Greetings –
No we haven’t fallen off the face of the earth, email has just been few and far between. We have been in the Tuamotus since June 26 and are arrived in Rangiroa yesterday and will be heading off to the big city of Papeete on Tahiti probably on Tuesday 17 July. We have decided to celebrate Fete and the July Festivities here in Rangiroa and not rush off to the crowds in Papeete as we wanted to enjoy the Tuamotus for a bit longer. Hope to have the adventures of the Marquises and Tuamotus off soon, but it’s amazing how busy we seem to be here in paradise what with snorkeling the pass and helping some of the locals with their fish traps. The water here is a wonderful turquoise blue and the snorkeling has been great. Email has been a bit more challenging to find here in the South Pacific so we have not been in contact as frequently but we still love to get messages from everyone whenever we find email. We now copy all of our messages onto a disk so we can read them on the boat at our leisure and then write our responses in the nice quite anchorages to be ready to send the next time we find an internet café. If you need a reply right away just indicate that in the beginning of the message as we generally glance through the messages before copying them.
So here at long last is the Galapagos log, yes we left there three months ago, but some things just take time.
Parahi (good bye) for now and hope all is well with everyone at home. We certainly miss you all. Love – Paul and Suzette
What an incredible experience!!! We sailed to the Galapagos from Panama in nine days with light to moderate winds and some motoring, but a nice calm passage on the whole. The Galapagos was a unique experience as there is so much to see and the animals are as friendly as they are diverse.
One challenge in terms of figuring out the geography of the Galapagos is that every island and major port has at least two names (English and Spanish) with one island having eight names, so when you are reading up on where you want to go, it can be a bit confusing. On your own yacht you are allowed to anchor in the main anchorages on the four inhabited islands – Academy Bay (Puerto Ayora) on Santa Cruz, Wreck Bay (Puerto Baquerizo Moreno) on San Cristobal (Chatham), Villamil on Isabela (Ablemarle) and Black Beach on Floreana (Charles or Santa Maria). We went to three of the islands only missing Floreana. Academy Bay is the largest port and BIG CITY for the Galapagos and the base for all of the tour boats, big or small, in the Galapagos and so a very busy place. We are glad in some ways that this was our last stop as we felt Wreck Bay and Villamil were more what we expected and so it was nice to see them first. Wreck Bay in a nice smaller town, with very friendly people, most services that you could want (the internet café had opened just a week or so before), but having that small town feel. Villamil was the quietest of the three by far, a few small shops, a bakery, and unpaved streets of fine white sand. Floreana is where Post Office Bay is located, the barrel set up by whalers in the 1700’s to leave homeward bound mail for another vessel to pick up. We were a bit disappointed to skip this spot with such great maritime history but you cannot legally anchor in the bay without a guide on board and hey you can’t get everywhere. We have also heard that it is mainly people from tour boats leaving postcards there now. There are two airports now, Santa Cruz (actually on Balltra and then a ferry and bus ride to Academy Bay) and now also on San Cristobal. In fact when we were there they closed the airport on Balltra to expand the runway.
Through other boats we had heard that we would be allowed to stay in the Galapagos for 21 days but actually received a month when we arrived in San Cristobal on March 24. All of this was a very pleasant surprise as in reading through the information from people visiting in 2000 you were only given 72 hours which would not really be time see much of anything. But as with many things in the world of cruising, things can always change quickly so who knows what it will be like next year. We had been told not to make any advanced contact or plans but to just arrive in the Galapagos which seemed to work just fine and we were not aware of problems that any other boats encountered.
Port fees for our Cal 35 were US$69 plus we had to pay US$30 for our visas. There is also a US$100 per person park fee that is collected from most visitors when they land at the airport. The government currently does not have a “system” for collecting the park fee from visiting yachts, you are just expected to go to the Park Office and pay the fee, but no one seems to check. We felt the fee was well worth paying due to the number of trails and other facilities that have recently been built or were currently under construction, all of which you could see or use for no additional cost. Technically you are supposed to pay the fee to visit any of the National Park facilities or use any of the trails. You do need to prove that you have paid the park fee if you plan to go to any other islands either with a tour boat or with a guide (US$100 per day) on your own boat.
