The moment we had been dreaming of had finally arrived, it was time to fly to the Galapagos.
In anticipation we had booked the flights before making any other plans to avoid any disappointment, so our first 6 weeks of travel were leading us to this point. Having arrived by bus from Banos into Guayaquil the night prior, we boarded our LATAM flight early on the Sunday morning. Flights into the Galapagos land on Baltra island, requiring a transfer of bus, boat, bus to the island Santa Cruz, and main town of Puerto Ayora.
Immediately upon arriving in Puerto Ayora we were greeted by the sight of pelicans, sleeping sea lions, and marine iguanas all across the paths (making us careful of where we stepped!). It was definitely the perfect introduction to our stay.
Keen to make the most of our time here we immediately headed out after checking in, in the direction of Tortuga Bay. The path started just behind the town and led through a landscape filled with cactus’ before opening out onto the whitest beach with the bluest sea. Walking along the beach we saw spots marked out for nesting green turtles and more marine iguanas scattered along the sand dunes. We made our way to a sheltered bay at the end of the beach and jumped into a kayak to see what we could spot in the water. Within minutes we spotted three rays gliding through the water, followed by multiple green sea turtles popping up for air. The hour passed quickly and we were sad not to have seen any of the sharks, however as we got out of the kayak two sharks swam close to the shore, ending the time perfectly.
The next day we ventured to El Chato ranch, a giant tortoise reserve within the highlands of the island. Opting to self navigate our way, we got a bus to Santa Rosa and trekked the 6 mile round trip to the ranch. The highlands have their own special climate so our route was wet and misty, however it wasn’t long until we had spotted our first wild giant tortoise. The rest of the journey continued to surprise us with tortoises dotted all over the place, in fields, on the road side and bathing in puddles.
Once we made it to the ranch we first discovered the lava tunnels to get an understanding of how the Galapagos were created, following which we were then treated to a tour of the ranch and the numerous giant tortoises on site. The majority of the tortoises were male as the females would trek to the warmer coastal climate to lay eggs, however the males were the most impressive in both size and age, some as old as 150 years old. Walking through the ranch felt a little like being in Jurassic Park with the numerous giant shells dotting the landscape!
On return to Puerto Ayora we decided we hadn’t quite had enough of tortoises so spent our afternoon at the Charles Darwin research centre and breeding centre, learning about how the tortoises live there until they are 5 years old before being released into the wild. The baby tortoises were so cute, it was hard to believe how big they’ll get!!
For our second full day we’d booked on to a snorkelling tour to Pinzon, a small island a couple of hours boat ride away. Due to the time of year the boat ride was quite choppy, although thankfully no-one on our boat got seasick. Our first stop was a small rock in the sea to see some sea lions basking in the sun, and try to catch some fish. We then motored on to Pinzon itself, and the first of the snorkelling stops. This was probably one of the most incredible experiences of the trip as within minutes of getting in the water we were swimming alongside a green sea turtle. As we then headed to deeper, crystal clear water, we were swimming behind a huge shoal of yellow tailed fish, with white tipped sharks on the sea bed below us. We then rounded a corner to a shallower area with more sea turtles, allowing us to capture some incredible videos of them. All in all we were in the water for over an hour but it literally flew by (although we were thankfully kept warm by our rented wetsuits).
Afterwards we were treated to lunch on the boat before making the 2 hour journey across the sea back to Santa Cruz Island to La Fe/Las Palmitas bay. Snorkeling here we were once again treated to many more sea turtles, however these were much larger than those we had already seen. Getting back into the cold water wasn’t pleasant, but once you stuck you head under the water you were treated to an incredible array of sea life making it worth while. After another hour in the water it was time to make our way back to Puerto Ayora and our hostel, praying for a warm shower! Our next adventure would take us, squished aboard a 2 hour ferry, in the direction of Isabela island.
Isabela island is the biggest in the Galapagos, but is a lot more remote than Puerto Ayora, with the town only consisting of a few streets - which Ali and I loved. Again, keen to make the most of our time here we had a jam packed first day planned, with an early morning walk to see the Galapagos flamingos followed by a snorkelling tour to Los Tuneles.
This time we only had to travel 45 minutes by boat before arriving at our destination. The tour started with lunch before a short walk over the tunnels themselves. These were made of lava which had cooled at different times, leaving bridges over the water and an incredible landscape to explore. After our walk it was back into the water - this time it was a little murkier but again within minutes we encountered the wildlife, being directed to the mouth of a cave with multiple white tip reef sharks in. They were a lot bigger than I expected and I did get a little freaked out when they swam towards us! Alongside more sharks we also saw more giant sea turtles, at one point stumbling across three in a row eating, some octopus and an eel. It was another incredible experience, cementing snorkelling as our favourite thing to do here!
For our second full day we’d booked onto an early morning kayak trip to Las Tintoreles, a tiny rugged islet surrounded by turquoise waters only a mere 400 meters from the shore. After being stared down and charged at by a few territorial sea lions on the beach, we paddled our way out to sea - as more playful sea lions played in the small waves around the kayak. Las Tintoreles gave us the perfect opportunity to see baby marine iguanas, as well as multiple birds including the infamous blue footed boobie, and sea turtles popping their heads up for air. However it wasn’t until we started to make our way back to shore that our journey was complete and we were joined by a penguin playing in the surf. We then spent the next ten minutes refusing to return to shore, following the penguin back and forth as the waves broke on and around the kayak.
Having made it back, the second part of our tour was a final snorkel, this time in the nearby Concha de Perla - a natural pool in a mangrove Forest. In one hour of snorkelling we were able to see a variety of rainbow coloured fish, as well as two turtles feeding in the bay. Here the depth was much deeper, giving us the opportunity to see some larger sea fish in the darker waters below.
Exhausted after the past few days we spent the afternoon wandering up to the tortoise sanctuary on Isabela to see more baby tortoises, before going for a walk along the beach and ending up at a bar overlooking the sea for a coco loca, a cocktail of coconut water and sugar cane liquor.
For our final morning we’d planned to walk to the wall of tears so set off early to give us enough time ahead of our 3pm boat back to Santa Cruz. The walk was beautiful, taking us past more lava tunnels, into a little lagoon area, and across multiple beaches. We also had the chance to see more giant tortoises as we got closer to the wall, with one just wandering along the road in front of us. When we reached the wall we were amazed by its size, and it’s sad history, being built by prisoners with many of them dying during the process. It was definitely worth seeing, and the views from the top of the mirador opposite the wall were incredible, looking out over the coastline of the island, and then back towards the mainland, really bringing home the immense scale of the island. With time running on we walked quickly back (completing 9.5miles in total) before treating ourselves to a quick fresh tuna wrap before the 2 hour ferry back.
Back on Santa Cruz Island our final night was spent stocking up on souvenirs, and recollecting on how amazing the last 7 days had been. The Galápagos Islands had completely exceeded our expectations in so many ways, and we leave with nothing but great memories and the hope to return to further explore the islands.