by Stewart B. Nelson, Ph.D.
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Lammer
Law
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Through the centuries, many words have been used to describe the
uniqueness of the Galapagos Islands, from "bewitched" and
"enchanted" to Charles Darwin's "living
laboratory." Birthed by underwater volcanic eruptions more than
6 million years ago, they remained an uninhabited outpost of nature
until stumbled upon by the Spanish in the 16th century. Since that
accidental discovery, the islands have been trod by pirates,
whalers, adventurers, scientists, military servicemen, fishermen
and, now, about 18,000 permanent residents and 70,000 tourists a
year. In 1968 the Ecuadorian government acknowledged the immense
ecological significance of this oceanic archipelago and, with
limited exceptions, declared it a national park. A visit to the
Galapagos Islands, to see its amazing fauna and flora and geology
and to learn its fascinating history, is a magical experience and
one which we treasure and enjoy sharing.
First, let's deal with some common misconceptions. Cruise ships
are not allowed in the Galapagos Islands. Only licensed Ecuadorian
boats are permitted and the Galapagos National Park Service controls
the number. While most boats carry less than 50 guests there are a
handful that accommodate up to 90 passengers. The Galapagos Islands
are 600 miles from the Ecuadorian mainland and visitor's travel from
either Quito or Guayaquil on Boeing 727's operated by Ecuador's TAME
Military Airline. Yes, there is an airport in the Galapagos Islands,
in fact two of them, on the islands of Baltra and San Cristobal.
There are 13 major islands, 6 smaller ones and scores of islets but
only four of the islands are allowed permanent settlements. The
landscape and wildlife vary among the islands so to see it all
requires at least five, but preferably seven, days.
Since the Galapagos Islands are principally a national park, all
boats must carry certified guides and, because the guide-tourist
ratio is controlled, the bigger the boat the more guides. Finally,
there is the matter of the oil spill that occurred in January 2001
when the fuel tanker Jessica ran aground in San Cristobal harbor.
This incident made worldwide news but most of the refined fuel oil
was quickly recovered and much of the rest was carried seaward by
the winds, where it soon evaporated. Granted, luck was a significant
factor but the spill served as a stark reminder of the fragility of
the Galapagos Islands, one of our world's few remaining ecological
jewels.
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Eclipse
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The Galapagos Islands, a World Heritage Site, straddles the
Equator so a visit can be planned for almost anytime of the year.
There are many tour companies operating in the islands but our
choice, based on a seven-day excursion, was Quasar Nautica USA.
Besides owning and operating their own boats, it is recognized both
for the upscale quality of their vessels and the outstanding service
on board. The Quasar Nautica fleet consists of eight boats ranging
from 8 to 48 passengers. We debated among one of the smaller vessels
and the 48-passenger ECLIPSE, but finally decided on the
16-passenger LAMMER LAW. Underscoring the popularity of these boats,
we were fortunate to get the last available cabin and that was
making a reservation four months before our planned March sailing.
From Miami International Airport it is a four-hour, non-stop
flight to Quito, Ecuador's capital. Rich in Inca and Spanish
history, Quito is a United Nations World Heritage Site and we had
scheduled two days at the end of our Galapagos adventure to do some
sightseeing. Those two days would later be extended to a full seven
days as we discovered the wondrous diversity and easy accessibility
of the Ecuadorian mainland, but that's another story. One great
convenience was the fact that Ecuador recently adopted the U.S.
dollar as its currency so there was no bother with money exchange or
conversion rates.
Quito offers several deluxe hotels, the newest being the
three-year old Marriott, which is where we stayed. An excellent
steak dinner at the hotel cost was $8.00 - the U.S. dollar buys a
lot in Ecuador! The next morning we again met our Quasar Nautica
escort who accompanied us to the airport for our flight to the
Galapagos Islands with an intermediate stop at Guayaquil, Ecuador's
biggest city. From Quito to Guayaquil was less than 45-minute flying
time and from Guayaquil to Baltra less than two hours. The airfield
on the small island of Baltra was built by the United States Navy at
the beginning of World War II to meet any Japanese attack on the
Panama Canal. At the end of the war it was given over to Ecuador. At
the Baltra airport you pay your Galapagos National Park entrance fee
and for everyone else the fee is $100 and it's a cash only system.