Our initial landfall in the Galapagos was on San Cristobal which came into sight rising out of the early morning mists as the sun rose. A group of dolphins riding our bow wake welcomed us as we got closer to the island. They swam so close below the bow that it seemed you could easily reach down and touch them, sometimes as many as four at one time. Occasionally the dolphins would turn slightly on one side and look up to the bow to ensure we were watching their show. We could even hear them communicating with each other. All in all an incredible sight and experience and wonderful welcome to the Galapagos.
We broke the dinghy out again after two months rolled up as we have not needed it since southern Mexico. We had a quick refresher on making a surf landing which we had not done for about three months and to make matters a bit more challenging, there were lots of sea lions frolicking in the surf line, so we needed to dodge sea lions on the way in as well as time the waves. The sea lions consider the beach we used for dinghy landings to be theirs and were somewhat grumpy at times when we come through with the dinghy, especially at night to go back to the boat. However, the nearby disco did not seem to bother them on Saturday nights. In the anchorage the overly friendly sea lions would rub their backs against the bottom of your boat and climb into your dingy if you left it along side over night so we always made sure that ours was hoisted out of the water each night. We never tired of watching these wonderful creatures play in the water, surf the waves or just roll in and out with the surf at the edge of the water. They frequently would just lay about in the water with one flipper in the air and it almost looked like they were using it as some sort of stabilizer but we later learned that they put their flippers or tail fins in the air to cool themselves. In one bay while we were snorkeling, we even had the chance to swim with them. It was quite a strange feeling to look down and have a sea lion just two feet away and swimming along with you on its back, looking up at you intently. We really wanted to touch them but figured that was not a good idea, however, they seemed just as curious about us as we were about them. At one point one chewed on our flippers and we had to encourage them to let go. That was really a bizarre and unnerving experience and we were very glad it was our “hind flippers” and not our “front flippers” that they chose to sample.
Wreck Bay is where Paul’s parents and family came to in the Galapagos in 1960 in their attempt to start a small colony of Americans that planned to operate a fish freezing plant and coffee plantation. This was around the same time that the Ecuadorian government was starting to make the Galapagos a national park and things did not work out, but the Baker family did stay and give it a go for six months. Paul enjoyed being back in Wreck Bay with its friendly people and it was fun for him to walk the same waterfront and wharfs that he had as a kid. Although Paul did not remember much as he was only three in 1960.
We took a tour of San Cristobal with a number of other cruisers, about 20 people all together. It was a wonderful way for us to get to know most of the other people in the anchorage. We were the only Americans in a group of mainly New Zealanders and Australians with a few British mixed in for good measure. It is a very different experience for us to be in a group where most of the boats are on the last leg of their circumnavigations rather than just beginning as we are.
We had a great lobster dinner with our new Aussie and Kiwi friends to celebrate Paul’s birthday at the Scuba Bar. The Scuba Bar in on the main front street and they do dive and land tours, Fernando had organized our tour the day before. It’s not really a restaurant so everything was started at home and then brought down to the Scuba Bar, including the additional tables and chairs. This incredible dinner was $10 each and included huge slipper lobster, rice, papas fritos, and salad followed by papaya for dessert. Cecila, Fernandos mother, even made a birthday cake for Paul and she also had set aside the largest lobster for him knowing it was his birthday. Paul had his third birthday here in 1960 and so it was fun to be in the same place celebrate his birthday this year. He did promise not to fall off the main wharf and cut his lip as he had done on the day after his third birthday.
