to the repertoire we were hearing. And speaking of sounds, our evening was finally filled with music from a local group playing the Andean pan pipes, “charango,” guitar and flutes.
