A bit of a cheesy title, but totally appropriate. I would also like to apologize in advance for the lack of pictures in this blog post. What the islands lack in internet speed, they more than made up for with scenery and wildlife. However, with 1 picture upload taking around 7 minutes, and with wifi connections which come and go, I refuse to sit through the madness that would inevitably ensue if I tried to upload pictures into this post. I have learned to be more patient on this trip, but even I have my limits.
When I committed to come to the Galapagos Islands at the beginning of the year, I decided to also come here as part of a volunteer experience with Lead Adventures. I chose their 3 week program so that I could sufficiently explore many islands, while at the same time, making friends during the volunteer portions of the trip. I'm still not entirely sure about the whole 'pay to volunteer' thing as it seems a bit contradictory to me, but as I finish my 3 weeks here, I leave with very few complaints.
Santa Cruz was my starting point. Highlights included the blindingly white beaches at the beautiful Turtle Bay, a tour of Academy Bay and Las Grietas with snorkeling stops along the way, the many sightings of the famous Giant Tortoises, and the daily harassment fisherman endured from pelicans, frigate birds, and sea lions upon bringing back their day's haul. There was also a brief volunteer period of about 8 hours over the course of 2 days that was essentially me shoveling dirt and picking weeds. Seemed pretty pointless to me and on top of that, I was the only volunteer. So much for making friends there. Perhaps the best part of my time on Santa Cruz was the day I spent away from the island when touring Santiago and Bartolome Islands. When standing on Santiago, I was literally standing on lava flows that were 2 million years old. That's right 2 MILLION! I realize that most places in the world where we all walk on a daily basis are extraordinarily old, but rarely does it feel that way when surrounded by modern buildings and amenities. To just look around and gaze at this barren landscape was truly amazing. You could really feel as if you were experiencing the island as Charles Darwin himself would have seen it when first formulating his Theory of Evolution. And it's next door island neighbor, Bartolome, had perhaps the most beautiful scenery of my entire 3 weeks. Walking up to the top of the island with a viewpoint of turquoise blue waters below was really special. And of course there was snorkeling, where I got my first looks at black tipped sharks, sting rays, sea turtles, penguins, lobster, and many species of tropical fish.
Week 2 brought me to San Cristobal. It was here where I spent the better part of 4 days volunteering at Jatun Sacha, located in the highlands of the island. It was part summer camp, part volunteer. It occurred to me as I was helping complete 4 projects around the grounds, that in spite of traveling for the last 9 months, I have accomplished nothing this year, unless you consider reaching the top of a few mountains on 3 different grueling hikes, accomplishing something. In addition to the projects on the grounds, I met a great group of people coming from parts of world including: America, Germany, Northern Ireland, England, Norway, France, New Zealand, and Canada. We enjoyed socializing while working, when eating, while swimming in the waterfall fed swimming hole, during a friendly game of soccer, while hiking to a beautiful cove, and during a snorkeling trip to Kicker Rock where it felt as though we were all dropped into a Galapagos and Black Tip shark tank with some Spotted Eagle Rays and Manta Rays thrown in for good measure. Other interested observers of this amazing snorkeling experience were the famed Blue Footed Boobies. It was a great week and a volunteer experience I would highly recommend for solo travelers and families alike.
My last week in the Galapagos was spent on Isabella, the largest but least populated of the islands. It was a nice relaxed vacation week with evenings spent having good drinks and good conversation with a Canadian friend, whose travel plans coincided with mine, coming from San Cristobal Island. As always, companionship is a welcome change of pace form the grind of solo backpacking. The 17km hike on day 1 to Volcan Negro and Volcan Chico was of moderate difficulty but with stunning views of lava fields, volcanic cones, and the turquoise waters surrounding the island. The caldera of Volcan Negro is still active and is the 2nd largest caldera in the world behind the Ngorongoro Crater, which I had the good fortune of visiting earlier this year. Wandering around the island on subsequent days to catch views of flamingos, marine iguanas, and sea lions was also enjoyable. And as is the case on any island in the Galapagos, snorkeling is always an option with sharks, sea lions, rays, and sea turtles always lurking just below the water's surface. A nice happy hour with 2 for 1 drinks at a little beach bar was a nice way to spend most evenings while watching the setting sun with crashing waves providing soothing surround sound.
While it is expensive, to visit a place like the Galapagos Islands can't be done on the cheap if you want to have a truly memorable experience. It is a place that should be high on the list of every world traveler for both the abundance of unique marine wildlife seen only here, and the stunning scenery. It is a trip, that if you allow yourself to be immersed in how special this place truly is given it's link to the Theory of Evolution, and for the fact that as I write this post islands are currently forming, it will be one of the best vacations you will ever take. And those are big words from a relatively harsh travel critic.
I'm off to the Inca Trail starting on Tuesday. Good bye sea level. Hello thin air. Cheers.