In Wreck Bay we anchored off the beach the Baker’s used to live on when they were here, which is on the left side of the bay. We asked around but could not locate any of the people whose names Paul’s parents had given us or find anyone except Pepe the tortoise, who was here 40 years ago. Close to the beach is a museum, very well done with natural and human history plus a section on conservation. It was funded by the Spanish government and in cooperation with the Galapagos National Park and the Darwin Foundation. After going to the museum we had a beer on the beach and talked with Carlos the vendor. Sounds like the beach was a garbage dump up until a few years ago. The Boy Scouts cleaned it up and made it a public beach that is used regularly afternoons and weekends by the locals and we would watch the kids and families playing on the beach. In fact any section of beach always seemed to be in use and alive with the shrieks and peals of laughter of the local kids. It was nice to see so many people enjoying the water on a regular basis.
One of our favorite spots in Wreck Bay was the Frigata Bakery, which we visited daily. They had wonderful rolls, spicy hotdogs wrapped in a puff pastry, and our favorite, a slightly sweet breakfast roll with cocoa powder, similar to a cinnamon roll, which quickly became a daily habit. We tried them on other islands, but they were never as good.
Most boats heading for the Marquises were leaving from Villamil as it is the most western anchorage, but we had decided to go here second and then back to the east to Academy Bay as we had heard it was the best port for provisioning. We had a wonderful time here sightseeing, socializing with other boats and doing various boat projects, and yet not having to think about provisioning for the long crossing ourselves. It was a strange feeling to watch boats heading off and to know that they were starting a 20-30 day passage. It was here that we discovered Almuezo, a lunch special. For US$1.50-$2.00 you would get a big bowl of soup followed by meat or fish with rice (maybe some salad) and a glass of various exotic juice. Very filling, tasty and always something different.
A short dingy ride away and five minute walk through the jagged lava formations is a lagoon where Paul swam with white tip sharks about four feet long, his first experience being in the water with sharks. There were also a group of young sea lions and Suzette swam along with a sea turtle. Paul even caught one of the many marine iguanas on shore so we got a good close up look at it. At first it is hard to spot them in amongst the black volcanic rock, but once you pick out one they seem to be everywhere.
One morning we were awakened by a loud splashing sound just off the bow of the boat and it was the Blue-Footed Boobies fishing which they would do most mornings and some evenings. They swoop around in a large flock, perhaps 50 birds, then one will give the cry and they all dive into the water from at least 30 feet in the air. They are very streamline in shape when they hit the water and dive down perhaps 10 feet or so. So there is this great noise when they all dive in and then you see them pop up to the surface a minute or so later. One moment the water is disturbed from their dive and the next minute there were 50 birds sitting there. It was comical to watch as they pop up out of the sea. Paul would really like to be underwater when they dive in to watch them and it would certainly be interesting as long as they did not hit you.
The Tortoise Farm was great and this is where they raise tortoises from eggs to set free in the wilds and build up the population. These tortoise were mainly from around Cerro Negro and they were down to two females and four males when they were brought to the ranch to start a breeding program. They expect to raise about 300 tortoise to release into the wild in six years time. These big brutes are not shy and seem to be mating like there’s no tomorrow or maybe its just that because they are fenced in, it is not hard to find each other. Most pens had them grouped by age. They start in high pens off the ground with a wire mesh top to protect the young from rats and other predators. Then when they are about one year they are moved to an outdoor pen on the ground. A second pen for two to five year olds and then they are released into the wild at about six years when the staff feels they can fend for themselves and will not been easily eaten by someone else. At the Farm they are fed stalks of bananas, whole stalks for the adult tortoises, and chopped up ones for the younger ones. We watched them eating and they all seemed to focus on one stalk and fight over it while leaving other stalks off to one side. They were closing the pens on the young tortoises and we got to hold one that was 12 days old, very cute and little, I was a bit afraid that he would walk off my hands and fall to the ground as I was holding him. When we visited the Darwin Center on Santa Cruz, we saw the many tortoises that are in their care for rearing and research, including Lonesome George who is the last of his species. We were fortunate enough to tag along with a group off a cruise ship that had an excellent guide, learned a lot and were able to ask a few of the questions that we had. We did learn that one of the reasons tortoise live so long is that they have a beak instead of teeth. Many animals die when their teeth rot and fall out, but tortoise don’t have this problem. Thus many grow to be over 100.
