Darwin Center, Floreana Island, and The End

The town of Puerto Ayora is where the Darwin Center is located. The Galapagos Islands inspired Charles Darwin’s The Origin of Species and the theory of evolution, which is why a lot of landmarks are named after him throughout the islands. The unique features and behaviors of the isolated wildlife (in particular the finches) inspired Darwin when he visited the islands in 1835. The Darwin Center was established for scientists from around the world to study and help re-populate the islands with the endangered tortoise and iguana species.

Throughout the 18th and 19th century, pirates and other voyageurs that came across the islands, massacred the tortoise population for meat and oil. In 1976, the Darwin Center was created to help the tortoise and Iguana population from extinction. Scientists breed the tortoises at the center, and then transport them to the various islands where they were originally from to re-populate the island. On another one of our boat tours, we got to see this in action.

We took a boat to Floreana, where we took a bus up a small mountain to see some tortoises feed on huge leafy greens. These tortoises were raised at the Darwin Center and now live peacefully and in large numbers on the island. A couple of local farmers make sure they get enough food and water on a daily basis. Although they managed to pause for a moment when we arrived, they generally are completely unafraid of humans.

On the way back down the mountain, the guide showed us an actual pirate cave, which served as a hang-out and look-out for the pirates of the 1800s. It had a very authentic feel to it and you could easily picture 18th and 19th century pirates hiding there. Beside the cave the pirates have carved a 6 foot giant head into the rock. The guide didn’t even mention this cave until we got there, so it was a nice surprise.

After the hike, we were fed lunch by a family on the island of chicken and rice and watermelon. There is only a permanent population of about 75 on Floreana and their generosity was so abundant. After lunch, they took us back onto the boat for some snorkeling. On our way to a private inlet we passed a famous dive site called ”devils crown”. It is a shallow sunken crater filled with sharks and hammerheads. An adventure for someone else... we eventually ended in a bay with a lot of baby sea lions that were more than happy to tag along while we swam with more tropical fish. We circled the island and saw some of the local birds, iguanas, and sea lions bask in the sun and then headed back to Isla Santa Cruz.

One afternoon, we went down to the Darwin Center, which was free and they allow visitors into the tortoise areas to see them up close. These tortoises were HUGE, with full grown males weighing up to 600 – 700 pounds. The most famous one on the island goes by the title of "Lonesome George". This specific tortoise is allegedly the last of his particular species. In hopes to save him from extinction, they put him in his own area with 2 females that are very similar to his species, based on their shell structure. Unfortunately this slight difference in species has not allowed for him to reproduce and it was sad to see the last of a dying species, but at least he gets to go out mating with 2 lady tortoises.

The next morning we packed out bags and headed for the airport. It was the conclusion of our trip to South America! It was a trip like no other trip we’ve ever been on. From the different cultures, to the diverse landscapes, to the unique wildlife, we got to see everything you can imagine and more. Thanks for reading! Until our next adventure comes along...

Floreana Island Video and Pic

Pirate Cave Ruins


Floreana Island Hike


Floreana Tortoises Feasting


Sea Lions Swimming

Swimming with Penguins - Bartolome Island

Our first day tour was a 2 hour boat ride to Bartolome Island. Bartolome Island is one of the “youngest” islands in the Galapagos archipelago. The island is named after naturalist and life long friend of Charles Darwin, Sir Bartholomew Sullivan, who was a Lieutenant aboard the HMS Beagle. Along the three hour boat ride, we saw dolphins and manta rays leaping and doing flips from the water. We learned that they often did this to remove barnacles and small fish that attach themselves on their backs. We also observed red algae in the water. It is used widely in the world for many medicinal purposes ranging from helping HIV patients in the support of their immune system to curing cold sores and helping reduce levels of cholesterol and fat in the blood. The are one of the worlds only natural occurring anti-viral as well as immune enhancing agents. Too bad we just watched it float by as we chugged towards the island.

Once we got there, we took a hike to the top of a summit to view the island landscape, while our naturalist guide talked about how the island was formed through a series of violent volcanic eruptions. Old lava flows are forever preserved in the rocks. It is only 1.2 KM in total land mass and used to be inhabited by a species of giant rat (the size of small dogs) which was eradicated in 1976. From the top of the volcanic cone on the island you can see the famous, Pinnacle Rock, which is the most photographed in the islands.

