We had time for a quick breakfast, and then we were on the plane. The cruise line had booked us on the flight, and it made a stop in Guayaquil which added time and some annoyance, but we got over it. We've decided next time (because there are more islands, so there will be a next time), we'll just go directly to Guayaquil. The cruise company had given us stickers, and it was fun to see the other people on the plane with the same stickers. Finally, we arrived at the Baltra airport. We were in the Galapagos!!!
We had to pay our park entry fee in cash, which we were prepared for, and the cruise line had paid our travel tax, so we had a document that needed to be scanned. It was all pretty quick and easy. A guide from the ship met us at baggage claim and guided us to a bus which took us to the pier. We didn't get any pictures at the pier because we were so busy watching the sea lion which was waddling around. They had a special kid size life vest for Elena, and then we all piled into a zodiac to get to our ship, the Legend.
We were greeted with mimosas for the adults and orange juice for the kids. Vivian and Elena were the only kids on the ship. There were about 50 passengers.
We were given a quick overview of the ship and then escorted to our rooms. Elena shared with me and Jeff, while Vivian bunked with Judy. The rooms were comfortable with great windows.
We had a bit of time to explore the ship, and then they served a very nice buffet lunch. The ten of us had our own table. There were two buffet stations, and it didn't feel crowded at all. When we had been looking around, Elena had spotted the little pool, so as soon as lunch was done, she asked to go swimming. It was a bit chilly, so she was the only taker. Vivian and I just sat and watched.
By then, we were at our first stop, Bartolome Island. The first activity for the day was snorkeling or going out in glass bottomed boat. Judy and Grace went snorkeling, while Jeff and I decided to take the girls in the glass bottom boat.
As we were learning, getting on and off the boat was always an exciting process. The boat never docked, just dropped anchor, and then we had to jump into a zodiac which took us to wherever we were going. In the case of the glass bottom boat, it took us to the boat, and then we had to swing ourselves from one boat to the other. The ship's crew were always on hand to help though, and Elena got to the point where she confidently held her arms up and waited to be swung from place to place. To their credit, no one ever fell in the water, and the kids thought it was great fun.
Our first animal sighting was actually out of the water, a sea lion sunning itself on the cliff.
We saw lots of fish under the glass bottomed boat. Our favorites were the ones with the yellow tails, but we also had a whole school swim under us.
We thought it was great, but Elena was disappointed that she hadn't seen a shark. She asked the boat driver for a tiburón (shark in Spanish), which I could tell melted his heart, but he couldn't find one for us. Elena got over it when we offered her a pineapple smoothie back on the ship. We had a bit of time to meet back up with the rest of our group, and then it was time to go ashore for our first land adventure.
The ship's passengers were divided into four groups: albatross, boobies, cormarants, and dolphins. The ten of us were in the boobie group with three other couples. We were all excited about our group name, and whenever we were mentioned we shouted out, boobies! Yes, it was a very mature cruise group ;-)
When they called the boobie group, we all got our life jackets on and lurched into the zodiac. We pulled up to some rock steps and were helped out and up.
The rocks along the shoreline on all the islands we visited were covered in red crabs. Jeff got a good picture of one at a later island. They were so cool.
Bartolome Island is very much a volcanic island. There are no active volcanoes, but it is covered in ash and has all kinds of interesting rock formations. In order to preserve the island, there is a wooden walkway for visitors. That is what we walked along and then climbed to get to the top of the island.
Along the way, we got to stop and feel some volcanic rocks.
We also met some lava lizards who were moving too fast to get a clear picture and saw some interesting cacti.
The sun was setting as we were walking, which made for some great pictures.
Slowly, but surely, we made our way back down. We passed another group on their way up. They said if Elena could do it, so could they. We had pre ordered dinner at lunch, so our food was ready for us when we showed up. Elena had asked for a hot dog, and she was very pleased with the result.
Luckily, we managed to hang on until dessert, which was also yummy.
Both Vivian and Elena fell asleep at the table almost as soon as they were done eating. Elena barely registered being carried back to the room. Despite being worn out, we all agreed that it was an incredible first day.
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