Virtual Galápagos

Tuesday, 31 July

Our 2013 non-Phaeton adventures are just 19 days away.  Where will we go?  The unveiling of our plans will be posted soon.

In the meantime, the prospect of tons of new video footage to process was all the incentive Mui needed to finish the editing work on last year’s wonderful trip to the Galápagos.

If you’d like to take a virtual trip to the Galápagos and walk in our footsteps, click here to go to the online album we created on Vimeo.  You will get to visit Santiago, Rábida, Isabela, Bartolomé, Santa Cruz, North Seymour, San Cristóbal, and Kicker Rock; not to mention explore Quito and its environs with us.  You will get to enjoy close encounters with fearless wildlife on land and sea, and in the air; and get to do some snorkeling, too.

If you’re interested in the story of our trip, click here to go to the first of many posts from our Itinerary B Xpedition trip with Celebrity.  All of the posts are in the July 2012 archive in the sidebar.

Kicker Rock: A Sunset Circumnavigation

Friday, 13 July (Part V)

After our beach time at Cerro Brujo (post here), we returned to the Xpedition with a level of excitement that belied the great time we had on our landing.  Why?  Because the ship was heading to nearby Kicker Rock.  Sure, we’d already seen the rock as we sailed by it on our way to Cerro Brujo, but now we were going to do a sunset circumnavigation of this iconic landmark of the Galápagos.

THE ARROW POINTS TO Kicker Rock, the location of our sunset circumnavigation.
[MAP COURTESY OF THE GALAPAGOSISLANDS.COM WEBSITE]

After washing away the salt and sand from our afternoon on the beach, we collected our cameras and headed to the ship’s bow on deck 6 for the circumnavigation.  En route, we enjoyed the company of Nazca boobies in flight.

Often referred to as the Masked Booby, the ones in the Galápagos have recently
been determined to be a separate species now known as the Nazca Booby.
The bird on the left is an adult; the one on the right is a juvenile.

Kicker Rock is a 485-foot (128 m) high tuff cone that was formed when boiling lava encountered the cold ocean and exploded; it has since been eroded into two parts.  At one time, small vessels were allowed to navigate through the small channel between the rocks, but not anymore.  The rock, which is a nesting site for many birds, including the blue-footed and Nazca boobies, and frigatebirds, got its English name from its slight resemblance to the shape of a boot.  I think it’s Spanish name — León Dormido, or sleeping lion — is more fitting.

From the harsh mid-day light to the golden light of sunset.

Sipping our drinks, we chatted with our fellow-passengers as the ship continued its approach to Kicker Rock.  Unlike the sort-of circumnavigation we did of the Daphnes, this time the Xpedition did a full circle around the rock, giving everyone fantastic opportunities to take pictures from every angle.  That Mother Nature cooperated to give us the golden light that photographers crave was a bonus.

It’s this silhouette, which resembles a sleeping lion, that gives Kicker Rock
the Spanish name of León Dormido.

Rather than give you a bunch of static photos, here’s a short clip that Mui put together to show you the different angles of Kicker Rock and how the mood changed as the light changed.

A 30-minute circumnavigation in 56 seconds.

Around 6:45p, as the sun crept lower and lower on the horizon, the Xpedition left Kicker Rock behind and set course for the next and last island we will be visiting before we end the cruise in Baltra on Sunday.

In the golden glow of the sunset, we bid Kicker Rock adios.

We are grateful that Mother Nature cooperated with our plans for the sunset circumnavigation.

The 7:00p briefing was indeed brief and 20 minutes later we were at the dinner table with the Passmans.  I recall the food was good, but what left us with a lasting impression was the delicious Chocolate Crunchy we had for dessert.  This was a “could have had a second helping” moment, but we behaved ourselves ;-)

Our selections from the Day 6 Menu.

The heat and humidity today was quite draining, so we were happy to skip the karaoke in the Discovery Lounge and return to the cabin for a reasonably early bedtime.  One more day of exploring awaits us tomorrow.

San Cristóbal: Cerro Brujo

Friday, 13 July (Part IV)

From the site of our town visit at the southern tip of San Cristóbal, the Xpedition repositioned to Cerro Brujo (Witch Hill) for a beach visit on the northwest coast of the island.

