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Volunteering

We spent most of January and February volunteering for a horse shelter Galapagos, in the highlands of Santa Cruz.
Our job was to groom a herd of 15 horses and to promote the charity.
We each developed a strong bond with and love for our horses…
…and we hope the feeling was mutual.
Our horses were really relaxed…
horses playing
…playful
horses laughing
…and they even laughed at our jokes.
To see them living naturally in a herd without having to serve humans in any way was a joy.
With our colleague Angel, we sat around them with no fear at all and, being used to receiving love, they had no fear of us either.
Sweet filly Etoile was always nuzzling us…
and even wanted to play during a Horse Yoga session.
Not everything was rosy. Each morning we had to limbo under barb wire to reach the pasture.
A water pump which collected and served us with rainwater almost shook our home with its noise when it came on very 5 mins.
Dog chained
And much worse, we had a beastly neighbour who tied up and starved his dogs, and he threw rubbish on his courtyard which meant rats!
A presentation we wrote for the Mayor of Santa Cruz in full swing.
Celebrating afterwards with our lovely colleagues.

Adventures on Santa Cruz Island

Our weekends were spent on incredible white sand deserted beaches near to where we lived
…with only wildlife for company
Finch
including Darwin’s finches
Pelican
We couldn’t keep our eyes off the pelicans…
…and the fearsome looking yet harmless marine iguanas.
Our walk to the beach, poetically called Tortuga Bay, was lined with cacti not found elsewhere.
The inside of the cacti was lined with the finest lace like covering.
Every time we passed a palo santo, we could not resist to smell its heavenly sap.
And we had company en route from lava lizards. Females are brightly coloured, a featured normally reserved for the males of other animals…
…another type of Darwin finch
…and yellow warblers.
A huge highlight of our trip was meeting the giant tortoises which live close to the horse ranch in El Chato in Santa Rosa.
Surely used as a model for ET?
The tortoises came in all shapes and sizes.
Tortoise
140 year old tortoises cooling off after mating…please God by us.
We sat here for hours. It felt like a privilege to be in their company.
The tortoises stretch out their necks to attract the opposite sex.
Also in El Chato, we walked through lava tunnels formed millions of years ago when a flow of lava formed an external crust by cooling down rapidly, and allowed its still liquid centre to flow through it.
One weekend we hiked to the craters of Los Gemelos and the surrounding forest of Scalesia, an endemic tree which is being invaded by blackberries introduced in 1968.
On our way back, we found this injured owl. We felt so helpless. We told the National Park but they sadly reacted too slowly to save it.
The main town of Puerto Ayora has two parts: tourist shops / tourist restaurants which we avoided….
…and local places we loved.
We regularly popped into town from our horse shelter for lunch or shopping and the sight of pelicans and others picking off any leftovers in the fish market never ceased to fascinate us.
Galapagos Sealions make themselves at home everywhere! The islands after all belong more to them than to humans.

Bartolome Island

How an island could be so beautiful was beyond our imagination.
We have been wanting to see a blue footed booby ever since watching one of David Attenborough’s documentaries.
The island is literally crawling with wildlife.
A sea lion waddling onto the first beach.
A baby penguin we wanted to adopt.
The place was teeming with herons…
…all sorts of herons.
pinnacle
The island’s “Pinnacle Rock” looks like a work of art – it reminded us of Hokkusai.
wonder woman
Seeing such natural beauty filled us with hope and strength!
Spheres in the rocks were created by urchins millions of years ago with their acidic spikes. Today, their descendants make the same shape as they burrow to escape predators.
An acid laden urchin found on a beach.
From some of the rocks sprang lava cacti.
wet suit
In the water around the boat, we saw turtles, sharks and dolphins. Snorkelling in the sea, we also saw thousands of brightly coloured tropical fish…
star fish
…and these breathtaking starfish.

North Seymour Island

frigates 1
Magnificent Frigates were…magnicent.
frigate 2
Male juvenile almost adult Great Frigate posing.
We loved the heart shaped pouches which male magnificent frigates expand to attract females…
and the young ones are soooo cute.
Frigates, easily spotted by their scissor like tails, are everywhere.
The occasional flamingo showed up too.
Close to the shoreline turtles were mating…
…and we even swam with turtles. That was the ultimate gift.

