We woke up and had breakfast at the hotel (including fresh pineapple juice!). We talked with the hotel owner, and she suggested that we call a taxi to take us to two colapse craters, a lava tube/lava tunnel and a ranch with tortoises. We thought about biking instead of taking taxi. ...I'm so glad we didn't. It would have been nearly impossible. All the sites were pretty cool. The collapse craters were deep craters that were formed after large volcanic events. They started off as huge lava tunnels and when the roofs collapse they became a craters. The hike through the lava tunnel was pretty awesome. There was a point where we were on our hands and knees (got pretty muddy). It was pretty cool! At the ranch with tortoises, we got to see many Galápagos tortoises (one we posed with was over 100 years old). The ranch also grew coffee - which I couldn't resist buying. :)
We had lunch at the Kiosk Street (soup with chicken feet, steak and maduro). We picked up supplies for our trip to Isabela (there is much less available on Isabela). Isabela is much less populated (2,200 residents) than Santa Cruz (12,000 residents). We took the 2pm boat to Isabela (about 2 hours). No one got seasick. :) As we arrived at the dock at Isabela, a huge flock of blue footed boobies started diving into the water (catching fish). It was crazy! The driver of our boat said to take lots of pictures because it was spectacular sight and not many people get to see it. Upon arriving, you could see much of the amazing wildlife (crabs, blue footed boobies, sea lions).
Fun facts: Isabela is the largest island and one of the youngest. There are 13 major islands and 7 smaller islands that make up the Galapagos archipelago. Learn more here.
After we arrived at our hotel, we met up with a guy living on the island who Alexis's godmother knew (some she knew, knew him). He showed us around briefly and gave us some tips. He also was the one who booked our hotel. We booked a tour to one of the main attractions on the island (a snorkeling tour through the tunnels filled with water). We had dinner on the touristy street (too tired to look for other restaurants - we had soup, fish, rice, etc.). At night, we relaxed on the hammocks at the hotel (got dark there at 6pm). There were salamanders climbing all over the place. We also saw a large spider (flashbacks from the spiders I saw in the Amazon two years ago)...but it rain away quickly.
We had lunch at the Kiosk Street (soup with chicken feet, steak and maduro). We picked up supplies for our trip to Isabela (there is much less available on Isabela). Isabela is much less populated (2,200 residents) than Santa Cruz (12,000 residents). We took the 2pm boat to Isabela (about 2 hours). No one got seasick. :) As we arrived at the dock at Isabela, a huge flock of blue footed boobies started diving into the water (catching fish). It was crazy! The driver of our boat said to take lots of pictures because it was spectacular sight and not many people get to see it. Upon arriving, you could see much of the amazing wildlife (crabs, blue footed boobies, sea lions).
Fun facts: Isabela is the largest island and one of the youngest. There are 13 major islands and 7 smaller islands that make up the Galapagos archipelago. Learn more here.
After we arrived at our hotel, we met up with a guy living on the island who Alexis's godmother knew (some she knew, knew him). He showed us around briefly and gave us some tips. He also was the one who booked our hotel. We booked a tour to one of the main attractions on the island (a snorkeling tour through the tunnels filled with water). We had dinner on the touristy street (too tired to look for other restaurants - we had soup, fish, rice, etc.). At night, we relaxed on the hammocks at the hotel (got dark there at 6pm). There were salamanders climbing all over the place. We also saw a large spider (flashbacks from the spiders I saw in the Amazon two years ago)...but it rain away quickly.