We had affixed to our baggage the LAMMER LAW color-coded luggage
tags so it was easy to spot fellow passengers and equally easy for
our naturalist guide to round us up. Although small, the airport is
replete with souvenir shops, both inside and outside of the one
terminal building. With assurances that everything would still be
there one week later we proceeded to board a bus for a short
10-minute ride to the opposite side of the island and our waiting
boat.
Besides the LAMMER LAW, four other Quasar Nautica boats were
awaiting passengers, including the ECLIPSE. We later had the
opportunity to briefly visit this vessel and we were certainly
impressed with its casual elegance. One of the advantages of a small
vessel, which requires only one naturalist guide, is that you
function as a group, both on the boat and ashore. Of course you can
always find some spot on the deck for a bit of quiet time. 
Of our 14 fellow passengers, 4 were from England, 4 from Canada
(Toronto) and 4 from the U.S. (Colorado and Florida). After
unpacking, which was easily accomplished as the attire was always
casual, we assembled in the lounge and were introduced to the boat's
captain and staff. When we completed a round of self-introductions
and a safety drill, we proceeded to a delicious light meal. One hour
later our adventure began as we boarded inflatable boats (locally
called pangas) and made our first landfall on North Seymour
Island.
Walking along the trails we gazed in wonder at the blue-footed
boobies, swallow-tailed gulls and frigate birds. We watched the
blue-footed booties doing their foot stomping mating dance but it
was the male frigate birds that put forth the most elaborate
display. Sitting on shrubs or low-growing trees, they inflated the
huge red pouches on their chests, flapped their wings and
plaintively called to any female flying overhead. Paying us no mind
were the marine iguanas warming themselves in the sun. Sea lions
bounded in and out of the water and slept soundly on the shore. Upon
returning to our landing site we found that a young sea lion asleep
in our pile of life jackets. The wildlife on the Galapagos Islands,
so long undisturbed by humans, has no inherent fear and is easily
approached. But one hard rule is no touching. Our perplexed guide
finally decided to try removing the life jackets one by one from the
bottom of the pile. As the pile kept decreasing the ob viously
disgruntled youngster wallowed off grunting his displeasure at being
disturbed.
Every day brought more excitement as we trekked the different
islands and encountered giant tortoises, land iguanas, lava lizards,
red-footed boobies and flightless cormorants. Most afternoons we
went on snorkeling excursions. Curious sea lions came
eyeball-eyeball before dashing away. Galapagos penguins - who in the
distant past rode the cold Humboldt Current north from Antarctica -
sped by like little torpedoes. Turtles glided beneath us and in some
locations we spied the occasional shark and manta ray.
From
the time we embarked the LAMMER LAW and disembarked seven days
later, we made only one visit to an inhabited destination, the town
of Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island. This was an important place
because it is the location of the Charles Darwin Research Station.
Here we listened to the work being done to preserve, restore and
protect the Galapagos Islands. We saw the breeding pens for the
giant tortoises, each pen dedicated to the particular type of
tortoise that evolved on specific islands. Researchers are also
beginning to breed marine iguanas. The greatest threat to the
indigenous plants and animals is that of human-introduced species.
For example, goats - originally released by the early sailors who
wanted to ensure a future food source - can strip an area of its
vegetation. Cats and dogs that have become wild are also enemies of
the native wildlife. Many efforts are underway to control, and
possibly even to eradicate, these destructive threats. The giant
tortoise, Lonesome George, is housed at the Charles Darwin Research
Station. He is the last male of his species from the island of Pinta.
Unfortunately no female survives so, when Lonesome George expires,
the Pinta Island species of tortoise will become extinct.
Our Galapagos Islands expedition with Quasar Nautica came to an
end too quickly. However, we took away many rolls of film to be
developed and invites from our sailing companions to come visit.
Unquestionably, the time we spent in the Galapagos Islands and in
exploring the mainland of Ecuador has merely whetted our ecotourism
appetite to return.
Quasar Nautica’s website: www.quasarnauticausa.com
Photographs
courtesy of Dr. Stewart B. Nelson