Got up early one morning in Villamil to go on the horse back trip up to one of the craters. We set out in the back of a truck for the ride up into the hills. Next we transferred to horses with rather unique homemade saddles made of rebar, rope with heavy duty rubber/plastic over the top. The horses seemed quite competitive when we first started out trying to rush ahead of each other to be in the lead despite the fact that it was an up hill trot. We all laughed a lot as we certainly were not the ones in control. Beautiful ride along the rim of the crater – Cerro Negro, second largest in the world with an incredible view looking down to the coast. Horse back was a nice way to take in the view, faster than walking but feeling more in touch with nature than just in the back of a truck. Down the other side from the rim of the crater we stopped and got off the horses to hike down into the area of the most resent lava flow on this volcano. Very incredible terrain even after all that we saw on the Big Island of Hawaii in 1999. We were all tired and a bit sore when we got back to Ballena Azul, took showers and then sat down for a late lunch. After lunch we watched a video about the 1998 eruption of Cerrro Azul, very dramatic footage from some amateurs showing the helicopter evacuation of some tortoises.
One morning we took a walking tour with friends on Isabela and were pleasantly surprised at the number of trails. We were headed to The Wall of Tears which was built when there was a prison on the island (1959 about), it is huge, very tall and very deep, probably 15 feet at the base, 30 feet high and over 100 yards long. It was all built from flat pieces of lava rock. There were also several side trails along the way, some that were still under construction, leading off to various sites. There is a tall rock that has a staircase to the top that provides a good vista of the entire area. Other side trails included a lava tube that goes to the sea, mangrove beach, lake in a sink hole and various beaches. All very nicely done, many of the paths were made from pieces of volcanic rock that were laid out and fitted together as tiles. It all just looked so nice and very in keeping with the nature of the place, someone has an excellent sense of design. A few signs would be nice to explain what was there, but we are sure that will be coming.
We were very glad we stopped at Isla Isabella off the coast of Mexico in December as we had already seen Frigate birds nesting and inflating their red pouches. We had also seen Yellow- and Blue-Footed Boobies nesting with their young, feeding juveniles whole fish and adults doing the Boobie dance. We never saw any of these things while we were in the Galapagos, but also did not seek them out. It was nice to already have a few things crossed off the list when we arrived in the Galapagos already.
We decided that in order to see more of the incredible wild life we should take a tour with one of the many small cruise boats. After much research and deliberation we decided on two day trips with the Delfin II which was said to be one of the fastest and most luxurious of the bunch and we were not disappointed with our choice. The crew was very professional and the multi-lingual guides were able to converse with all on board. The group was an interesting combination consisting primarily of a four-day package tour staying at the Hotel Delfin every evening plus a few cruisers and individual travelers thrown in. Each morning we were treated to a wonderful breakfast and a presentation complete with slides of where we would be going and what we should able to see. The crew’s attention to safety was first class as well. We started the first day with a hike to the top of the peak on Bartoloume Island, this looks down on one of the classic shots you see of the Galapagos. After the hike it was time for a swim before lunch. The more advanced and adventurous of the group were taken by shore boat to snorkel in deeper more exposed waters while the less experienced snorkeled or swam off a beautiful beach. Suzette and Paul went with the adventurous group and swam face to face with Galapagos penguins (cute little guys) as well as sea lions, white tipped sharks, and a sting ray. It was very cool, but Paul had cut his leg on some coral and after noticing that the sharks were showing a bit more aggressive behavior we decided it was time to get out of the water. We had a great lunch aboard and then explored the lava fields and snorkeled on the shore off Sullivan Bay on James Island (Santiago or San Salvador). On the return trip we were visited by a huge, exuberant pod of dolphins that leaped and played in the waters around their namesake the Delfin II. We were back to Altair by 8:00 p.m. for a much needed good nights sleep. At 6:30 the next morning we went back aboard the Delpin II and off to the next adventure. The goal of this day was land iguanas and we headed out to Barrington Island (Santa Fe). The land iguanas here are unique and each seems to have staked out a cactus of their own. They are not in any hurry so they just lie in the shade of the cactus and wait for the fruit to fall, as this sometimes takes days, these are very patient animals. They would watch you carefully if you got too close to “their” cactus in case you showed interest in the fruit. We anchored in a beautiful bay and sea lions were in full frolic, leaping out of the water in the same manner as dolphins, something we had never seen before. But tours are big business here in the Galapagos and by the time we finished our morning swim and were back on the boat for lunch there were four other boats anchored in the bay!!! In the afternoon we went to South Plaza for more land iguanas and we also saw Masked Boobies which are very elegant looking. Two very full days of sightseeing, but very rewarding.