As I mentioned in the Las Tijeretas post, when Darwin arrived in the archipelago aboard the Beagle, San Cristóbal was the first island where he landed.  Captain Fitzroy, the master of the Beagle, is not mentioned as coming ashore at Las Tijeretas, but he apparently did so at Cerro Brujo, where he climbed to the top of the tuff cone to scout out the waters for hidden reefs.

THE ARROW POINTS TO OUR afternoon LANDING LOCATION ON SAN CRISTÓBAL.
[MAP COURTESY OF THE GALAPAGOSISLANDS.COM WEBSITE]

Cerro Brujo (left) is a tuff cone that was named for its shape, which is said to resemble
a witch’s hat … perhaps it did at one time.  We landed on the tiny patch of white sand next
to the hill; most of our time, however, was on the longer stretch of beach in the center.

There were two activities offered as usual — beach walk and swim, or zodiac ride and beach.  Well, we picked the walk, thinking it would be similar to the beach walks we did on the other islands.  What a laugh!  The walk wasn’t much of a walk at all — just a couple hundred yards from the tiny patch of beach next to the hill, around some small lava formations, to the longer, crescent shaped beach.  No wonder our naturalist said we didn’t have to put on our trail hikers!  This is one wet landing and beach walk where our water shoes, had we worn them, would have sufficed as footwear.

This is pretty much the extent of the walk.

In the absence of water shoes, I’m glad we put on our trail hikers; there are some
sharp rocks poking out of the sand that could have made for some ‘ouch moments’.

We were told that the beach offers good snorkeling.  Since all gear was turned into the naturalists yesterday, most people just swam in the beautiful, tropical waters.  Those who had brought their own snorkeling gear, however, took advantage of this last chance to check out the marine critters.  Mui was amongst the latter group.

The shallow water was heated by the sun that was making the afternoon brutally hot until a gentle breeze came up to cool things down a bit.  With his snorkeling skin adding a light layer of protection, Mui stayed in the water for nearly two hours.  He didn’t take his underwater video camera on this occasion, so I have to take his word that he did indeed swim with another sea turtle and saw plenty of colorful fish.

This is where we get to spend our afternoon!

For me, the best part of the afternoon was that we were free to roam at will, though we were not allowed to go past the vegetation and over the dunes.  No problem; there was plenty to keep me busy.  After slathering on a double layer of sunblock, I headed off with the intention of walking all the way to the far side of the crescent of coral sand beach.  Distracted by a lot of “sit-and-enjoy encounters” with wildlife, however, I only made it halfway before my watch said it was time to turn back.

Kicker Rock and the Xpedition from the beach at Cerro Brujo; the small boat on
the far left brought a zodiac-load of passengers to share the beach with us.

My favorite time on the beach was when I sat to watch the ghost crabs.  I spent at least 30 minutes with them and was never bored.  They were scurrying about by the hundreds, and unlike on the other islands, they allowed me to get quite close.  Of course, it helped that I took my time and inched my way to a comfortable distance.  Funny little things, moving hither and thither in every direction on their five pairs of legs, one set of which is tipped with claws.

Ghost crabs are also known as sand crabs; they are common shore crabs and can be
found in many countries.  They were given the “ghost” moniker, because they emerge
from their deep burrows mostly at night.  These crabs obviously didn’t get the memo!

The Ghost crab has large black eyes that are supported on stalks, helping it To see
in any direction.  The males have horn-like protrusions that help identify them as such.

What was really fascinating to see was how these crabs fed on the sand.  Called deposit-feeding, they use their claws to scoop up and showel sand into their mouths.  Extracting the nutrients from the bits of algae in the sand, they allow the sand to ooze back out of their mouths, forming small sand balls, which form a trail as they move and eat at lightning speed.

Note the claws of this deposit-feeding ghost-crab — one is larger than the other.
The claws are used for feeding and digging burrows.

I was debating getting Mui out of the water — if I could get his attention — so he could videotape the feeding action.  Lucky for him, I remembered that my G12 has video capability so I decided to give it a try.  Check out the 40-second clip below; I think you’ll find it fascinating.

What can I say; I’m easily entertained!

