In the morning we landed at Puerto Ayora, the largest town in the Galapagos located on Santa Cruz Island. Here we explored the Charles Darwin Research Station, the breeding center and visited the giant tortoises. Some of these majestic reptiles were just hatchlings, born here as part of the restoration programs carried out by the Galapagos National Park Service. Eventually all of these little creatures will be repatriated to their home islands where they will spend the rest of their lives. We also learned about all the projects that are currently happening within the National Park.
After our visit, we took buses and headed to the highlands of Santa Cruz. The interesting sites were plentiful: The humid zone, the array of birds, the lava tunnel and the Galápagos giant tortoises. These large, gentle reptiles have made a great come back since conservation work started on the Galapagos. We had a lot of fun on an underground expedition while exploring a double decker lava tube.
In the afternoon we ventured into the cloud forest and grasslands. This region is green throughout the year and it is home to many of the endemic species that inhabit the Galapagos. Here we found Darwin’s finches, mocking birds, pintail ducks and giant tortoises. We were lucky to spot over 50 giant tortoises in the wild! We had an amazing opportunity to photograph the gentle giants and enjoy the greenery.
