Sunday 24^th February.  We are happily settled in the extraordinary anchorage of Academy Bay, Isla Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands.

View of the harbour from the Red Mangrove Sushi Restaurant 

Finally motor sailing in yesterday lunchtime it felt like a totally surreal experience with hundreds of birds around us – a Blue Footed Booby having hitched a lift on our guardrail over night – a pelican sitting astride a turtle’s back – sea lions floating past in pairs, some on their backs – huge marine iguanas doggy paddling by like prehistoric dragons – millions of jumping fish on the sea’s surface causing frenetic wave patterns and a rainbow over Isla Santa Cruz.  It reminded me of the pictorial bibles we read as children depicting the animals, birds and fish in the Garden of Eden! These creatures have no inherent fear of man and are ‘tame’.

Anchoring up bow and stern was not the problem we were expecting – Richard from BWR came to help us in a water taxi and physically took the stern anchor and dropped it into position and had also pre arranged a very smooth clearance procedure where the officials actually came to us on the boat – excellent service!

The good news was that we had also made it in time for the Blue Water Rally briefing for our next  destination (Marquesas Islands) at the luxurious Royal Palm Hotel, set in the lush green hills, the most expensive Hotel in Ecuador!  The countryside too was a complete anomaly for us – we were expecting lunar and barren – instead we could have been in Wiltshire with country lanes, green patchwork fields and lush green grass.  We had a fascinating night walk through ancient lava tubes (underground tunnels formed when the lava solidified on the surface of a flow but kept going underneath) all lit with kerosene lamps followed by a delicious buffet dinner.

Lava Tube walkabout

Today most people have departed on their inter island cruises so we have relaxed and cleaned up a bit.

You may remember that Michael and Jacqui were invited onto the Blue Water Rally  yacht Baccus when the Captain had broken his leg in Jolly Harbour and couldn’t sail to Galapagos without crew?  His wife assured them that all expenses would be covered in return for their assistance.  However, we now understand that they were given an itemised bill for 1,000 US Dollars to include electricity, mooring fees, diesel and water (!)  when they got to Flamenco Marina in Panama (which, given that they had already bought tickets home from Galapagos and were pretty desperate to stay aboard, they felt obliged to pay).  There was surely a whiff of guilt as the Captain’s wife quietly secreted them 80 US Dollars (the price for two to attend the five star dinner)?  Today, they were expendable and even though they are not returning to the UK until the 4^th March were told to get off the boat and find themselves a hotel!  We witnessed the eviction with all their bags being unceremoniously offloaded by Michael and Jacqui with no help from their hosts!

Michael and Jacqui’s eviction!

A number of other yachts immediately offered them accommodation with Big Blue kindly handing over the keys to their Lagoon 47 while they went on a short cruise. 

Baccus is the yacht that has daily acquiesced to bitchy chitchat heard over the VHF slagging off the Blue Water Rally and all because one yacht’s strategy to burn all their fuel and then require rescue has resulted in blame being delivered firmly at the door of BWR for their sailing time table being incorrect – we have all been encouraged to sail to the Galapagos Islands at the wrong time of the year! 

The cracks have begun to show!!