Isabela Island

Isabela is cool, laid back and peaceful with the longest and most beautiful deserted beach just a few steps from our hotel.
No litter left at all, just footprints.
all sorts of footprints.
Lovely kayak experiences in Tintoreras…
…where we manoeuvred through avenues of lava rocks.
We got up super close to these beautiful blue footed boobies which mate for life. The one at the back is the male: smaller with bluer feet.
We also got close to the occasional penguin.
A sea lion pup waiting three days for its mother to return with food.
The scenery at Los Tuneles was spectacular.
We walked 6km to the Wall of Tears, a lava rock wall built by political and other prisoners over 14 years from 1946. It served no purpose other than to provide hard labour punishment and killed many.
The wall seems to get less attention than the tortoises found on the way, and it was interesting to see how this species with the higher neck opening on their shells differed from those on Santa Cruz. The clear grooves and pointy scutes also indicate that it’s a juvenile.
Our ramble ended with a long walk back on the beach with regular swims to cool us down.
We arrived at Isabela’s airport for our flight to San Cristobal and no-one was there, not even staff.
Thankfully the pilot turned up.
There were just a handful of passengers and the flight was surprisingly smooth…
with wonderful views of Isabela we were leaving behind.

San Cristobal

Travelling from the coast to the Highlands, we experienced nature becoming cooler and greener. At El Junco, the only natural source of fresh water on the archipelago, frigates were washing salt off their wings.
Around the lake, we learned about natural dew catching Miconias. Dew and rain trickle down them to provide water for animals all around.
Sadly, as the invasive blackberries replace Miconia woods, they create an imbalanced ecosystem leading to droughts and the loss of endemic species.
Nearby was Galapaguera, a tortoise sanctuary. The San Cristobal tortoise has a saddle like shell, unlike the domed shells of the Santa Cruz tortoise.
As the species population has shrunk from 100,000 to just 3,500, a sanctuary has become essential and is succeeding in growing the population and re-homing them in their natural environment.
While in the highlands, we visited a treeboat at El Ceibo…
with the largest and oldest tree on the islands: a kapok.
Inside and beneath this kapok tree is an old pirate hideout.
A boat trip all around the island gave us spectacular sights…
…including our first sighting of a nazca booby.
The star attraction of the tour is Kicker Rock not just because of its iconic shape but because below water, the rock is covered in coral and the waters are teeming with thousands of fish.
A classic pose at Cerro Brujo in front of Kicker Rock in the far distance.
Our time on Carola Beach with its colony of sealions was really special. They seemed to love our sandals!
They came up close to us too and even licked our feet.
This poor cub lost its Mummy and went from Mum to Mum to find her.
They were reunited by sunset!
Spending the sunset time with these beautiful creatures was moving…
…so very moving…and powerful too.
What a way to say Gracias and Adieu to the Galapagos!

More details of our trip can be found here.

Where Next?

We will stay on mainland Ecuador for a few weeks before visiting Panama and New York. We will be back in the UK during April and May to see family and friends.

16 Comments. Leave new

  • Gilles
    March 1, 2022 7:32 pm

    What a full life, don’t stop
    Enjoy it and stay safe

    Reply
    • admin
      March 9, 2022 3:08 pm

      We’ll continue for as long as we can! Right now, our hips and feet aren’t too happy, but our souls are still joyful and they’re just as important! Love xx

      Reply
  • David Stamp
    March 1, 2022 7:41 pm

    very lucky people to have this experience and each other. love the pelican pictures, the seal on the bench and Darwin’s Finches – of which i have often incorporated into my biology lessons. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • admin
      March 9, 2022 4:18 pm

      You are right. We are lucky to have had all these experiences. I remember your accounts of your lessons. You had me hooked: you are and were one of the great teachers, the ones who inspire their students to become the best version of themselves. So pleased you are keeping in touch.

      Reply
  • David Stamp
    March 1, 2022 7:44 pm

    frigate birds have got to be a favourite of mine and those beaches – they say “Life’s a beach and then you dive”! But in the Galapagos????? That is just too much. Thanks for sharing as always.

    David

    Reply
  • Rayeesa
    March 2, 2022 9:08 am

    Beautiful is all I can say. Thank you for sharing another epic story from your amazing adventures.

    Reply
  • Melanie
    March 2, 2022 4:30 pm

    Wow wow wow is all I can say. What absolutely stunning photos and what a privilidge it must be to see what you have shared.

    Reply
    • admin
      March 9, 2022 2:59 pm

      We are privileged in so many ways especially with what’s happening in the world today. It would be great to see you and your parents very soon. Love xx

      Reply
  • Reeva Godson
    March 4, 2022 4:25 pm

    Another fascinating and brilliant report on your super travels enjoyed by both myself and Alex – keep safe and hope to see you in London on your return.

    Reply
  • stanislav zelikovich
    March 6, 2022 3:29 pm

    amazing!!! amazing!!! amazing!!!
    luba wants me to join you.
    Stan and Luba

    Reply
  • ענבל
    March 26, 2022 4:42 pm

    מקסים וכייף לקרוא את התיאורים היפיפיים אשמח להתעדכן תודה רבה ענבל

    Reply

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