The Galapagos Islands are one of the great wildlife destinations on earth, our intrepid travel reporter reports!

“It’s like a scene out of a World War II movie”, says the Norwegian man next to me. Somehow, he’s right. Our introduction to the wildlife of the Galapagos Islands is spectacular and immediate. After a short bus ride from the airport, we’re ferried across a shallow channel on to island Santa Cruz. Awaiting us on the other side is a huge flock of blue-footed boobies. Hundreds take to the sky as our boat approaches, only to swirl around us before small groups break formation, tucking their bodies into perfect arrow shapes and plunging back into the water. They drop like bombs.

Through the bus window, Santa Cruz looks like any other tropical island. Banana plants, thick foliage, ramshackle buildings. But, of course, as part of the Galapagos archipelago, Santa Cruz isn’t like other islands.

This year marks the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. Darwin presented his radical ideal to a scientific meeting in 1858, where it was received with little controvery. It wasn’t November the following year that his book On the Origin of Species was published, shaking the worlds of both science and religion.

But it was 23 years earlier than Darwin’s theory was sparked, when he arrived in the Galapagos on board the HMS Beagle.

The result of volcanic eruptions, the islands have never been part of any continent. Consequently, the animals of the Galapagos developed in perfect isolation. And while variations of these animals are found elsewhere in the world, on the islands they remain separated from their cousins by unique traits – the enormous size of the tortoises, the seafaring nature of the iguanas, the cormorants’ inability to fly.

After dropping our luggage on board our home for the next few nights, the 16-berth ’superior class’ catamaran the Seaman, we head into the Santa Cruz highlands to seek out the legendary giant tortoises. Sure enough, within a few minutes of arriving at a private sanctuary that borders the island’s national park, we come across several age-old giants.

There is some uncertainty about how long these tortoises live, although one, at least, is known to have lived for more than 170 years (it was taken from the highlands during Darwin’s visit on the Beagle and, after his death, eventually found its way to Steve Irwin’s Australia Zoo, where it died in 2006).

As the crowd of tourists make way for a large male, it’s hard to put into perspective how long this animal might have been roaming this island. It may have been here, wandering about munching foliage, when Ned Kelly was eluding the police in northern Victoria, when Abraham Lincoln was president of the United States, or when Charles Dickens was writing Great Expectations.

On day two we arrive at Floriana, where we find one of the Galapagos’ less-publicised residents: brightly coloured flamingos. They’re found only on those islands where there are alkaline lakes, where they can pick their way around, seeking shellfish. Later we leap from a dinghy near Devil’s Crown, a cluster of jagged rocks about 500 metres off the island’s coast. Snorkelling around the rocks in crystal clear water, I’m impressed by the beautiful, countless fish swimming around the rocks. Suddenly I see a huge shape dive into the water a few metres in front of me. Initially startled, and perhaps a little scared, I relax when I realise it’s one of the sea lions we saw lazing on the rocks earlier.

The sea lions of the Galapagos are playful, confident and ubiquitous. Initially excited to see just one on a beach, we soon discover that most of the islands are covered in them. On San Christobel’s small township, they outnumber the human residents and can be found lazing on the doorsteps of hotels and restaurants. The fishing boats in the harbour use barbed wire to prevent the heavy beasts from covering their vessels during the night. Approaching the beach on Espanol, what I initially thought were rocks turn out to be sea lions, hundreds of them, sunning themselves on the shore. After we arrive, I take a stroll down the beach, wandering among the oblivious creatures. When I return, I find one has crawled up from the waterline and is almost on top of beach towel. Like all the others, it shows little interest in me when I resume my place next to it.

Relaxing with the wildlife

Throughout the trip, our naturalist guide chooses his words carefully as he takes us from place to place. Never making promises, when he describes the wildlife on a given island he uses phrases like “maybe we will see” or “there might be”. Either we’re very lucky, or the guide is overly cautious, as we normally see the animal he describes within a minute or two after mentions it.

This includes, in the water, supposedly elusive sea turtles. Snorkelling off the beach we come across a giant one snacking on seaweed. It is unperturbed by our presence and carries on eating, no matter how close we get.

There is little danger in snorkelling and diving in the Galapagos. The Galapagos shark is large (often over three metres) and reportedly aggressive, but the locals seem to know which areas they’re found in. More dangerous are the bull sea lions, who can be highly protective of their harems and aggressive towards anyone that comes near them. Again, our guide ensures we keep away from these red-blooded males. The bachelors, who often live together in small, all-male groups, are usually just curious and playful. On one occasion, however, I was bitten on the flipper. I’m not sure whether this was playful or not.

Tourism has been growing rapidly in the Galapagos in recent years, more than doubling since 2000, and the impact is beginning to concern conservationists. While efforts are being made to minimise the impact (we’re forced, for example, to wash all the sand off our bodies before leaving a beach) there are concerns that the delicate environment will be hurt by the increasing popularity of the location.

Our guide tells me that last year a huge, 5000-passenger cruise ship was granted access to the islands, a decision that’s now looked back on as a mistake. Last year, Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa vowed to protect the islands, promising to reduce the number of tourism permits and slow the drift of immigrants from the mainland.

On the last night of the trip, we anchor back in the channel where the blue footed boobies flocked. We’re told the channel is a regular hunting ground for one of the only animals we haven’t seen – the Galapagos shark. We shine torches into the water, hoping to spot one, but are only greeted by yet another playful sea lion. I guess you can’t win them all.

The next morning, it’s back to airport for our return flight to Quito. But before we leave the Spondylus, my American cabin mate shows me a photo on his camera. He rose earlier than me and wandered out on the deck a Galapagos shark was circling, and he’s got the photo to prove it. It seems even the most elusive of animals in the Galapagos aren’t so elusive after all.

Chimu Adventures offers a range of of cruises in the Galapagos Islands, with no ship larger than 120 passengers, and the majority being under 20, we bring unrivalled options to this spectacular destination.

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