After our hike, we got back on the boat and put on our snorkeling gear. They took us to a little beach directly under Pinnacle Rock and we snorkeled/swam with penguins and exotic fish. The penguins here are the only species that are found North of the equator and the experience was truly magical. Apparently, a shark spotting caused all the swimmers to evacuate the water, but we were so busy chasing the penguins that we didn’t notice…we were wondering why we were the only ones in the water when we were swimming back to shore.

Once we climbed back into the boat, we enjoyed a few cervezas while we headed back to Isla Santa Cruz and back to the town of Puerto Ayora.

Bartolome Pix and Video

This is video that our friend's that we met on the boat, Jim and Lara, shot while we were all snorkeling. Their blog is at www.yorksafloat.com.

Arrival to the Galapagos Islands

After exploring all we could at Machu Picchu and the town of Aquas Calientes, we headed back to Cuzco where we had just enough time to get a few hours sleep in before we had to catch the first of several flights to the Galapagos Islands.

We arrived mid-morning to a small airport on the the island of Baltra. As we were waiting to get our bags in the outdoor baggage claim area, we noticed a black iguana casually walking across the tarmac and nobody doing anything about it. This would become a common theme throughout the week as we soon find out that iguanas were everywhere.

We hopped a ferry from Baltra Island to the island of Santa Cruz and grabbed a taxi that took us across the island to the town of Puerto Ayora, where we rented a little 2 bedroom house for the week. The island had a very safe and relaxing vibe to it and the people were friendly.

The Galapagos Islands are an archipelago of volcanic islands on the equator located 500 miles from the west coast of Ecuador. The plan for the week: hang out on the beach , take a couple of day boatride tours to a few islands, and visit the Darwin Center, which was located in the town we were staying in.

The first morning, we went down to Tortuga Bay, which was within walking distance from our rental house. This beach had black iguanas everywhere and blended in perfectly with the black,volcanic rocks along the beach.

The iguanas were pretty harmless mostly just basked in the sun amongst themselves. If you watch a group for a little while, you’d see a few of them blow snot out of their nose, or what looked like snot. Actually, it was just salt. They drink the salty ocean water, filter out the salt, and then snort out the salt deposits from their nose. Sorry…it’s gross, but fascinating.

After a nice, relaxing morning on the beach watching iguanas hock salt through their noses, we went back to town to find an agency to book our first day tour. We decided to go to the most well-known island, Bartolome Island, for our first day tour to hike on a dormant volcanic summit and to snorkel with penguins and tropical fish.

Excellent Lunch Spot

Lunch
The Urban area
the still working natural spring fountain/sink

Machu Picchu

awesome view
The Intihuatana stone
The sun temple on top and the earth temple (where mummies where kept) below
The Shoffs at Machu Picchu
The current unearthed portion of Machu Picchu from the mountain across the valley

The Town of Aguas Calientes

the stairs (only about 1/3 of them) to our eco lodge
View of town from our room
Enjoying a Pisco Sour
Rob and the Incan King

The Lost City of Machu Picchu

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The next morning we got up and grabbed a cab to the Cuzco train station….total cab ride = 3 soles or 80 cents! Luckily we had printed our tickets out earlier as there was a long line that we were able to skip at the station entrance. In February, much of train route to Machu Picchu was destroyed in mass floodings/avalanches. But being that the ruins are big money in this region, Peru Rail was compensating by busing people 2/3 of the way on a partially paved/dirt road and then transferring to the train for the last 1/3. It turned out to be a very interesting 2.5 hour ride through the sacred valley. We drove through many small Andean farming communities and mountain towns. Smoked or deep fat fried guinea pig was advertised with a picture at many places as the peruvian 'salt of the earth' dish of the locals…. (um…ya…delicious?) Made me think of Casey’s pizza…only available in Midwestern small towns….mmmmm…love Casey’s pizza. At one point we saw two men using an ox to till their field.



The countryside is beautiful and looks very similar to the Colorado foothills. Much like most high altitude plateaus, it was dry and rocky with scattered trees. As we got closer to the temporary train station the terrain started to change into a much more lush landscape. And although we were actually moving DOWN in elevation, the mountains grew much steeper. The granite would rise 300 yards into the air at an almost 90 degree angle. We transferred to the train and travelled the rest of the way to the town of Aguas Calientes. If we had enough time we would have preferred to walk the Inca trail…but time was not on our side on this leg of the trip. From all accounts from other travelers we met, though, the Incan trail is a beautiful hike and well worth the 4-5 days it takes.