I eventually pulled myself away from the crabs to continue my way down the beach — only to stop and sit with a marine iguana that was feeding at the edge of the surf where it could take advantage of the sunshine to keep itself warm.

Going to great lengths to get into the crevices to feed.

It’s so nice to just sit and have the wildlife come to me!

A 20-second clip of the marine iguana feeding; the videographer was otherwise
occupied, so you’ll have to forgive the quality of my amateurish attempt.

I made a lot of great remembrances this afternoon, which will remain with me as highlights of this trip.  Here’s a selection of photographs from some of the other things that caught my eye as I wandered down the beach.

The tide pools provide algae for the various critters, including …

… this Sally Lightfoot crab.

Is that a giant marine iguana about to take a big bite out of the Xpedition?

I sat with this sea lion for a bit and it eventually woke up and posed for me.

This sea lion carcass might be the reason why there are so many ghost crabs
scurrying about the beach this afternoon.

At about this point, I looked at my watch and realized I had 20 minutes to make it back to the landing site. Regretfully, I turned back.  My timing was good, though, as Mui was walking in my direction.  Joining up, we made the return trek together, stopping frequently to watch the pelicans that were flying about.

Coming in for a landing …

… while this one is trying to take off from where it was sitting on the water.

Aerial Pelican Ballet!

It was nearing 5:30p when we arrived at the rocks where we’d left our stuff.  When we noticed one of the naturalists going for a run down the beach to make sure none of the passengers were still wandering on the far side, we decided to just sit and enjoy the last little bit of time until he returned and the last zodiac was ready to leave.  Hey, more minutes is always good.

Thanks, Patty, for offering to take our photo! 

When the time eventually came to leave the beach, we didn’t complain too much since there was one more afternoon activity that we were looking forward to …

San Cristóbal: En Route to Cerro Brujo

Friday, 13 July (Part III)

We returned from our wander around Puerto Baquerizo, cleaned up, and went in search of food to sate our grumbling tummies.  Today’s theme lunch in the dining room was Mexican and offered many tasty options for us to take up to our usual spot on deck 5.  Though the humidity was higher than on previous days, the movement of the ship as it relocated further up the coast of San Cristóbal generated enough of a breeze to keep us comfortable as we enjoyed our meal.

Even though we knew there was a circumnavigation of Kicker Rock planned later in the day and that we would have plenty of opportunities to photograph it, when this iconic rock formation came into view, we couldn’t resist getting a photo or two.

Cerro Brujo (left) and Kicker Rock; the sites of our scheduled activities for this afternoon.

Two to Travel take advantage of another photo op in the Galápagos Islands.

After relaxing a bit on deck 6, I left Mui to nap up there and went to the Discovery Lounge for a discussion with the naturalists that was billed as Life in the Galápagos.  This turned out to be informal conversation groups hosted by the naturalists; I sat with Alexis and about 10 passengers.  A few take-away points:

• About 2% of the landmass of the archipelago is used for settlements and farming.
• About 1% of the landmass is used for tourist visits.
• The number of tourist boats that can operate in Galápagos waters is capped at 85 for the next five years; licenses will be revisited at the end of that time frame.
• Of the 85 boats, 4 are the size of the Xpedition (90-100 pax), 2 carry 50 pax; and the remaining are quite a bit smaller.
• Tourism in the archipelago dates back to 1961; first conservation measures went into play in 1967.

The rest of the conversation revolved around personal questions about living and guiding in the Galápagos.  It was interesting to hear that there are three levels of certification provided by the National Park Service.  Level I requires at least a high school diploma; guides can answer general questions.  Level III requires a university degree in tourism or natural sciences and fluency in two languages.  Level II falls in between the two and requires at least four years of experience.

All licensed guides receive training in conservation and natural sciences under the auspices of the Charles Darwin Foundation, and are tested by the National Park Service.  Candidates must score over 80% in order to receive their certification, and must continue to attend seminars and workshops to stay up-to-date on the latest information.

