Day 8/9: North Seymour and closing thoughts

Today was to be our last day in the Archipelago. We were all bereaved to leave such a poignant atmosphere. With bittersweet steps, we explored the island of North Seymour in the early morning. Every second was worth this last expedition. North Seymour, located above Baltra Island, is a popular site for blue footed boobie nesting and magnificent frigate and great frigate bird nesting. It, along with Baltra Island (sometimes referred to as South Seymour) were formed by an uplift of underwater lava formations.

Along our trail were blue footed boobie nests with males and females guarding and incubating eggs or chicks. Most frigate birds had hatched their young and those had matured to almost young adults. Opuntia cacti and land iguanas were present, but the big attraction was all of the bird hatchlings. We even saw a red footed boobie resting in one of the trees near the ridge; our guide Washington informed us this was a rare sighting.

In a closing procession, we marched one by one back along the winding trail of sand and rock, pausing frequently to capture our last moments on these islands thru pictures and tired gazes out to sea where swallow-tailed gulls, frigate birds and blue footed boobies were taking in breakfast.

Upon our arrival to Quito, we were whisked back to Hotel Quito, hit up the artisan market one more time, and finished the night with a lovely Ecuadorian themed dinner at a local restaurant. Brief hours later our alarms tolled and everyone dragged themselves to the airport at 3:30a.m., 4:30a.m EST. It was a journey of 17 hours back to the University, but amidst retellings of favorite moments and local wildlife reminding us we were not in the Galapagos any more, I believe there was a general consensus that is was good to be home.

Day 7: Bartolome and Santa Cruz

Compared to other islands, Bartolome is very desolate. The landscape was covered in lava formations with few plants or animals present. We had to climb up 366 stairs to reach the top of the crater. The way up was a challenge, but the view was well worth it! From the top, we could see Pinnacle Point and other surrounding islands. After making our way down the volcanic mass, some of the class snorkeled around Pinnacle Point while others went to the beach. At the beach, Brown Pelicans and Blue- footed boobies were diving for fish as close as 5 feet in front of us. The people snorkeling saw another octopus, yellow puffer fish, a lobster molt, and other fish. Our last excursion of the day was a Dinghy ride around the mangroves of Santa Cruz Island. There we saw some Sea Turtles, white tip sharks, and pelicans fishing. We came back to the boat for our last dinner on the Galapagos. This is our last Galapagos blog, but we will be back to update once we are in the U.S. Everyone here is excited to come back home to share our adventures with friends and family.

Day 6: Rabida Island

Rabida is a small island with marine iguanas and sally light-foot crabs along the rocky shore. We walked along a red sand path that lead to a great view of the ocean and other islands. Next the class went snorkeling around Rabida where we saw and octopus! After that, we went to Chinese hat island for more snorkeling. At this island, Galapagos penguins were hunting around us. The penguins are found around Chinese hat because the water is cooler and is more productive. Later in the evening, we walked over the lava flows of Chinese hat. On the island, there were sea lions resting with marine iguanas along the shore. Dried lava flows covered the island and some were large enough for us to climb in. After returning to the boat, we had a small fiesta with the crew to celebrate our trip!

Day 5: Santa Cruz

To start the day we visited the Darwin Research center, a place that is dedicated to protecting the islands flora and fauna, through education and captive breeding programs. It was great to see Lonesome George, the only Tortoise of his species from Pinta island left. Their breeding programs are focused on land iguanas and Tortoises. There are 14 different species of tortoise native to the Galapagos. We got to see the babies in their acclimation areas; they will be released in to the wild when they are big enough.

From the research station we walked to Puerto Ayora where the sea port is, and where a lot of the locals live and work. After lunch we went to Chato Farm in the highlands of Santa Cruz. Here we saw lush vegetation for miles. There were grapefruit, avocado, papaya, lime, mango, banana, and coffee bean trees. While driving down the dirt road we had to stop because there was a giant tortoise in the road. We took pictures with him and continued to the farm. At the farm we got to explore a fresh lagoon that was surrounded by giant tortoises.

Then Washington, our guide led us into a huge lava tunnel. This tunnel was lit up and was easier to navigate than yesterdays. At the end of the tunnel we climbed out and around to a restaurant. Right now we are anchored in Puerto Ayora; we set sail for Rabida Island at midnight tonight. As we get ready to send this message to you, we are enjoy an amazing sunset, watching a black tip shark circle the boat.

