Here follows the highly anticipated story of my exceptional journey to San Cristobal, Santa Cruz, Santa Fé, Isla Bartolomé, North Seymour and Isla Isabela… Or the one and only Galápagos Islands.
My last blog post was about volunteering in Hacienda Tranquila. I left my group of volunteers there and travelled further during 2 weeks on my own. My employer approved me to discover the islands if I would come back with some new projects for the foundation. So, that deal being made I took a ferry to the first island…
1: SANTA CRUZ
Early in the morning I left San Cristobal for Santa Cruz (a $25/2hr boatride away), the most important and busy island of the Galapagos archipelago, from where most of the cruise ships and tours start of. Puerto Ayora is the largest town in on the island and the only one with tourist accommodation.
Puerto Ayora – Capital of Santa Cruz
After my check-in at Hostal Lirio de Mar ($15 a night for a single room with private bathroom, no AC) I headed to a local travel agency to start bargaining on my tours for the next days. I was planning to visit the Galapagos Islands on a budget, and so I had to OR book a cheap last minute cruise (which always stays more expensive than seperate tours with accommodation in backpacker hostals) OR buy the excursions for every day. I had honestly no idea about the different options and prices, so I informed myself in a few places, went for lunch to overthink everything and returned to the agency with the best deals, MOCKING BIRD TOURS (same street as the hostal) to bargain another few dollars out of the deal. I ended up getting a 10% discount and paid $475 for a daytours to Santa Fé, Floreana, Isla Bartolomé and North Seymour. And above that, I started immediately doing the Tour de Bahia in Santa Cruz itself… A lot of money, but definetely a good deal knowing that cruises start from 800$ last-minute.
The Tour de Bahia (Bay Tour) was worth a $30 and started from the main dock in Puerto Ayora. Together with 15 other passengers and a naturalist guide I visited the main attractions in the area. By boat we headed to La Loberia, where we could observe sea lions on the beach and rocks.
La Loberia, Santa Cruz
After that we went for a snorkel session near Punta Estrada, where I saw a Tiger Snake Eel and other impressive marine life.
Tiger Snake Eel
Then we had a dry landing near Canal de Amor, where a lot of animals were chilling on the rocks and there was a bright blue lagoon.
A marine iguana
Near Playa de los Perros I could see a lot of marine iguanas who were happy to pose for a picture with me.
After a small walk and lots of pictures, it was back on the boat for Las Grietas, the last stop of the trip. Directly translated, “grieta” means crevasse or crack. It is is a great place to swim in cool ocean water between two tall cliffs, where the earth has opened like a crack.
We had to follow a 15 minute trail that started off sandy and rocky, and winded up crossing over a jagged lava field, through a cactus forest, and up a sandy path once again to the top of Las Grietas. A nice experience!
Walking to Las Grietas
After the walk back I enjoyed a fresh Coke in a local bar, chatting with other travellers. Life was good! And another boat ride away, we arrived back in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island where I headed back to the Hostel for a fresh shower…
It wasn’t a bad last-minute day tour decision at all and I ended my day having a nice dinner in one of the many cosy restaurants near the main strip in Puerto Ayora. It was holiday time and so I enjoyed every single minute of it!
Next stop: SANTE FÉ (2) –> Keep following for the next destination
From Julie with Love
From Julie with Love 