Aguas Calientes (hot waters) is named for the various hot springs that are in it. It is the closest access point to the ruins, which is about 4 miles away. It’s a quiet little town that obviously stays afloat by tourism. There are no roads here…only access is by train or foot. After finding the eco lodge we were staying at and enjoying the view of the steep canyons from our room, we strolled around town. We were able to listen to the Peruvian flute bands in the street (all either of us could think of was the South Park episode) and enjoyed some of the local Peruvian drink of choice, Pisco sour, which was much like a sour margarita.

That evening we listened to the roar of the Urubama river, which helped carve out this beautiful place, and went to bed early.

Machu Picchu sits at an altitude of 7,875 ft above sea level (almost a mile LOWER than Cuzco!) and is 13 degrees south of the equator. It is one of the New Seven Wonders Of The World. It is a pre-Columbian Inca site, which is situated on a mountain ridge above the Urubamba Valley and river. I thought we were to walk up this ridge…and until we got there was prepared to do so….but alas….large, air conditioned buses picked us up in town and took us up the multiple switchbacks. This was later a recognized relieve as it was a very, very steep mountain and the day hike around the ruins was filled with steps. This place isn’t kind to those who don’t want to get a workout. We got to the top at about 8:45 AM. We had originally read that one should be at the site before dawn, to see the sun rise, but had gotten confirmation from many that this was just a farce on most days as the fog was so thick in the mornings that one couldn’t see anything. There was truth to this (which was good because early morning and I just don’t get along) and the fog that day had only burned off 15 minutes or so before we arrived. Immediately…despite the crowds that were already gathering (which would be the REAL reason to get there early – to avoid the crowds)…Machu Picchu was breath taking. It’s hard to describe how spectacular a site it really is. It’s really amazing that humans were able and wanted to build on this site. It’s literally ON TOP of a mountain….but not a flat mountain…a really, really steep mountain top. What was amazing is that they had it all here though…drinkable water, shelter (some two story!), temples, gardens filled with dozens of species of orchid flowers and coca and aloe plants, terraced fields for food, even a granite quarry where they got many of the stones they used to built everything with. We wandered around a bit but quickly realized how large of a “town” it is so we went back to the entrance and hired a local guide, named Gloria, to walk us around and teach us about what we were seeing.

There is some debate as to why Machu Picchu was built but most historians have agreed that it was a vacation town for the Incan Kings. The site was built around 1460 but abandoned as an official site for the Inca rulers after only a century. Many (including our guide) say that it was never destroyed because the Spanish conquistador’s never could find it. They were known for completely demolishing towns that they conquered…burning them the ground and taking anything of value if they so choose or destroying it on the spot. When the Spanish conquered Cuzco, the remaining Incans decided it was only a matter of time before they would destroy Machu Picchu so they went ahead and destroyed portions of the Incan trail so it would remain hidden. They succeeded in keeping the Spanish away but unfortunately the people still living at Machu Picchu completely died off from small pox soon afterwards. Less than 100 years of human settlement there….and only two kings were able to use it! Amazing that they were able to construct what they did in such little time. (and all without metal tools!) The site was forgotten by the world until 1911, when it was discovered by Hiram Bingham, an American historian.

The site is divided into two sectors: the agricultural (terracing and food production) and the urban area, where there are main squares, temples, palaces, storehouses, workshops, and water fountains which run through both sectors. It is clear that the architectural design was based on Cusco, the capital of the Inca empire. The Incans love for the mountains was apparent everywhere as well….carved into the stone are exact mimics of the mountains behind. And just to clarify, Machu Picchu has no human sacrificial history. Just llamas, guinea pigs, and coca leaves for the gods in this place! It was built according to its natural surroundings, with its constructions following the natural curves and dips and rises in the land and cutting stone to fit together so precisely they didn't need more than a mud mortar. The temples and kings quarters were built even more pristine, not having mortar at all, and still standing perfectly today. This design made the Inca structures highly resistant to earthquakes and it’s one of the reasons Machu Picchu still remains basically intact. (btw – we never mentioned the 6.8 earthquake we slept through in the Amazon! Ha!) The agricultural and urban sectors are split by a dry ditch, the result of a geographic fault line. The agricultural sector is surrounded by a series of terraces of different types and sizes which had two main functions: to grow crops and halt the erosion caused by the rains. The Intihuatana or sun stone is probably the most famous spot at machu picchu. (and unfortunately also where lots of people hung around so it was hard to get a good picture) Its four corners are directed to the four cardinal points. The Intihuatana stone had specific functions: it measured time (the solstice and the equinox) by using sunlight and shadow, and also served as an altar. In Quechua, "Inti" means "sun" and "Wata" means "year", thereby giving us the meaning of a solar year observatory. It lives up to it’s 'Hitching Post of the Sun' namesake with almost exact and precise, still functioning, time keeping.