The Xpedition Naturalist Guides
We’ve been out with Alexis (third from the left); William Cox (in the middle);
Fatima (the only female guide on the boat); and David (on the far right).
[photo courtesy of Celebrity Xpedition]

We wrapped up shortly after I asked Alexis if he had a favorite island.  He said that each is different and offers something unique, so he enjoys going back to each and every one of them.  I did get the sense that those islands that offered diving opportunities perhaps had an edge in his heart.

I can understand why Alexis couldn’t pick one island over the other.  If asked, I’d be hard pressed to pick a favorite as each one we’ve visited has offered a different experience …

… from the varied colors and textures of the landscape, the spectacular sunrises, and the magnificent night skies of the archipelago …

… to the slow flight of the ship-following magnificent frigatebirds around the Daphnes …

… to the bulk-sighting of marine iguanas, and the interaction between the Galápagos hawk and the sea lion that had miscarried its fetus at Puerto Egas, Santiago …

… to the fearless Galápagos mockingbirds on the beach at Rábida …

… to our first close encounter with blue-footed boobies and flightless cormorants as we cruised in Elizabeth Bay, Isabela …

… to the fantastic, other-worldly lava walk at Sullivan Bay, Santiago …

… to the stairmaster trek up to the top of Bartolomé …

… to the flamingos of Las Bachas, Santa Cruz …

… to the male frigatebirds showing off their gular pouches, and the nesting blue-footed boobies that showed us their eggs and their hatchlings on North Seymour …

To my list, Mui would add swimming and snorkeling with sea lions, sea turtles, and rays.  Yes, indeed; every island we’ve visited so far has offered something special — and we’re not done yet!

And speaking of not being done, time to join our group for the next landing on San Cristóbal!

San Cristóbal: Puerto Baquerizo Moreno

Friday, 13 July (Part II)

After our Las Tijeretas fitness walk (post here), a short bus ride back into the heart of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno (PBM) found us on Malecón Charles Darwin, one of the two main streets in town.

Founded in the mid-19th century, and named after the first Ecuadorian president to visit the islands, PBM is the provincial capital of the Galápagos.

For most of the 5,400 residents who live in town, the primary source of income comes from government jobs, tourism, and fishing.

With a reminder from our naturalist that the last zodiac to the ship was at noon — ship’s time being ahead by an hour — we set off to explore PBM.  We did check out a couple of the shops lining the malecón; but came out empty handed by design :-)

Glimpse of the malecón.

Most of our time in town was spent wandering first towards the Navy base at one end of the malecón, and then towards the dock where we were told to meet up for the zodiac ride back to the ship.  It was interesting to see some of the same wildlife we’ve been encountering on the other islands making themselves at home in the canals, beaches, and streets of the town.

Here’s a selection of photos from our stroll around PBM.

It's the saddle-like carapace of one of the land tortoise species that gave
the archipelago its name.

Can you see the great blue heron under the bridge; if not, I have inset a close-up.

Sea lions, blue-footed boobies, and sally lightfoot crabs — all are familiar to us.

The sea lions have taken over the beach in the heart of the town.

Joining the crowd after a refreshing swim!

Ah yes; one of them has to always strut his stuff.

With all the wildlife lounging about, no wonder they need these signs
to remind visitors about proper wildlife viewing etiquette.

From the signage nearby: “The Don Abraham was caught illegally fishing in the
Galápagos marine reserve in 2004 by the National Park Service and the navy.  The boat
was confiscated and purchased on behalf of OMCA, a coop for the fishermen’s wives,
and converted into a café boutique.  Instead of increasing local fishing pressures,
the vessel serves as an economic alternative for wives of fishermen & the local community.”

A closer look at the café boutique; seems to me that this would be a good place
from which to make purchases if one was so inclined.

You know me and murals; just can't resist them.

A mini Galápagos archipelago; complete with erupting underwater volcanoes.

Since this sea lion is posing so nicely, Mui gives in ...

… and clicks the shutter a time or two to get this portrait.

And what is Erin photographing at the bridge that runs across this natural pool? ...

... sea lions, of course.
Promise; that’s the last of them … at least from PBM.

The side of a building near the municipal pier provides a mural of Kicker Rock;
it’s not painted, but made of stones and slabs of rock instead.

And on that note; time to return to the ship.  Not only are we starved; we have more fun activities planned for the afternoon … one of which has to do with the rock mural featured above.