This is part two of a two part blog about our Galapagos cruise. You can read them in whatever order, it’s a free country, but it probably makes the most sense to read 1 first.
Back to the magical Galapagos....
Here is our group disembarking for an adventure on the lava rocks to learn about the origins of the islands.
The Galapagos islands are located on top of a tectonic hotspot under the sea. The hotspot moves around, which is why the islands look like someone threw paint on a canvas instead of forming a nice even chain like the Hawaiian islands.
We visited one of the youngest islands, Fernandina island, which is only about 700,000 years old. This is in contrast to San Cristobal island, one of the archipelago’s oldest islands at 4 1/2 million years old.
While on Fernandina we learned about two major types of lava. Pahoe-hoe lava is pictured above, and it has a rope-like appearance.
The initial scientific studies on lava were done in Hawaii, so the names
Have Polynesian language origins. Pahoe-hoe means rope. It is formed at about 3200 degrees Celsius!
Here is lava cactus, one of the pioneer forms of vegetation to come to the islands. It would’ve been carried here by wind, sea, or in the stomachs of the animals that flew or swam here. The first vegetation to reach the islands were cacti because they could tolerate the relatively low amount of rain, high sun and lack of soil.
This is an oasis, formed by a collapsed lava tunnel that then filled with water.
This one had open communication with the sea, and this sea turtle swam from the open ocean to relax in the tranquillity in here. Or something like that.
Amazing camouflage that the marina iguanas can achieve here on the lava.
You may be starting to get the idea that the Galapagos islands aren’t actually a lush, beautiful tropical paradise. There is actually quite a lot of lava rock, shrubs, and not that much beautiful white sandy beach. But you don’t come to sit on the beach and relax- you come to see a vibrant, happy, healthy ecosystem at work. Which is definitely what Jared and I were lucky enough to experience.
A baby sea lion pup hanging out on the rocks while Mom is out fishing.
Just try to count all the iguanas in this picture- it’s got to be over 200!
Here is the other major type of lava in the background-called A’a. This translates to ‘ouch’ in Polynesian, and I can attest that it really hurts bare feet. There is more gas mixed in with the lava when it is forming, and this is why it looks so much more rough and uneven.
And yes, budding lava nerds, that is Pahoe-hoe in the foreground.
The two small panga boats we took out to do excursions in, trailing behind the big boat.
This is from Punta Vicente Roca , on the northwestern aspect of Isabella. The snorkelling here was absolutely fantastic, as you can see by the many sea turtles floating around in the water. While snorkelling here I watched a sea lion chase a penguin around to get it away from its food.
Cruising around the northern part of Isabella. The same route Charles Darwin took back in 1835.
Another glorious day out in the islands. This is a fur sea lion. They are nocturnal, and dive out further and deeper than the common sea lion (which all our other pictures are of).
A Galapagos hawk taking off
Silhouette of a frigate bird
This is on Rabida Island, where the sand is red thanks to the high iron content.
Getting my wetsuit on for the cold, heading out for a snorkel
This is really fun, I could get used to it!
The next morning we ventured onto North Seymour, the best bird island we visited. The birds pictured in the nests are frigate birds, and you can tell the males because of their red pouches. They inflate them to impress females. It obviously does the trick because you can see there are a number of chicks in nests in this picture.
A land iguana. They are different from the marine iguanas because they have shorter flatter tails (they don’t use for swimming). Their heads are more blunted, and they are colourful.
Jared with a booby chick.
That was our home for 5 nights, the Aida Maria. We shared it with 10 other passengers and 5 crew.
Enjoying a sunset while we watched for breaching whales and jumping manta rays.
It was an unforgettable experience, something I’ll think back on for years and enjoy all over again.
Jared is going to take over for the stuff we did after we got off the cruise and back on the islands. More Galapagos fun to come!
Until Next Time!
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