Our plane was leaving Quito at 7, so we had to be at the airport at 6.We were a little concerned to be awake for the taxi at 5.30.It is amazing how you can make yourself be understood.....so with some pointing and buzzing sounds the kind lady at the hostel loaned us her alarm clock.
It was a quiet ride to the airport at that hour. Somewhat different from Peter´s peakhour drive the afternoon before when he went to get his backpack.He said it was pretty hair raising and reminiscent of some rides in Vietnam! Everyone seems to arrive at the designated 90 minutes beforehand.
It was a smooth trip via Guayaquil. A lot of businessmen were on that leg of the flight and then the plane filled again for the Baltra leg.We would recommend to fly only to Guayaquil from Santiago, coming from Sydney,if you were heading to The Galapagos first, as we intended, but Peter didn't realize this.Then you could fly to Quito after the Galapagos leg. We ended up doing extra flying. Nevermind, something learned.
The plane was handled well so I am gaining more confidence in the airbus and think that the plane we had in Cambodia that time had bad tyre pressure or a very bad pilot.
Baltra is a small island where the airport is for Santa Cruz,the main port of entrance for the Galapagos.Here we saw our first land iguana.There are three steps to take from the airport....an airport bus, a short ferry crossing and then a private bus.It is all quite organised. It is good to have small currency for the ferry and the bus.
At this time of year the countryside is dry.You travel through the highlands then down to sea level again.
We arrived at Puerto Ayora and went to the jetty to organise tickets for Isabela Island.The water was a magical blue,three sea lions swam and played among the boats and there were bright orange crabs sunbaking on the rocks.The black volcanic rock cliffs forming the harbour are rugged with cacti growing about.It is a great sight.
The boat ride across to Isabela takes 2 and a half hours and we were a bit concerned how we would cope after watching a tv program of an adventurer making the trip. However I think Therese was right about him being a bit gungho as the boat handled the waves well and there were two huge engines.Yes it was pretty bumpy but okay.We were the only two gringos on board. Another boat, we found out later, had also gone but we didn´t see it.
We walked the 5mins it took to find our accomodation at Isabela del Mar.We had a front unit and it was glorious.These units need a good bit of maintenance but were clean and we were given clean towels every day and fresh linen every other day.There was supposed to be hot water but we enjoyed that only twice.We learnt to beat the others in the unit for showers.The breakfasts were great. I ate in the dining room at the main house most days....a plate of fresh fruit,pawpaw,orange,watermelon,tinned pineapple pieces, scrambled eggs and toast,coffee tea or fresh juice, for 3 dollars which Dora gave us free as we stayed so long.
Dora runs Isabela del Mar and the hotel part across the road where you eat breakfast and evening meals if you want.We went across there most afternoons and sat in the lounge with a sundowner, as they kept the coke cold for us. She did not sell Scotch so didn´t mind us having a drink there, using our own duty free scotch, and we enjoyed a chat with her. She is Swiss and has been living on Isabela for 16 years. She lives in a place further along the beachfront.
We loved the layback style of Isabela.Maybe it had its heyday a while ago, as flash is not a word you could use to describe it, but changes are happening, which we hope will be for the good, without taking away the charm. The streets are sandy and there are few cars, only utility trucks, a van or two.The new street lights going in are from local tree trunks varnished, and the footpaths are being laid with volcanic rock pavers as are garden beds. These things spruce the area up.The scaffolding on some new buildings under construction is mind boggling.
Our activities included .....
bus,horse ride, walk to Sierra Negra,second largest volcanic rim in the world, 6 miles across.Fabulous views across island and incredible to see the different parts of the lava, from the beautifully coloured volcanic glass down to the fine Pele Hair that lies there almost invisibly on the rock.
We looked down onto the isthmus between us on Sierra Negra and the next volcano Alcedo which proved to be perilous to a group of soldiers back in 1979. The soldiers ventured off on what they thought would be a fairly routine trek. They only took a litre of water each. However it was a very demanding trek with the volcanic rock and mangroves, and their boots were shredded and they were in dire straights without water. One soldier died before they were rescued.
On a lighter note, as I walked from the toilet to the group getting assigned their horses, I saw Peter was on his horse,all ready. I walked a few steps and looked again and there was Peter on his horse on the ground. The horse must have thought this is going to be too much for me today, so it just lay down. We all roared....and Peter was given another horse. These horses did look a little tired and as we had not been on a horse for nearly 30 years we did not mind that they were slow.
Some tips for anyone doing this excursion.....wear two pairs of pants,especially with soft underwear and middle layer,as I lost a layer of skin at the base of my spine and it is a nuisance to get it to heal.Secondly have a bandanna as we came back with about a tablespoon of red dust in our lungs.You will need to launder whatever you wear as it gets filthy.But it is all part of the adventure.
There were seven in our group....a lovely German girl, an immunologist who had been doing volunteering work on San Christobel Island, clearing weeds.....John and Kay, will this give you more ideas..., a girl from South Africa, who was the only one who could ride a horse and the group that walked rather than rode, a 30 yr old fellow from Israel and a couple from Ecuador.It was a pleasant group.
a bike ride of 18kms to several places of interest....tip,be fully covered as I got severe sunburn in the exposed patch between the top of my socks and the bottom of my three quarter pants.Peter and I were exhausted by the end of this trip but it was a wonderful time....have I used this adjective before.One stop was the Playa del Amor a beach made from crushed shells and sea urchins. I really liked this place.The marine iguanas were out on the rocks and there were some mighty looking characters among them. It is easy to miss them and walk on them if you are not careful.Every now and then they spurt out a salt spray from their nostrils as a way of getting rid of the huge salt intake they have. Marie´s book told us they have a salt digesting gland in their skull. They are to be respected for their adaptations to such a hostile environment.We think the producers of the early Dr Who programs used these as inspiration for some aliens.As Peter says they have the faces that only a mother could love.
The Tunel del Estro is a tunnel formed by volcanic eruptions that flowed out under the sea.The Muro de las Lagrimas, Wall of Tears,built by prisoners at the penal colony there between 1946 and 1959.it measures 300feet by 18 feet and as the rocks are extremely rough I guess they really paid for their sins working there.
a walk through the wetlands that are pretty dry at the moment but we were lucky to observe three pink flamingoes feeding. They are a glorious colour and when they open their wings the black is a striking contrast.
a boat ride to Las Tintoreras We stopped after a short ride and walked along a path through sharp volcanic rock, passing a community of marine iguanas piled over each other on the rocks(quite stinky), to the canal where the white tipped sharks get caught at low tide. There were about 20 of them. I would freak out if I saw them while swimming, but the guide was able to get across to us that they are very timid and would take off if they saw you. We went out into another section and snorkled.We saw lots of fish.....no free white tipped sharks, thank goodness.Peter had a sea lion swim below him, stop and turn and look, then take off. Is there a rude comment opportunity begging there.We saw quite a few sea turtles from the boat.
walked the streets many times and got to know the post mistress,the lady at the bakery, the shopkeeper, who wanted to improve his English as he was off to be a guide on a cruise ship and the owner of the restaurant of El Toque del Sabor who told us about the set lunch ,Almuerzo, which we now use. A great meal, for around 3 dollars.
went to Mass with the local community Sunday morning, Peter took the morning off and had a snooze, sang the Glory be to .... to the Battle Hymn, is it ,like When Johnny Come marching Home Again.I was glad I had some money in my pocket, as the old guy next to me nudged me when the two collection bags came out.They were bright red and were held on a long stick .
