Trip Index
Today, we signed up for the long walk and zodiac ride at Punta Moreno on
Isabela Island. With another 8am excursion, we skipped the breakfast buffet and munched on what was put out at the Beagle Grill while getting in line to exit the ship. There were more people doing the long walk than there were zodiacs, so we had to wait for an earlier departed zodiac to drop off its passengers and return to the ship to retrieve us.
Soto was our guide; he informed us that we would be doing the activities in reverse order - the zodiac ride first, then the long walk. I had found out later from another cruisemate that if possible, the naturalists would divide up so that a few groups would start the walk/excursion in one direction, and the rest would go in the opposite direction, in order to pick up anything inadvertently dropped by guests. I also believe that it helped with time management not to go in a serial fashion.
 |
| one of many volcanoes on Isabela Island |
 |
| beautiful, clear (yet shallow!) water |
In the water, we spotted sea turtles, sea lions, and marine iguanas. (Editor's note: I don't understand why in reviews, people complained about seeing the same wildlife over and over. It's not a zoo and it wouldn't be unexpected to see repeats since it's one group of islands. I enjoyed every sighting, with the exception of wasps!) We saw our first flightless coromants.
 |
| a pair of flightless coromants |
 |
| marine iguanas can be as long as 6 feet |
 |
| anyone wanna play with me? |
 |
| sea lion playfully chasing after a marine iguana ("help me!") |
Then it was time to start the long walk, with a dry landing onto steep lava. The water was pretty calm, making it easy for the driver to press the zodiac against the rock so we could step out with no mishaps. (always count on the Galapagos handshake)
 |
| this piece of lava will work |
Along the path was a lagoon with a few sea turtles in residence. Then we came across a field of lava, flecked with the occasional cactus or mangrove. Soto explained how the islands were formed from a "hot spot" in the Earth's crust along with the movement of tectonic plates (similar to how the Hawaiian islands were born), and how pioneer species managed to take root on the desolate lava.
 |
| lagoons scattered here and there |
 |
| Soto leading us across the lava field |
 |
| cactus looks like someone twisted a long balloon |
We came upon a lagoon that had flamingoes! Close up!
We then headed back to the rough lava rock landing to board the zodiac back to the ship. Along the way, we were surprised with a glimpse of the Galapagos penguin!
 |
| hello! |
We were one of the last zodiacs to return to the ship, so they were already hoisting one up to prepare for departure:
Xpedition set sail for Urbina Bay. Today's lunch buffet was a BBQ at the Beagle Grill. This was the best meal so far on the boat, so I had to take photos:
 |
| soup, breads |
 |
| fresh octopus ceviche and salads |
|
 |
| empanadas and potatoes |
|
 |
| pasta station, surf and turf and sides on the grill |
 |
| dessert table |
After lunch, it was time for a siesta, followed by the afternoon excursion and snorkeling. We noticed that the same group of people lagged behind to take the last zodiac, so we decided to initiate ourselves into the "back-of-the-bus club", or "BBC" for short, fitting by the fact that this group was made up of British travelers. :) Our group was pretty active and had a similar interest in the flora and fauna so it worked out well.
It was a wet landing in Urbina Bay and since snorkeling would be from the beach, we had to wear our swimsuits underneath and bring our gear. I noticed people would wear their water shoes, climb out of the zodiac, dry their feet, and then put on a pair of walking shoes that they carried with them. If you take the long walk, I'd recommend that you wear long pants, as there were many overgrown bushes along the trail which could cut into your legs.
 |
| swapping shoes |
 |
| first part of the walk was flat (short walk was this) |
|
 |
| Kaleb wished he had long pants! |
|
Lots of interesting flora and fauna here as well as unusual lay of the land as the coast was "uplifted" back in the 1950's due to plate movement, leaving evidence of marine life way inland. We also had our first giant tortoise and land iguana sighting.
 |
| mockingbird |
 |
| giant tortoise |
 |
| lava lizard adjacent to a goat's skull |
 |
| the trail can get muddy (no rain in sight so far!) |
 |
| Galapagos cotton flower |
 |
| land iguana running away from us |
 |
| coral found inland due to the coastal uplift |
 |
| brain coral |
 |
| haha, gotcha you little yellow warbler! |
 |
| heron |
 |
| the trail becoming more rocky along the coast |
|
 |
| rocks became bigger |
|
 |
| then we were climbing on the rocks |
 |
| lobster got washed ashore, died :( looked like what we ate for lunch... |
 |
| sea lion skull |
A video of a sally lightfoot crab roaming around:
At the end of the walk, we had 30 minutes left to snorkel. Some people chose to go on the short walk so that they could spend more time snorkeling, though I don't think they got to see the inland coral. We still were able to catch a lot of sea life, including this video of a sea turtle fighting the current, feeding on algae.
 |
| sea turtle |
|
 |
| puffer fish |
|
Back on the boat, we showered, then headed to Deck 4 for the "blue footed booby" cocktail party. At the entrance to the lounge, we ran into a gentleman, who asked "Are you Kat?" Why, yes I am! Joe was one of the people subscribed to Cruise Critic's roll call for this departure date, and as there wasn't an official welcome cocktail party like on larger Celebrity ships, he searched for everyone who participated on the board. Joe said that he had asked around in Carmine Restaurant in Quito for a "Kat", but I didn't hear anything, maybe because we were seated outside. Well, I'm glad we found each other! :) The blue footed booby drink was blue-hued, sweet and tasty. The excursion sign-up was important here, as there were limited spaces for each of the morning zodiac departures. As much as we didn't want to wake up early, we felt it was best to sign up for the 8am zodiac so that we would have enough time to relax and change for the deep snorkel at 10:30am. Kaleb lined up for the excursions as I made my way to the dining room. I bumped into Joe again and asked to join him and his group (Jody, Robert and Pam) for dinner.
 |
| the end of the day |
 |
| tasty booby |
I learned that a couple of their party didn't eat seafood, which was bad news, since of all the food I had eaten on the cruise so far, I could depend on the fish selection to be good. I found the beef to be rather stringy and chewy, with the chicken and pork sometimes dry. Perhaps it stems from the Galapagos being so remote and no fresh beef/pork/chicken available, whereas fishermen bring fresh catch to the boat. With such a high cost for the cruise, people may have expected the food to be similar to the big cruise ships or better, but it was not, though for where we were, it was probably pretty good. There were always several vegetarian selections available at every mealtime. Joe had ordered an extra Chana Masala vegetarian dish to share at the table to mix things up; I tasted it and it was pretty good.
 |
| shrimp crepes, not bad |
 |
| broth, very good |
 |
| grilled tuna, good |
 |
| brujo, very good |
 |
| black pearl, light and delicate |
 |
| passion fruit mousse, not bad |
After a lengthy dinner (we were seated in the back of the dining room), Joe and his party headed to the lounge for the talent show (heard that a couple of people sang), but Kaleb and I ended up staying in. :) Too tired...plus, we had another 8am outing in the morning, the third in a row, and two deep water snorkeling opportunities!
***
Don't miss a single entry...get full updates to my blog direct to your inbox! Click
here
to subscribe. Unsubscribe at any time. Your email address will
never be shared with anyone. Thank you for your readership!
Nice to see pictures from the islands we didn't get to on itinerary B :-)))
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to read about your experience on Itinerary B!
ReplyDelete