Ecuador: The Galapagos Islands Part 1

Posted on | January 2, 2013 | 8 Comments

Baby sealion

So ahhhh I’m finally up to the Galapagos (yes friends, we are almost at the end of the trip posts).

HOMIGAWD we went to the Galapagos. Yes, it was fricken amazing.

Anyway, blah blah blah, you know all about the Galapagos Islands – they’re a cluster of volcanic islands famed for the vast number of species unique to the islands.

After Quito, we took a morning flight to Baltra in the Galapagos Islands. After arrival, we were ferried to Santa Cruz Island, and met up with our home for the next four days – the boat Yate Darwin.

PS: no food in this post… just photos and my squazzing out about wildlife.


Giant tortoise

On Santa Cruz, we got to see Giant tortoises. AHHHHHHH. They are so awesome – LOOK AT THAT FACE. And they breathe like Darth Vader. AHHH again. I think this one was about 60-70 years old.

Galapagos

Blue footed boobie

We saw a lot of blue footed boobys.

Galapagos

Galapagos

On the second day, we went ashore to Santiago Island.

Iguana

There were TONS of marine iguanas basking in the sun.

Baby sealion

And this baby sea lion kept waddling closer and closer. It was probably about 3 weeks old. CUTE. None of the wildlife had any fear of people.

Crab

Sally Lightfoot crab

There were lots of crabs.

Marine iguana

And more iguanas.

Sea turtle

Also, sea turtles. :)

Galapagos

We also paid a visit to Bartolome Island, where we walked to the summit.

Lava flow

One side of Bartolome Island has amazing black lava formations.

Lava flow

There were so many different lava flow shapes. This one was my favourite.

Lava cactus

A lonely little lava cactus just hanging out. They’re one of the few plants that can survive on a lava field.

Galapagos

Bartolome wasn’t all lava flows – a different side had a beautiful white sand beach.

Galapagos penguin

We got to see Galapagos penguins. :) :) They’re the only living tropical penguin.

Frigate bird

On our last day, we went ashore to North Seymour. This island is the nesting ground for the magnificent frigate bird. There were several male frigate birds doing their mating display.

Frigate bird chick

There were also frigate bird chicks.

Blue footed boobie and chick

And blue footed booby chicks. So fluffy!

Suckling sealion

Baby sea lion suckling on its mum.

Blue footed boobie

And here’s a blue footed booby sitting on an egg. :)

Blue footed boobie

Okay flying bird series. Blue footed booby.

Frigate bird

Flying frigate bird.

Masked boobie

Masked booby.

Galapagos hawk

Galapagos hawk!

Blue footed boobie

Another blue footed booby.

I love love loved the Galapagos. Sadly, we didn’t have enough time – there are so many other islands to see and they all have their own unique characteristics and wildlife.

I must go back one day! (My wallet weeps at the thought.)

(Food from the Yate Darwin in the next post.)

Related posts:

  1. Ecuador: Quito – Iñaquito Market
  2. Cruising
  3. Peru: Lake Titicaca – Amantani Island homestay
  4. The weeks in brief: 10 September – 7 October
Category: south america, travel

Comments

8 Responses to “Ecuador: The Galapagos Islands Part 1”

  1. leaf (the indolent cook)
    January 3rd, 2013 @ 12:22 am

    Zomg look at that baby sea lion’s puppy-dog eyes! Swoon! And the giant tortoise! The birds! So much wonderfulness! Can’t stop exclaiming! :p
    leaf (the indolent cook) recently posted..pimm’s lemon jasmine banana smoothie-cocktail (vegan, alcoholic, and stupendously delicious)

    [Reply]

  2. Em
    January 3rd, 2013 @ 12:33 pm

    Cutest post ever, love it.
    Em recently posted..Merricote – Melbourne

    [Reply]

  3. Sarah
    January 3rd, 2013 @ 6:45 pm

    Amazing post, beautiful photos! :) All the animals look so interesting – the shiny red crab, the amazing turtles, the super-cute baby seals!

    But of course my favourite is the blue footed booby. Hehehe, “booby”.

    xox Sarah
    Sarah recently posted..The Unblogged Files: December

    [Reply]

  4. jac
    January 6th, 2013 @ 2:12 pm

    Stunning photos! What an amazing place to visit. I love the baby sea lion and the gorgeous red of the male frigate bird – just gorgeous.

    [Reply]

  5. Thanh
    January 10th, 2013 @ 8:04 am

    So amazing. So many animals all not running away.

    Luke, I am your father.
    Luke: my father is a tortoise?
    Thanh recently posted..Ballarat Summer Fling – Great Melbourne Weekend Getaway

    [Reply]

    Agnes Reply:
    January 13th, 2013 at 9:22 pm

    *cough*geek*cough* :)

    [Reply]

  6. msihua (@msihua)
    January 13th, 2013 @ 2:29 pm

    I WANT A BABY SEA LION! WANT WANT WANT!
    msihua (@msihua) recently posted..St Ali North @ Carlton North, VIC – Melbourne’s “Coffee King” Heads North

    [Reply]

    Agnes Reply:
    January 13th, 2013 at 8:58 pm

    I want one too. Soy cute.

    [Reply]

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