An entire species went extinct yesterday. Lonesome George was the last known Pinta Island tortoise, one of eleven remaining Galapagos Island tortoise species. Until his discovery about forty years ago, scientists thought his species was already extinct. But then someone found George walking by himself on Pinta Island and brought him to the Charles Darwin… Read More »
September 30, 2007
Day 732
I headed back to mainland Ecuador this morning. What can I say about the Galapagos that I haven't already said? I think the best way for me to express my gratitude toward the islands is to mention that my visit cracks the top five experiences of my entire trip.… Read More »
September 29, 2007
Day 731
For my last full day in the Galapagos, I took one more trip up to the highlands of Santa Cruz, this time to the "Tunnels of Love." The tunnels were formed naturally by the lava that flowed through the island when it was formed. I was… Read More »
September 28, 2007
Day 730
The last part of Santa Cruz I wanted to see was the highlands. I found out from an Israeli at the camping place on Isabela that there was an efficient system of colectivos on the island despite all of the tourist pamphlets that said that it was necessary to… Read More »
September 27, 2007
Day 729
I took a boat back to Santa Cruz Island this morning. Isabela was a great experience that was very different from the other islands. It's younger than the eastern islands, and therefore more volcanically active. It has five of the remaining twelve species of giant tortoise, and lots of… Read More »
September 26, 2007
Day 728
Just like on Santa Cruz and San Cristobal, Isabela has a center dedicated to protecting the unique wildlife on the Galapagos Islands. Unlike the other islands, however, the educational center on Isabela gives visitors a first-hand look at the rehabilitation of the galapagos tortoises.
When I visited the center… Read More »
September 25, 2007
Day 727
Today I got together with some Americans at my hostel named Brian, Kim, and Ben. They've been traveling around Ecuador for a few weeks, having taken Spanish lessons and traveled through the jungle. The thing that really surprised me was that they all had jobs that allowed them to… Read More »
September 24, 2007
Day 726
Everyone from the campground went on a walk together this morning to the Sierra Negra Volcano. On the way up, the climate changed from cool and cloudy to cold and rainy to hot and sunny. It's crazy how the islands have their own micro-climates on the beaches and highlands.… Read More »
September 23, 2007
Day 725
I took a boat back to Santa Cruz Island this morning. It was a rough ride again, but nobody got sick this time. I masochistically wanted to take another boat to Isabela Island this afternoon, so I spent a few hours hanging around the docks of Puerto Ayora. This… Read More »
September 22, 2007
Day 724
This morning I went to a small farming town called El Progreso, then walked up to a viewpoint at the top of the island called La Soledad. The lookout wasn't very interesting, but on the way up, I passed an old guy who wanted to talk… Read More »
