Galapagos: Up Close and Personal with Nature

The third country on our South American adventure was Ecuador. The big draw is the Galapagos Islands. Naturally the country has a lot more to offer. We had planned to visit different regions, including Guayaquil and Cuenca. Sadly drug cartels are involved in campaigns of violence against the government and each other. Many areas of the country were under states of emergency. As a result, we confined ourselves to the Galapagos Islands and the capital Quito.

Galapagos

The Galapagos exceeded all expectations. They are the number one tourist attraction in Ecuador. Darwin’s visit to the islands in 1835 inspired his theory of evolution. People have been fascinated with the islands ever since. There are 13 major islands in the archipelago. We visited only four of them.

Our visit started on Santa Cruz Island with a two-day stay in the small, quaint town of Puerto Ayora. We relaxed and absorbed the unhurried island life. Leisurely walks along the waterfront to the Charles Darwin research center and nearby Tortuga Beach to see the marine iguanas and aqua-blue waters of the ocean were a nice prelude to the the main event, a five-day cruise of the islands.

After spending most of the last two months following a budget backpacker itinerary, we spoiled ourselves with a luxury cruise on the motor yacht Infinity. The amenities on board were nice, but the highlights were guided hikes onshore and snorkeling in the sheltered bays. The pictures tell the story.

For more pictures (a lot more!) click on the gallery at the bottom of the post.

Quito

Quito is a massive city of two million, stretching over 60km along multiple craggy fissures left by volcanic activity. It is the capital of Ecuador but for tourists it is primarily the launchpad to the Galapagos Islands. Many tourists don’t even bother stopping in the city. They’re missing out.

The old town is a UNESCO heritage site. It has some of the most beautiful churches in South America. There are many well-restored colonial buildings in the center. Sadly, like Lima, Quito has many no-go zones. We’ve travelled to a lot of countries. We’ve never had so many well-meaning people watching out for us. We had police officers, Uber drivers and many locals warn us to stay safe and watch our belongings. Two friends off our Galapagos cruise had their phones snatched. After dark the streets were not safe for tourists. Uber was our safe commute after dark.

Hiking Through Fresh Ash and Sulphorous Gases

There are 84 volcanos in Ecuador, many of them recently active. A short drive from Quito is Cotopaxi Volcano. Six days prior to our visit the volcano belched out clouds of ash, causing authorities to close the park. Luckily the lower half of the mountain was re-opened by the time we got there, though the summit remained closed to climbers. The volcano was still spewing out steam and sulphorous gas.

The one kilometre climb to the refuge has a 400m elevation gain, maxing out at about 4,900m. It was a hard climb due to the altitude and wearing masks for the gas and sulphur fumes. The clouds changed by the minute and the temperatures were only a few degrees centigrade. Unfortunately when we got to the top it clouded over. Visibility was just a few feet so there were no good pictures from the top. Our return route was straight down a steep gully. We basically slid our way through fresh volcanic ash which felt like deep snow powder.

Quito’s 488th Birthday Party

We happened to be in Quito for the week-long celebration of its 488th year. There were parades and parties everyday. We enjoyed parts of two parades. We say “parts” because the parades went on for four or five hours each. We didn’t have the stamina to stay to the end. Judging by this year, the party for the 500th anniversary should be a blast.

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Galapagos Islands’ Wildlife