San Cristobal – Tortoises, Iguanas and Sea Lions
20 February – 24 February 2024 We stayed here for 4 days. We had pre-agreed with the Galapagos authorities to take our boat to three islands only – San Cristobal, Isabela and Santa Cruz. We had to give our departure\arrival times in advance and it was not possible to deviate from these times at risk of a hefty fine. We strictly adhered to them of course. With AIS it is easy enough for the authorities to pick up where boats are at any time. I suppose we could have turned it off… San Cristobal (also known as Chatham Island) was the island on which Dickens spent most of his short visit to the Galapagos and where he first went ashore in 1835. It is the easternmost of the islands as well as one of the oldest geologically. Our first tour brought us to see Galapagos tortoises (in a rescue centre, before their release into the wild), blue/red footed boobies, marine iguanas, tropic birds and of course loads and loads of sea lions. Our first giant tortoises were a teeny disappointment as they were not very giant, and in an reserve, but we were to see many more as we visited the islands, freely roaming and getting in the way of our bicycle tracks..shell size and shape vary from island with different bumps/lumps on the shell and shapes such as dome or saddleback. The length of neck varies too - islands with humid highlands have tortoises which are larger with domed shells and short necks compared with islands with dry lowlands where the tortoises are smaller with saddleback shells and long necks. We took a 360 deg boat trip around the island which culminated in a visit to Kicker Rock which was spectacular. We snorkelled for about an hour with turtles, small sharks, rays, fish and sea lions. The current was strong and the water cold and Patrick and I were both glad that we hadn’t tried to dive here – a bit beyond our beginner status. |