Day 331: Puerto Ayora
Our stay at Isabela Island has been a blast – our favorite island of the Galápagos! – but all good things must come to an end. It was time to return to Santa Cruz for our final few days in the archipelago. We booked the last two seats on one of the many ferry-shuttles the night before for the excruciatingly early 6AM departure time. Since our new hotel was all the way on the other side of town, we booked a 5:30AM taxi to take us to the pier. We were pretty annoyed when the guy showed up and started honking 10min early – turns out he was planning to pick up multiple passengers on the way. We were even more ticked off when we realized that the cool weather in the morning meant it would have been an easy 20-30min walk – we didn’t even need the taxi! As a result, we were a bit grumpy when we arrived at the pier and once again had to stand around like chumps as the typical ferry chaos ensued: everyone jammed onto the tiny pier, waiting for their boat to be called. Oh well, at least the bio-security inspectors didn’t confiscate our to-go breakfast, which included both fruit juice and fresh fruit!
Waiting in the pre-dawn darkness for our 6AM ferry
So, on our last two ferry experiences, we tried to sit on the upper deck seats. Both times we were told *we* were not allowed (even though other tourists were – not sure if there was a bribe thing goin’ on, or what). This time, however, Igor didn’t bother to ask and just climbed up, motioning Lindsay to follow. There were already 3 people up top, but the five of us just fit on the bench. This was definitely the best seat in the house: instead of sitting along the edge of the boat’s interior, we actually got to face forward, and of course the view was awesome!
We finally get a top-deck seat! It’s far more comfortable and we have a refreshing breeze
We get a killer view of the sunrise! It would be perfect if condensation from the roof didn’t keep dripping on us – after a good 20min of wiping down the boat, the dripping finally stops
Even though this was by far and away our best ferry experience in the Galápagoes, it was also our weirdest. About halfway to Santa Cruz, our boat slowed down and met up with another speed boat just sitting in the middle of the ocean. The captain started instructing anyone who had a flight to catch to transfer to the other boat…so while the two boats were bouncing up in down in the waves, people had to crawl across the railing from one ferry to the other. The sailors then started transferring bags – good thing we were watching from above as we had to yell at them to leave our luggage alone! Once the correct bags were taken, the second ferry took off and sped away ahead of us, while we plodded along.
We guessed that our boat must have been having engine problems, as we were significantly slower than than all the others, which were soon out of sight. Igor watched as the captain and his first mate spent the rest of the ride tinkering with the boat’s wiring (he thinks they must have fried one of the wires, as the radio stopped turning on about an hour from port). Whatever – we weren’t in a hurry. All the other passengers that were sharing our top-deck seat had left by this time, so we had plenty of space to stretch out and even take a nap. We arrived in Puerto Ayora after 9AM – well over an hour after everyone else, but the comfort was totally worth it.
Sadly, the Captain Max Hostel didn’t have any rooms left for our second stay in Puerto Ayora, so Igor found us a “hostería” or guesthouse on the outskirts of town called Patty’s House. It was far (a 20min walk – downhill going into town, but uphill coming back) but since taxis were only USD $1.50 anywhere within Puerto Ayora, it wasn’t a big deal. We checked in and checked out the apartment – it was bare bones, but the kitchen did have a hotplate and a few cooking utensils, so we planned to self-cater for the next three nights, especially once we caught a glimpse of the amazing spread of fresh tuna at the fish market!
The Puerto Ayora fish market is in full swing when we walk by in the late morning – check out that fresh Yellowfin Tuna!
The fish market is surrounded by hungry pelicans, waiting for scraps
Birds aren’t the only beggars – a sly sea lion hides behind the counter. Whenever the fishmonger turns his head, the lobo hoists himself onto the counter trying to steal a snack!
In the afternoon, we finally made our way to the Charles Darwin Research Center – a scientific compound at the edge of town that houses an educational walking path, museum, Giant Tortoise Breeding Center, as well as facilities for the 200+ team of scientists, educators and interns that work to conserve the islands’ unique ecosystem. It may be a bit nerdy, but we couldn’t *not* go. And while we were sweating bullets at times, the place was pretty interesting.
The most notable figure within the education materials (besides Darwin himself) was Lonesome George, and the sad tale of his species’ extinction. Thanks to the plundering habits of pirates (who would collect 100s of tortoises as they passed through the islands in the 1600s to store *upside down* for months at a time in order to have fresh meat on their long voyages) and the introduction of feral goats and pigs (who over-grazed the island’s vegetation leaving the tortoises nothing to eat), the population of Giant Tortoises was absolutely decimated. By the 1970s, 2 of the subspecies were extinct, and a third – the Pinta Island Giant Tortoise – was down to its *last surviving member.* Lonesome George – an 80-something y/o male was that very last of his kind. The scientific community searched far and wide, combing the zoos of the world to try and find out if a female was still around (there was even a USD $10,000 reward!) but none were ever located. In an effort to preserve some of his DNA, many attempts were made to mate Lonesome George with some females from Volcán Wolf – considered the closest biological match. Even though a handful of eggs were laid, none of them ever hatched. Lonesome George died in 2012.
Igor walks the “Tortoise Trail” at the Charles Darwin Research Station
Learning is fun! We read about the pirates that hunted many of the Galápagos Giant Tortoises into extinction, and the various modern efforts to rebuild the surviving populations
Luckily, George’s fate was not shared by all the Giant Tortoises – there was one really great success story! Around the same time as George’s discovery, the population of the Española Giant Tortoise was down to only 13. Breeding attempts between the last 2 males and the 11 females weren’t looking too good, until another world-wide search yielded a stud in the San Diego Zoo. No one knew exactly when this guy was acquired (sometime between 1900-1950?), but he was soon taken back to the Galápagoes where he got BUSY. This well-endowed reptile fathered over 800 babies over the decades and is credited with single-handedly saving his species. (Although, I’d like to point out how SEXIST that statement is – after all, the females who laid the fucking eggs should get a little recognition, no?)
Baby and adult tortoises live in pens in the Charles Darwin Breeding Center until they are old enough to return to the wild
Tortoises aren’t the only species endanger of extinction – the poor Mangrove Finch is down to under 100 individuals thanks to avian illness (which prevent adults from reaching sexual maturity) and the accidental introduction of a parasitic fly (who lays its eggs in the finches’ nests so that the larva can crawl into the baby birds’ ears and EAT THEIR BRAINS). In an attempt to save the Mangrove Finches from the zombie bugs, a team of scientists have been collecting the eggs from the wild for the past 2 years, and hand-rearing them in captivity until they are old enough to be released. So far, the project has seen moderate success: the number of surviving babies had doubled each year. Keeping our finger crossed for these little guys!
Visiting the Charles Darwin Research Station – Lindsay discovers a little too late that the tortoise photo-op was for kids. Her big adult butt won’t fit!
Of course, the real highlight of the day was the AMAZING dinner we had back at our hospedaje. Lindsay whipped up her black bean and corn salsa, while Master Chef Igor cooked a *perfectly* rare tuna steak. We even treated ourselves to a rare bottle of wine for USD $10 (booze is incredibly expensive to import into the islands, but the selection was slightly better in Santa Cruz) – salud!
The best and freshest USD $2.50 tuna we’ve ever had in our lives! That guy was swimming in the ocean this morning. Tonight – he’s in our bellies!