| Day 1 - Friday |
Depart for Quito, capital of Ecuador |
| Day 2 - Saturday |
Take a city tour to familiarize ourselves with
the capital of Ecuador. Visit a monument on the equator at Mitad
del Mundo. |
| Day 3 - Sunday |
Fly to Baltra, Galapagos. Board Eden. Travel
to North Seymour and hike 2.5 km trail to view nesting/courting
blue-footed boobies and frigatebirds. Also seen; sea lions, marine
iguanas, and lava lizards. |
| Day 4 - Monday |
Boat to Bartolome Island where there are great
views from the 114-meter summit. Penguins are often present. Good
snorkeling opportunity. Travel to San Salvador (Santiago) and visit
Puerto Egas and its black lava shoreline where eroded shapes form
lava pools, caves, and inlets with a great variety of wildlife.
View sea linos and fur seals (sea lions). Good snorkeling. |
| Day 5 - Tuesday |
Isabela. Visit Punta Albemarle and Punta Vicente
Roca. See flightless cormorants and Galapagos penguins. Good snorkeling
near Punta Vicente Roca. