Day 1 Early in the morning you take the 90-minute
flight from the Ecuadorian mainland (you can fly from either Quito
or from Guayaquil). Arrive at Baltra airport and transfer by bus
to the yacht of your choice. In the afternoon we visit the beautiful
beach of Bachas and Black Turtle Cove, an area surrounded by mangroves
where we can get a good look at marine-turtles. We may also see
white-tipped sharks and pelicans.
Day
2 We navigate to the small Plazas Islands, home to a large
colony of sea lions. These islands are famous for their forest
of amazingly tall cacti, and you will see lots of land iguanas
which feed on the cacti. Walking along a cliff we will observe
many seabirds, such as frigatebirds, swallow-tailed gulls and
red-billed tropicbirds. In the afternoon we visit Santa Fe, the
island with the tallest cacti (some are over 10 m. high) and the
rare Santa Fe land iguana. Another snorkeling stop with a chance
to see eagle rays or manta rays.
Day 3 We move to Española, the most southerly island of
the Galápagos Archipelago and one of the most magical. From mid-April
to December here you find the giant waved albatrosses nesting.
We will also see nests of other birds that live on Española: blue
footed boobies, masked boobies and Galápagos hawks. After exploring
the island we visit a bay for relaxing, swimming and snorkeling.
There are colorful subspecies of marine iguanas.
Day 4 During the night we continue our cruise to Floreana,
with its infamous history of colonization. We hike to a lagoon
inhabited by flamingos and other wading birds such as black-necked
stilts, willets and whimbrels. We return to our yacht and head
for the Devil's Crown, remains of a sub-marine volcanic cone,
which is an excellent spot for snorkeling. You can snorkel in
and around the crater and see bright tropical fish, sea stars,
small coral formations and even white-tipped sharks. In the afternoon
we visit Post Office Bay, where the whalers used to leave their
mail. You will have the opportunity to leave your own letters
and cards here in exchange for carrying another traveler's cards
to your home country to mail, thus continuing this centuries old
post office.
Day 5 We continue to Santa Cruz. We visit the Charles
Darwin Research Station and the Tortoise Rearing Center, where
you can admire the world-famous giant tortoises. In the afternoon
we hike in the highlands of Santa Cruz, to see excellent examples
of pit craters and lava tunnels. With luck we will see the vermilion
flycatcher. You will also have time to shop in the many quality
giftshops of Puerto Ayora, wander through the town's side streets,
and sit in the harbor watching the comings and goings of the various
boats and yachts.
Day 6 In the morning we visit the small island of Rábida.
On the red beach is a pelican nesting area and behind the beach
is a lagoon where you may see flamingos and white-cheeked pintails.
After a snorkel stop (we can see parrot fish) we continue to the
Santiago Island, which is one of the best places to see the endangered
fur seals. During our hike on Santiago we also can admire marine
iguanas, lava lizards, sea turtles, Darwin finches, endemic Galápagos
hawks, and herons.
Day 7 Still on Santiago Island, we visit Sullivan Bay,
where we see a huge lava flow and other volcanic formations. In
the afternoon we visit the island of Bartolomé. This is one of
the youngest and most volcanic islands of the Galápagos, and it
offers an awesome panoramic view. It is easy to understand the
islands' volcanic beginnings from this moonlike perspective. A
small colony of penguins is living on the rocky beach of Bartolomé.
