Travel Journal | Galápagos Luxury Cruise

Sep 7

My Galápagos Adventure with my family was aboard the Silversea Silver Origin Ship. Because we sailed over the New Year's holiday we embarked on an incredible 10-day Galápagos Adventure. Most of the time the Galápagos itineraries are only 7 days but I'm thrilled that my family and I had the extra few days to relax and explore. Nonetheless, any expedition to the Galápagos is guaranteed to be filled with adventure and excitement no matter how many days you are there!

We started our exhibition in San Cristobal. Upon arriving at the docks we saw plenty of sea lions and other wildlife. We boarded our first zodiac and made our way to the Silver Origin. We knew we were in for a real luxury Adventure at our first lunch. Every single meal was over the top incredible! The silver origin has a full Ecuadorian staff and each and every person that worked for the silver origin was truly wonderful from the Naturalists to the Servers, the Zodiac Drivers and Hotel Team!

Every single day we were on a different Island and some days we were even in 2 locations. Every single night we had a debriefing to learn the education around the destination that we were visiting and understand what was the plan for the following day.

Our Experience Of The Islands

The first thing we learned was that the Galápagos consists of six larger and several smaller Islands lying on or near the Equator. These islands were formed by volcanoes, some of which are still active. The volcanic activity is what has formed the rugged coastlines and the diversity. environments we visited. One of the cool things we discover about the Galápagos is the different terrain on each island. The beaches of the islands receive sufficient rainfall to sustain mangroves. Further Inland there is little rainfall; so thorny bushy cacti grow there. There were even lava cactuses that literally just grew from the rocks. In the Uplands a heavy Morning Mist allows other plants to flourish. The climate and temperature of the water surrounding the Galápagos are cooled by the Humboldt Current from the Antarctic. important to know is that the water is very cold, especially coming from Florida. our first deep water snorkel the water temperature was 63° F! The water temperature is warmest in March and April but still averages in the 70s. That being said, fish and wildlife are not as abundant during this time.

Island of Espanola

Our first land Adventure was on the island of Espanola, in a place called Punta Suarez. This was the perfect start to our Galápagos Adventure as we saw so many incredible animals including the Galapagos Hawk, Galapagos Mockingbird, marine iguanas, Nazca boobies, blue-footed boobies, Galápagos sea lion, and many more.

The endemic Galápagos Hawk is the only raptor species that breed on the islands. Interestingly enough it is found in all habitats: Shoreline, lava fields, open land, rocky areas, scrub country, forest and mountain peaks. The hawk is an apex top predator feeding on a wide variety of animals. We even saw a Galápagos Hawk having his lunch which happened to be a large iguana!

Island of Bartolome

One of the most interesting Islands was the island of Bartolome, which looks like you've entered Mars! We spent New Year's Day in Bartholomew with a steep hike and cool water snorkel. During our hike, we encountered lava lizards, which are found along the shorelines and in arid zones of the Galápagos Islands. Something interesting that we learned about these lava lizards is that some of the species are endemic to a single Island in particular. It is believed that these lizards arrived in the Galápagos on floating rafts of vegetation, carried from the mainland by ocean currents. These lizards have since adapted to survive the harsh conditions. What we remember is hot, steep, windy, Red Rocks and lava rocks on our hike up Bartolome. Robbie, my son, was especially amazed by the lava rocks as you can pick up these giant rocks which feel quite light and not heavy at all.

Isabella Island

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One of the highlights of our trip was Isabella Island. This is the island that looks like a seahorse with its huge rock formations. We spent the morning around the Northern part of Isabella, the top of the seahorse-shaped island. First we went on a Zodiac Tour to see all the beautiful birds and marine animals all the way to the cave. Then we came back to change into our wetsuits and snorkel deep water along the side of the walls and into the cave, we swam with so many huge turtles, penguins, sea lions, Galápagos Fur Seal, the flightless cormorant, and beautiful fish. It was truly Spectacular! Snorkeling around Punte Vicente Roca, Isabella, was our most memorable snorkel. This is where we first encountered the Galápagos Penguin.

The first thought when seeing these fast Penguins was how small they were, only around 18 inches tall. They are also the only penguin that naturally lives north of the equator. We learned that there are an estimated 1,000 breeding pairs making it the rarest Penguin on Earth! I believe they also mate for life. You'll hear that the penguins are only found in a few locations and the population has dropped drastically, but we were fortunate enough to see so many during our dives and Zodiac adventures. Our favorite was seeing how fast these guys were underwater in search of lunch. We were also amazed to see giant Pacific green turtles right next to us underwater. Then you turn your head and you see a flightless Cormorant pop his head above water. The marine iguanas were really fun to watch as well! We saw them dive off the cliffs down into the deep water to munch on algae before coming back up and making their way back to the rocks. You can tell they had to work really hard for this algae, especially in the rough water to get back to the rocks. This was one of the most unusual days- starting the morning off swimming in cold water with penguins, sea turtles, marine iguanas and more.

After having an incredible lunch, we arrived in the Southern part of Isabella where we discovered the mangroves of the Galápagos. Mangroves are familiar to us in Florida but felt so strange seeing them in the Galápagos, especially after climbing what felt like Mars the day before. Here we enjoyed a zodiac tour among the quiet brackish Waters of the Mangroves. We even saw a few Galápagos penguins. Did you ever think you would see Penguins on mangroves? This is not the typical picture you imagine when you think of a penguin.

Post Office Bay in Floreana

Another favorite stop was Post Office Bay in Floreana. You may have heard about the tradition that started back in the late 1700s, about sailors passing through these islands. In an attempt to stay in touch with their loved ones back at home, the sailors developed a free mailing system at this popular Beach of Floreana. Letters would be left in the box and someone would pick up a letter to deliver home. The key element of the system was a makeshift post box constructed from a wooden barrel which is still there today. The idea was that any sailor visiting the area would leave letters in the post box or the barrel before the vessels left the Galápagos to head home; they would stop by this Bay and restock supplies and sort through the mail in the barrel. Any mail addressed to places close to the sailor’s hometown was taken with them and delivered upon return. We were able to participate in this fun tradition and our letter addressed to my mother-in-law was actually hand-delivered to her a few months later at her house. How fun!!

Infamous Wildlife Encounters

It is difficult to talk about the Galápagos without mentioning the Galápagos Giant Tortoise. These tortoises are endemic to the islands are the largest living species of tortoises and are only found in the Galápagos

We visited two different breeding centers, one in Santa Cruz and one in San Cristobal. It is quite amazing to be in the presence of these giant creatures. One fun fact that we learned is that tortoises can store food and water very efficiently for a long time and have been known to go without food or water for up to one year. Maybe this is why they live so long!

My family and I still reflect on our special Galápagos family adventure. The Galápagos Islands are wild and rugged. Each island is different from the one before. When embarking on a Galápagos Adventure you expect to see great wildlife and have lots of adventures. Everywhere we turned there was another great, hilarious creature staring at us. Maybe they are just as curious about us but it seems more like they are just living their lives out on these great, beautiful, arid Islands unaffected by the human tourists. I hope that my trip and the moments we captured inspire you to visit the Galápagos!