After a day full of interesting history and beautiful views, we took a late lunch that we had packed at the ruins. As we leaned against one of the terraces that used to grow corn to feed the villagers we thought about how beautiful it truly was and how happy we were to be there.



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And our happiness filled us for awhile…until I realized both of us had forgotten to put on sun block and we remembered we were in one of the highest ultraviolet burn areas in the world. Oh boy….we got burned….and are still peeling. But it was totally worth it.

From the Jungle to the Mountains

We took an evening flight back to Lima and from there took a taxi to our hostel/hotel. Lima is a tough town....really rough around the edges for sure. It is also HUGE. It has about 15 million in the metro and surrounding area (the 16th most populous city in the world) and is 1/3 of the total Peruvian population. The smog created from the over 7000 factories of textiles, clothing, food, chemicals, and fish as well as a very tropical physical geography made for a really dreamy, surreal type of feeling while there. Not our favorite place on the trip....but interesting.

Early the next morning we got up and headed back to the airport to catch a 55 minute flight into the Andes mountains to Cuzco, Peru (pop.: 300,000 people) and Imperial City of the Incas. Cuzco lies in Southeastern Peru at an altitude of 10,991 feet above sea level...which officially is now the highest altitude town we've spent time in (Leadville, co - you are now #2). It was built by the Incas and served as the capital of the vast Inca Empire that reached from Quito, Ecuador to Northern Chile. A hilarious urban planning fact is that it was originally built in the shape of a puma, which was a sacred animal for the Incas. In 2006, Cuzco was found to have the highest ultraviolet light level on the planet...which, after being burnt with 70 block on, believe 100%. It is a beautiful town with very traditional markets and streets. Most of the streets are lined with stone and have colorful and ornate doors to the businesses and homes. There are a lot of tourists in Cuzco but it is also a very traditional town. Many of the women wear giant layers of clothing with long sock/stockings, have large bolo hats on and all have long braids. We wandered around, having the entire day, exploring. Dogs are everywhere...everywhere...on every corner. I started to notice that they all are some of the cutest dogs I've ever seen! they have happy faces with short legs and were extremely well behaved. We found lunch at small pizza joint and enjoyed as a street musician played a sweet song in Spanish, on guitar, as we ate. The main Plaza de Armas (the "heart" of the puma shaped city) is stunning with it's giant catholic churches and central gardens. We sat on a Juliet type balcony at a 2nd story pub and had a couple beers while people watching. Really, really relaxing. After taking in the thin air and enjoying the afternoon we headed back to our hotel to prepare for the trek to Aguas Calientes and the famed, Machu Picchu.

Muyuna Lodge Transit System

Jungle Pix

Prehistoric in the Present Tense

Over the next few days, Rafael guided us through the jungle by motorboat, mainly. We were also treated to a canoe ride along with a few more jungle hikes.

Each excursion was a whole new world for each of us. The boatride through the giant, four foot wide lily pads drifting among the thorny trunk palm trees that housed the Hoatzin Birds, gave one afternoon a prehistoric element all to it's own. These rare birds, when young, have claws that protrude from their shoulders. When prey comes after them in the nest, they intentionally fall into the flooded river. After the danger is gone, they swim back to their nest tree and climb VIA THEIR SHOULDER CLAWS back up to to their homes.

We took a canoe ride through a mangrove to find some monkeys feeding on fruits in the swamp. Rafael located a few and, at the same time, we could hear the dolphins come up for air nearby...probably the only place in the world where you can look up at monkeys while dolphins swim around you.

As we paddled our way back, we heard some thunder and could see a thunderstorm brewing in the distance. We heard a noise that we thought was just the wind howling. We were informed that it was actually monkeys howling. In fact, it was a bunch of Howling Monkeys howling. That's what they do when a storm is approaching, "like bullfrogs"according to Rafael. It was eerie and surreal to hear in unison with the storm.

