Day 3–Embarkation in Santa Cruz & Giant Tortoises

Mary Moss
Apr 15, 2023
2 min read

Today we traveled to the islands via plane, 2 bus, ferry and embarked on the EcoGalaxy on Santa Cruz Island.

After lunch we had a briefing regarding our activity and then went to the Darwin Research Station to see the giant tortoises. We saw all sizes of them including baby giant tortoises. The babies stay at the center until they are 5 years old and not quite as vulnerable as when they are younger. This was an amazing facility. Enjoy the many pics and video.

We walked to the pier from the Darwin Center and did some souvenir shopping along the way. This is the only island where there are souvenir shops so it was shop now or no souvies. Fortunately we checked quite a few items off our respective lists.

Back at the pier, we were waiting for the pangas to pick us up to take us back to the boat when a thunder storm hit. It was intense! Even the sea lions resting on the piers got back in the water and out of the rain. We waited under a covering on the pier. Apparently this spot is a nursery for baby black tip reef sharks. It was super exciting to see these beautiful creatures swimming around. I’m guessing they were 3 feet ish long.

Once the pangas arrived, we were told we would not be wearing life jackets since the rain would activate (inflate) them. This seemed a bit counter intuitive especially with the rough conditions. I can attest that the rain was a bit stingy when being transported back to the ship. The incredible lightening made the adventure extra exciting but we all made it just fine, albeit soaked.

We then had our daily briefing about the next days activities and dinner. We were told to go to bed soon after dinner. We learned this was in hopes we’d be asleep before the water became rougher as the captain took us toward Isabela island. Let’s just say no amount of getting to bed early or Dramamine would keep one from waking due to the incredibly rough voyage. We had stuff falling off the vanity, desk, end tables etc. Lisa & James and Rob & Denise had water come in their windows and slosh across their floors. Fortunately there are engineers on staff who were available to assist and remedy the situations.

In summary, day one in the Galapagos was awesome!