Newsletter

The Galapagos Islands are famous for their vast number of endemic species (species exclusively native to one place) and the studies of Charles Darwin which led to his theory of evolution by natural selection. The archipelago consists of 13 main volcanic islands, 6 smaller islands and more than 100 islets and rocks. The islands belong to Ecuador, are located about 600 miles west of the mainland, and are distributed along the Equator. They are interestingly located at a point where major ocean currents meet at the junction of several shifting tectonic plates. These conditions provide for a truly one of a kind place with unique combinations of land and oceanic ecosystems.

The native species of Galapagos have adapted successfully to this barren and inhospitable landscape, each occupying a unique niche in their balanced ecosystem. They used to have little competition for food, water and space, and lacked many natural predators. However the introduction of new foreign species, both accidentally and purposefully by humans, has had rapid and far-reaching effects. Examples of these alien species include wild goats, sheep, cats, dogs, pigs, cattle, rats, mice, horses, poultry, cockroaches, ants, some parasites, the Guava plant, the avocado plant, elephant grass, and many others. Today on the islands one can find over 700 introduced plant species, and only 500 native and endemic plant species. When Darwin first arrived to the islands Santiago Island was covered in land iguanas. There are none today, however, on that island and the main culprits are pigs which cover large areas, destroying nests and vegetation.

Some of the most recognizable species of Galapagos:

The Galapagos Land Iguana


The Marine Iguana


The Galapagos Giant Tortoise


The Blue-footed Booby


The Galapagos Penguin


The Magnificent Frigatebird


The Galapagos Sea Lions

Jenny, a travel coordinator here at Peru For Less, recently came back from a trip to Galapagos. She had an awesome experience and took some amazing pictures. Read on to hear about her trip!

“My New Year’s trip to the Galapagos started with a plane ride to the islands far off the coast of Ecuador.  You could feel the excitement on the plane as everyone was peering out the windows in hopes of seeing the islands down below.  Our adventure had begun.
“Upon landing we were all off to Puerto Baltra to board our different yachts.  Immediately, we had our first close contact with animals- sea lions were sunbathing on the steps, oblivious to our presence.  I picked the yacht I took because it was the only one which offered everything: a kayak, scuba diving, snorkeling, and land tours.  Although the rooms were small, no one seemed to mind as most people wanted to be outside looking over the water, sunbathing, or socializing with the other passengers who were scattered from around the world.

“I try to make my memories last by replaying in my head those 8 incredible days floating along the equator. The water was colder than I had expected, the animals were closer than I ever dreamed of.  I didn’t even need a zoom lens as I walked, crawled, and swam as close as I wanted.  We chased after white tipped sharks that were too fast for us, and were graced by hammerheads on our 6th dive. Through the crystal clear turquoise water, I saw a Booby dive into a school of fish for his catch of the day.  It was later reminded of this Booby when my dive buddy and I literally lost ourselves in a school of fish (I lost count at 1,346) as they opened up and formed a circle around us. It was like being in an underwater hurricane, but the entire experience seemed to happen in slow motion, and rather than fear, I felt pure exhilaration.  I knew I would not get this much concentration of animal life anywhere else.  At the end of our typical days of hiking—meaning getting eye to eye with land animals like nesting birds and their chicks- most of our energy was exhausted from playing with innumerable sea lions on different occasions.  The secret to bring them close by is blowing bubbles: they love it and come right up to you.  The most incredible thing, however, happened on the last day.  Thinking I had seen it all, our first mate Kevin called us to go to another area of our snorkeling bay.  There we were graced by 40 eagle rays filling our view of the water from the surface to the sandy white bottom.  We swam with the school of rays for 15 minutes as they were “flapping” their underwater wings with such unhurried grace.

“Back on the boat, they had snacks waiting, salsa music playing, good company available, and plenty of stars while the moon rose from the water.  We retold what each of us saw that day, as the ocean was a huge body to cover.  “A turtle almost bit my toe!” one person yelled out excitedly, while another replied “He was probably testing your reflexes!”.  Laughter filled our little yacht as Carlos showed us the many videos he took:  pods of dolphins, schools of hammerheads, schools of rays.  All of these animals were tucked in the western corner of the Galapagos, while our adventure was coming to an end on the eastern islands.  This just goes to show you that though tiny, Galapagos has a different surprise for everyone.

“If I were to redo it again, I’d go with shorter days and a luxury boat.  But of course, had I chosen another boat, I would have never made the incredible friendships that I made on the SEAMAN.  It’s not just the animals that make the experience magical, it’s who you’re with, and what you decide to do with your vacation.”

After tumbling, twisting, and turning, we lured a seal toward us,
realzing that he liked copying us.


Getting up close was easy!
There were 40 Eagle Rays flocking together in the anchoring area.


There are a lot of different ways to get off the boat!


Galapagos has powdery white beaches, and turquoise blue water
like the Carribean or Asia - only here, there are sea lions welcoming you to shore.


This turtle was just cruising around, feeding at the bottom.

PAST NEWSLETTERS:

• Newsletter August 2007
• Newsletter July 2007
• Newsletter June 2007
• Newsletter May 2007
• Newsletter April 2007
• Newsletter March 2007
• Newsletter February 2007
• Newslette January 2007