Often, we would pass by the local village on the way back to the lodge. The village is where several of the lodge employees were from and it was located about a half mile down the river. We thoroughly enjoyed the smell of their campfires by their huts while they waved at us passing by. All electricity for the village was produced from a few solar panels perched on a couple of poles in between huts.

One night, they took us out on a boatride to look for Boa Constrictors. We basically sat in the boat while Rafael peered out with his flash light looking for the glare in the snake's eyes. He located a total of three throughout the night and guided our boat close enough to look at them. He didn't try to catch these guys and we were more than fine with that. We were more than happy watching them slither through the tree from a distance. He didn't want to go back without catching something, so he caught and released a little jungle frog on the way back.

On one particular hike, we were looking for more monkeys in trees when all of a sudden Rafael spotted a Wattled Curassow, a rare bird that was once thought to be extinct. Some experts even dismissed claims that it still existed, but were eventually proven wrong. This was actually the only time we saw Rafael got a little giddy. You could tell he was already fond of birds during out expeditions, so this made his day. It was like "finding a needle in the jungle", as he put it.

After 4 days in the jungle, we were ready to get back to civilization. We got on a boat to go back up the Amazon to Iquitos and bid farewell to the good people of Muyuna Lodge. Next stop, Cuzco to start the trek through the Andes Mountains to Machu Picchu.

Cannonballs

Rafael says, "No Piranha, no caiman, no anaconda. You have to forget about all of it."

Piranhas Are Only Dangerous in Hollywood

Muyana Lodge is pretty hard to beat. They run a tight operation and they make sure you see as much of the jungle as possible. On a typical day, you can go on a total of 4 different excursions by boat or by hiking and begin at sunrise and continue into the nighttime. Over the next 3 days, our guide Rafael showed us everything we wanted to see.

One of our first excursions was fishing for piranhas, which I thought was pretty hardcore. Rafael took us off the main river into a tributary where they live. Contrary to popular belief, piranhas do not live in the main channel of the Amazon b/c they don't like the currents or the sediments of the main river. Instead, they prefer the calm black waters of the tributaries which is where we casted our bamboo poles with pork as our bait. This kind of fishing is not your typical fishing where you sit and wait for the fish to bite. Instead, the piranhas bit almost immediately and were very good at taking your bait if you weren't ready to snap your pole at the right time. Needless to say, we went through the pork bait real quick. Our group pulled in several pirannas and once we ran out of pork, Rafael cut up some of the ones we caught and we used them as bait...piranhas are also cannibals, apparently. All in all, we took a total of 6 back to the lodge which were cooked up and served to us for dinner that night.

After each excursion, we were taken back to the lodge for some rest time where we would eat a meal or take a shower...since there was no electricity, we could only take cold showers, which were perfect since it was so hot. After a brief rest period, they would take us out again to see something new.

The same day we fished for piranhas, they took us out to the main channel of the Amazon to swim with the pink dolphins. Even though we had every reason to trust Rafael, we were a little hesitant to swim in the same river that we fished for piranhas in just a few hours earlier. Rafael assured us that, "piranhas are only dangerous in Hollywood".

Once we located a couple of dolphins, we stopped the motor and we all jumped in and Rafael was right. Not only was it free of piranhas, it was refreshing and surreal to swim with fresh water pink dolphins. Grey dolphins are also present along with the pink dolphins. The grey dolphins eventually make the trek back to the ocean while the pink dolphins stay in the river. Though nobody knows for sure why the pink dolphins are pink, we were told it's probably due to their capillaries in the fresh water. The dolphins never got within 30 yard of us but we did float with them along the current while watching them come up for air.

After an hour or so of floating down the river, we were taken back to the lodge for another round of cold showers and dinner. After dinner and once the sun was down, we loaded back into the boat where Rafael told us he was going to catch a caiman, which is like a small crocadile. We loaded onto the boat and made our way down the river again with Rafael guiding us with a flashlight. It was absolutely amazing to watch Rafael use his keen sense of sight to find the caiman in the water...I'm guessing he could see their eyes peeking just inches above the water. He located a few but was unable to actually reel them in. Regardless, it was an experience in itself to boat down the Amazon in the black of night watching a naturalist try to catch a caiman.

Once we got back to the lodge, Rafael already had the next day planned for us consisting of seeing more wildlife and unique vegetation by boat and canoe.