Early in the morning we woke up with the site of Puerto Ayora on the horizon. Today was dedicated in its entirety to the unparalleled Galápagos giant tortoises. All our guests had high hopes to have the opportunity to see the giant reptiles of the Galapagos in their natural habitat.
Right after breakfast we started our expedition. Santa Cruz Island is the base for the two main institutions that work as partners in the conservation of this enchanted archipelago. The Galapagos National Park Service (GNPS) which is an Ecuadorian governmental organization and the world renowned Charles Darwin Research Station (CDRS). Both, coincidentally, established in 1959. The institutions work together to collect, incubate, reproduce, repatriate and ultimately save from extinction some of the threatened and endangered Galapagos giant tortoises subspecies.
After disembarking at the main dock in town and a short bus ride, we arrived to the CDRS installations and the GNPS Tortoise Breeding Center. We admired some of the tortoises that are helping to repopulate the islands with their descendants. We saw a famous tortoise individual as well, Diego. This tortoise lived in the San Diego Zoo for many decades after coming back to the Galapagos with the mission of saving his fading Española Island race by becoming the prolific father of hundreds of tortoises.
After visiting the Darwin Research Station we had the delightful opportunity to stroll along the colorful streets of Puerto Ayora, capital of Santa Cruz Island, to enjoy and take part of the routine activities of the community. The fishermen’s wharf is one of the most interesting places to visit. Today a couple of brown pelicans and some sea lions were around the fishermen, who were cutting fish, with the hope to win a morsel. Around noon we went by bus to the highlands to continue with the planned activities of the day. Before lunch we made a brief but interesting stop before arriving to restaurant. We visited a sugar cane press, where a local Galápagos family showed us how they make a living by growing and processing sugar cane and coffee in their farm, “El Trapiche.”
A persistent soft misty rain, locally known as “garua” was our companion during the afternoon’s visit. We had a great time photographing and observing several gentle giants that were all over the place. We even had time after this visit to cross a lava tunnel that is strategically located in the middle of one of the trails.
In the evening, after dinner, visiting local dancers and musicians put a golden finale on this day in paradise with their cheerful music and choreography. We all went to bed after this marvelous long day, a little tired perhaps, but with our hearts reloaded with new feelings and memories that will stay with us forever.