Although a few items are flown in, the Galapagos receive almost all goods via small freighters and it was always a big event when the ships would come in. Everything is off loaded onto small barges to be taken ashore then off loaded onto the wharf and into trucks. Most of this is all done by hand with the use of cranes for getting the heavier things off the freighters. Quite the operation to watch as the barges would frequently have a mix of large packs of toilet paper, liters of soda, new chairs, rebar, plastic piping, mattresses and what ever else you could think of. The local merchants would come down to the pier to pick up their shipments and would check crates from the mainland against their lists as well as items ordered by individuals. This unloading was always accompanied by lots kids diving off the pier showing off amongst all of this hubbub of activity. When you would see the coastal freighter unloading in the harbor in the morning, you went shopping in the afternoon or the next morning at the very latest to make sure you did not miss out.
Supplies were not as cheap as in Panama or as diverse as we had read. The only thing we really wished we had stocked up more on was cans of Coke as you generally could only get it in plastic bottles and then for US$0.85 or occasionally in cans but at US$0.90. But on the whole, shopping was not too bad but if you saw something you wanted to get you needed to buy it then as if you went back to get it later it might very well be gone. There is a great store in Academy Bay, El Frio, that has a wide variety of frozen meats, plus treats like salami, wheels of really good cheese and excellent dried mushrooms. El Frio was started by a woman here who wanted to be able to get these things for herself and now has developed quite the business. It was easy to get carried away here if you were not careful and the prices were not always cheap but we drew the line at a box of pancake mix that was about US$5.
Saturday is the main market day for fruit and vegetables (also meat, eggs and various other things) and it starts about 5:00 a.m. and is over by 8:00 a.m., you need to arrive early to get the best selection. We needed eggs and wanted to get fresh ones at the market but forgot our plastic egg suitcase. Still got the eggs, just bought them last (at 30 cents each!!) and carried them very carefully in their plastic bag along with all my produce to the taxi, then to the water taxi and on to the boat. Did not break a one, we were quite amazed. This Saturday market was how we did our provisioning for our crossing to the Marquises as the grocery stores had very few fruits and vegetables. We were able to get quite a selection including oranges, limes, tomatoes, red onions, spicy red peppers, cucumbers, cantaloupe, bananas, apples, pears, potatoes, zucchinis, cabbage, brussel sprouts, black berries (smaller than the ones in the NW), carrots, rose apples and an ice cream bean. Paul was excited to find the last two as he enjoyed them as a child in Panama. Rose apples are shaped like a small avocado, red in color with a white meat and large seed inside. The meat is soft and has the taste of rose petals. Ice cream beans are very strange. An 18 inch bean pod with seeds inside that just look almost like little cotton balls, all white and fluffy. You eat, or suck on, the fluffy seeds and it dissolves just like cotton candy with a nice sweet taste. Inside is a shinny black bean. It was fun for Suzette to finally try them after hearing about them for years.
Suzette and Paul
S/V Altair