When I committed to come to the Galapagos Islands at the beginning of the year, I decided to also come here as part of a volunteer experience with Lead Adventures. I chose their 3 week program so that I could sufficiently explore many islands, while at the same time, making friends during the volunteer portions of the trip. I'm still not entirely sure about the whole 'pay to volunteer' thing as it seems a bit contradictory to me, but as I finish my 3 weeks here, I leave with very few complaints.
Santa Cruz was my starting point. Highlights included the blindingly white beaches at the beautiful Turtle Bay, a tour of Academy Bay and Las Grietas with snorkeling stops along the way, the many sightings of the famous Giant Tortoises, and the daily harassment fisherman endured from pelicans, frigate birds, and sea lions upon bringing back their day's haul. There was also a brief volunteer period of about 8 hours over the course of 2 days that was essentially me shoveling dirt and picking weeds. Seemed pretty pointless to me and on top of that, I was the only volunteer. So much for making friends there. Perhaps the best part of my time on Santa Cruz was the day I spent away from the island when touring Santiago and Bartolome Islands. When standing on Santiago, I was literally standing on lava flows that were 2 million years old. That's right 2 MILLION! I realize that most places in the world where we all walk on a daily basis are extraordinarily old, but rarely does it feel that way when surrounded by modern buildings and amenities. To just look around and gaze at this barren landscape was truly amazing. You could really feel as if you were experiencing the island as Charles Darwin himself would have seen it when first formulating his Theory of Evolution. And it's next door island neighbor, Bartolome, had perhaps the most beautiful scenery of my entire 3 weeks. Walking up to the top of the island with a viewpoint of turquoise blue waters below was really special. And of course there was snorkeling, where I got my first looks at black tipped sharks, sting rays, sea turtles, penguins, lobster, and many species of tropical fish.
Week 2 brought me to San Cristobal. It was here where I spent the better part of 4 days volunteering at Jatun Sacha, located in the highlands of the island. It was part summer camp, part volunteer. It occurred to me as I was helping complete 4 projects around the grounds, that in spite of traveling for the last 9 months, I have accomplished nothing this year, unless you consider reaching the top of a few mountains on 3 different grueling hikes, accomplishing something. In addition to the projects on the grounds, I met a great group of people coming from parts of world including: America, Germany, Northern Ireland, England, Norway, France, New Zealand, and Canada. We enjoyed socializing while working, when eating, while swimming in the waterfall fed swimming hole, during a friendly game of soccer, while hiking to a beautiful cove, and during a snorkeling trip to Kicker Rock where it felt as though we were all dropped into a Galapagos and Black Tip shark tank with some Spotted Eagle Rays and Manta Rays thrown in for good measure. Other interested observers of this amazing snorkeling experience were the famed Blue Footed Boobies. It was a great week and a volunteer experience I would highly recommend for solo travelers and families alike.
My last week in the Galapagos was spent on Isabella, the largest but least populated of the islands. It was a nice relaxed vacation week with evenings spent having good drinks and good conversation with a Canadian friend, whose travel plans coincided with mine, coming from San Cristobal Island. As always, companionship is a welcome change of pace form the grind of solo backpacking. The 17km hike on day 1 to Volcan Negro and Volcan Chico was of moderate difficulty but with stunning views of lava fields, volcanic cones, and the turquoise waters surrounding the island. The caldera of Volcan Negro is still active and is the 2nd largest caldera in the world behind the Ngorongoro Crater, which I had the good fortune of visiting earlier this year. Wandering around the island on subsequent days to catch views of flamingos, marine iguanas, and sea lions was also enjoyable. And as is the case on any island in the Galapagos, snorkeling is always an option with sharks, sea lions, rays, and sea turtles always lurking just below the water's surface. A nice happy hour with 2 for 1 drinks at a little beach bar was a nice way to spend most evenings while watching the setting sun with crashing waves providing soothing surround sound.
While it is expensive, to visit a place like the Galapagos Islands can't be done on the cheap if you want to have a truly memorable experience. It is a place that should be high on the list of every world traveler for both the abundance of unique marine wildlife seen only here, and the stunning scenery. It is a trip, that if you allow yourself to be immersed in how special this place truly is given it's link to the Theory of Evolution, and for the fact that as I write this post islands are currently forming, it will be one of the best vacations you will ever take. And those are big words from a relatively harsh travel critic.
I'm off to the Inca Trail starting on Tuesday. Good bye sea level. Hello thin air. Cheers.
Well for once I can say "we were there before you" since we visited the Galapagos Islands in March. I couldn't agree more with your comments about the special feeling you get when you're there. I too feel it's a place everyone should try to visit. We continue to enjoy hearing about your travels but it's nice that we can now say, "Jeremy will be home next month". Enjoy the next part of your trip. We'll be anxious to see your next batch of pictures.
ReplyDeleteHappy Travels,
MomG