Day 4: Floreana and Santa Cruz

To start the morning we landed on a lava crystal beach. The sand was red with pieces of green olivine crystals. The landscape had a lot more trees than the other islands, and there was a freshwater lagoon with flamingos in it. We crossed the island to check out the sea turtle nesting area. The nests looked like big craters in the sand and there was a frigate bird circling above waiting to snatch a baby sea turtle as it tries to make its way to the sea. After that we went back to the boat to get ready for some hard core snorkeling. We were looking for three different kinds of sharks, spotted eagle rays, and sea turtles. We were jumping off the zodiacs and were out for around and hour and half.

Our next stop was post office bay. Here we got to climb down a steep, very dark lava tunnel, full of very cold water. It was scary at first but turned out to be amazing. Only two people in our group had flashlights, so it took a lot of team work to navigate the rock climbing. At times the ceiling was so low we had to crawl. Halfway through the tunnel, it started to fill with water, here we dropped our backpacks and continued by swimming to the end of the tunnel where the water was way over our heads. Considering how hard it was to get down there, making our way back was very rewarding. On the path back to the zodiacs we stopped at the pirate post office, where some of us left letters and found some to take home to deliver.

That night after dinner we got a chance to wind down by visiting the city of Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz island. There we went shopping and visited the local hang outs. It was surprising to see such a developed urban area in the Galapagos.

Day 3: South Plazas and Santa Fe

This morning some of us were awake to see the sunrise which was gorgeous. Breakfast was at 7:00am, Galápagos is two hours behind Eastern Standard Time. We had a dry landing on South Plazas, where we were greeted by playful sea lion pups on and surrounding the dock. We are not allowed to touch any animals on the islands or in the water, however sometimes, like today on the dock, the animal will run in to you by accident. As we walked the trail we saw many land iguanas, lava lizards, and opuntia cactus. There were mangrove finches, small ground finch, common cactus finch and Galápagos doves along the trail as well.

The opuntia cactus are very tall and are a major food source for many of these animals. Towards the southern side of the island there was a cliff where many different sea birds are visible. Swallow tailed gulls, shearwaters, brown noddies, nazca booby, blue footed booby, tropic bird were visible from the edge. After lunch we went snorkeling of f the boat. The water here was warm enough to swim without a wetsuit; however our next snorkeling excursion required one. Some students saw sea turtles, giant damsel fish, parrot fish and many more.

Towards the end of the snorkel tour we were brought to an area of the shore where the baby sea lions play, and white tip reef sharks relax. With us swimming around, the sharks also started to move around people’s feet. The sharks were around four to six feet long. We were able to get unbelievably close to the baby sea lions and most students forgot about the sharks. Some of the pups would come close enough to kiss if you slapped the rock or imitated their sounds. We then went ashore on Santa Fe Island where the sea lions were sunning in colonies of females with pups and one dominant male. The dominant male was much larger than the mother sea lions. Here we were able to get amazing pictures, most sea lions did not care that we were walking so close to their resting area. We then walked through the Opuntia cactus forest, where we saw a Cactus Finch, Galapagos Doves, a Rice Rat, and a Land Iguana. On the dingy ride back to the boat, we were followed by Eagle rays and Golden Rays, which topped off one of the best days yet!

Day 2: Arrival on the Galápagos

At 8:00am this morning we flew to Guayaquil airport, and then on to Baltra, the island of the Galápagos that was previously a U.S. military base. Upon arrival we had to sanitize our hands and shoes, then went through a security check-point to meet our naturalist guide. He took us on a bus across the island to a dock where sea lions were waiting to welcome us. They were lying on a bench at the top of the dock, with marine iguanas in between. We took a dinghy to the Yolita 2, our private yacht for the next week.

Our first excursion on land was to Bachas beach. There we walked along the coastline where Frigatebirds and Brown Pelicans were flying overhead and Sally Light-foot crabs were scattered across the lava rocks. While snorkeling, we swam beside marine iguanas and viewed various fish including Parrot fish, Target puffers, Camotillo, and Panamic Sergent Major fish.

After dinner, we were able to star gaze at the Milky Way, Southern Cross, Alpha Centuri, the Big Dipper, Little Dipper, the Lyre, Orion’s Belt. While lying on the deck, we watched comets cross the sky, which was a great way to relax after a long day!

Chloe: Congratulations Miles!! I miss you and hope you had a great night! Love you.

Kate Rose: Hello from the Galapagos to all my friends and family! Miss and love you all! Happy Birthday Danielle!

