So Long Tip Top II

Isla Santa Cruz, Ecuador -- Thurs-Fri, April 20-21

Sadly, our time on the Tip Top II is winding down. The snorkeling sessions each day that were an integral part of the first four days, have also come to an end, likely due to the colder and rougher water now that we are on the more exposed western side of the islands. Indeed, dinner was moved up an hour earlier yesterday due to the rougher waters and to avoid the rocking and rolling we were subjected to for most of the evening. None of the Hoornaerts suffered too much, except for a bit of dizziness. Others fared worse, and Jackie, even after some Dramamine, chose to sleep on some cushions on the back deck of the boat, both for the fresh air and to avoid the larger motions toward the front.

The plan for yesterday was to take an excursion to the top of Isabela Island to view the huge, eight by ten kilometer volcano caldera, which last erupted in 2005. The ride started in the small backpacker town of Puerto Villamil and continued along a rutted dirt road up the low and broad slopes of the volcano. The islands are much more green and lush as you go up through the different climactic zones.  Our “bus” turned out to be a flatbed truck with wooden bench seats and a creaking wooden top making the ride an adventure in itself. This gave us time to chat more with the others breaking out the phones to show pictures of families, homes and pets. Nothing like having albums worth of pictures in your pocket to bore new acquaintances.

The giant volcanic caldera

The second half of the day was spent visiting the Giant Tortoise breeding center just outside the town. Of the more than half dozen species of tortoises here in the Galapagos, two have been particularly hard hit. As in New Zealand with the kiwis, the introduced rats, pigs, dogs, donkeys and cattle, have made it almost impossible for the tortoise numbers to increase. In centuries past, whalers removed literally thousands of these Giant Tortoises in a single outing! Now, in order to give them a chance, males and females are kept in low walled pens. Judging from the three pairs we saw mating while we were there, I’d say the breeding program is a success! In the wild, a female may only be receptive once every three to four years. Here, apparently, they can successfully lay a clutch of a dozen eggs or so every year. Because they grow so slowly, baby tortoises are kept at the facility until they are six to eight years old, at which point they are large enough and their shells tough enough, to avoid attack by the Galapagos Hawk or survive being stepped on by a rogue cow or donkey.

Ah, I guess that sums it up!

The babies

A small hike along the shore and a bit of free time to play in the waves, rounded out our last full day.

Today, Friday, is unfortunately the end of our tour. We were very fortunate to have seen so much and had such a comfortable stay. The crew went to a lot of work to make sure there was little for us to do but listen, learn, observe, and relax. After a week, we have also grown very comfortable with the rest of our travel mates. As the week went along, the evening briefing sessions and meals included a lot more banter and jokes. Last night, Dex and Kylie had a chance to show off the card trick they learned while in Laos. They’d practice on their own to make sure they had it down and repeated it two dozen times to see if anyone could figure it out. After dinner, and after giving a few hints, they finally let the cat out of the bag.

Dex and Kylie revealing the secret to Paula

Instead of returning to Quito today, where we had flown from before the tour began, this time we Hoornaerts got off in the largest city in Ecuador, the port city of Guayaquil. Our overseas adventures are fast coming to an end. A few more days in Ecuador and we'll be back in the States... a mere 3000 miles from home.

So long Galapagos