Santa Cruz - Puerto Ayora

We were woken in the early hours of the morning by huge swells, with things flying off the tables in our cabin, but luckily nothing broke. We arrived in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz and after breakfast we were taken to the landing pier in the town so we could disembark to explore the area. We went by bus to visit the Tortoise Ecological Reserve where there are many giant tortoises. The giant tortoises live in the highlands which would be about a 2 day hike from our boat at the coast so this was the easiest way to see them. They really are very large, and no wonder they live to such an old age as once they get to a certain size, they have no predators. The area where they are living is abundant in guava trees and they have adapted their diet to enjoy eating the guava fruit.

Then back to the boat for lunch.  After lunch we went back to the town of Puerto Ayora to visit the breeding centre to learn more about the tortoises. It was very interesting as there are many different species, and one species has died out so we learnt how that are trying to breed from his DNA. We then wandered back through the town looking at the shops. The best was when we came across the small fish market, which you can see here. The birds, mainly brown pelicans and a sea lion were gathering around for scraps, it was so funny to see. Note the pelican standing on the sea lion’s back.

Tomorrow morning we leave the boat straight after breakfast to disembark at Baltra on Santa Cruz to fly to Guayaquil, then fly to Quito, and then on to Lima. It will be another long day of travelling and we only get to Lima shortly before midnight. Then on Sunday we fly back to the UK.

Adam is not flying home with us, he is joining two of his university friends who have been travelling around South America for the past 6 weeks - he is meeting them in Panama City and they are spending another month in Panama, Cost Rica, Cuba and Miami before coming home to start their full time employment/research in the case of Adam.

We are very sad that our wonderful holiday has come to an end. It is very special and unique part of the world that has been a privilege to visit. The staff on the boat were all excellent, and the expedition leaders so knowledgeable and caring about the wildlife. We salute the people here who all work so hard to protect the wildlife here and keep this special place so safe.