Ashley P: I wish you all could have seen what we saw today: A baby shark in the surf cutest thing ever!

Kathy: We made it!! Hope Molly is behaving.

Day 1: Quito

Our first two days in Quito have been quite an experience! Yesterday was spent mostly traveling, with dinner in Quito that evening. Our hotel is very nice, one of the first 5 star hotels built in Quito when tourism gained in popularity. The next morning we began our tour of the city. Quito is the capital of Ecuador; one of our first stops was the Presidential Government Square. This was a maze of buildings where the political decisions of the country are made.

Next, we visited several churches that were elaborately decorated with gold, stained glass, and statues. Most were built between the 1600s and 1800s and much of the ornamentation is original. 80% of the population is Catholic and these churches are heavily used to this day.

Our afternoon was spent traveling North to the equatorial border. On our way to the equator, we stopped at a traditional Ecuadorian restaurant to enjoy some local food. It turned out to be an amazing five-course meal, and afterwards we stood on the middle of the earth! The original explorers who determined the equator were only two hundred meters off using traditional measuring techniques. We visited the actual latitudinal location of the equator and our tour guide demonstrated the Coriolis effect.

Upon returning to Quito, we went to the Artisino Mercado (Artist’s Market) and found bountiful treasures. We practiced our Spanish and bartering skills.
Tomorrow we board our yacht in the Galapagos to begin our next adventure!

Predeparture thoughts

Michael Campinell
I’m an excited to go to the Galapagos because I think this is an opportunity not a lot of people get. This is an area that should be treasured by so many people, but at the same time is threatened by the actions of people too. I am excited to go hiking, snorkeling and swimming at the various islands we will be visiting. I hope that I can see a waved albatross and a lava gull, two of the animals I did my projects on. Make sure to ask me lots of questions when I get back; I’m sure I will have a lot to say.

Kristy Boyd
I am so excited and thankful for being able to go on this trip. My passion is traveling and it has always been a dream to go to the Galapagos. I am really looking forward to seeing the endemic species of the Galapagos and learning as much as I can about them. I am expecting this trip to be one of the best experiences of my life!

Laura Benoit
I really think this trip is going to be a lot of fun. I think we have a great group of people going. Everyone has worked hard on their presentations and I am really looking forward to seeing the animals we have learned about, especially the sea lions, penguins and the tortoises.

I am scared of birds and reptiles, so hopefully this trip will help me overcome my fear. I would love to see a lizard “drop it’s tail!”

One of the things that I would be most interested in learning while we are there is about the conservation of the islands and what steps they are taking to ensure the biodiversity and natural beauty lasts forever on these wonderful islands.

Chloe Crettien
It has been a dream of mine to go to the Galapagos Islands, and now I have the opportunity. I am looking forward to seeing one of the most unique places on earth. I love to travel and hope to compare the flora and fauna of other unique islands after this experience.

Ashley Powenski
This class is an interesting opportunity to learn and discover hands on; We just happen to be heading to one of the most famous areas in the world of biology. I am most excited to go snorkeling; hopefully I will get to see a shark from a safe distance! I also hope to get great pictures of the beautiful birds on the islands such as the Flightless Cormorant and the Blue Footed Boobie.

Elizabeth Mitchell
Traveling to the Galapagos Islands has been a dream for me almost 6 years in the making. I can only fantasize about how amazing this experience will be. My goal for the trip is to see a Blue Footed Booby, a giant scalesia tree, and the constellation called the Southern Cross, which can only be viewed in the Southern hemisphereS.

Juliet Maurukas
Ever since I was a young child, I always loved learning about the amazing creatures on the Galapagos Islands, but I never thought I’d actually be going there! I’m looking forward most to going to an island that is barely inhabited by people. I’m excited about actually sailing on a yacht to travel to each of the islands! I can’t wait to get up close to a marine iguana or a giant tortoise! My only concerns are actually just for the first day or two, that someone may target us since we’re tourists. Other than that, I cannot wait until we’re far from civilization and on an island where the animals are free of danger from most human impacts.

Beth Wetterhahn
It’s hard to believe that it’s almost time for us to head off to the Galapagos Islands for what will surely be an unforgettable experience. After spending the semester learning about the many diverse species that are endemic to the Islands, it’s very exciting to finally be getting ready to go see them. This trip will be a once in a lifetime experience and will fulfill a dream I have had for much of my life. I’m looking forward to warm weather, beautiful scenery, and seeing evolution up close and personal very soon!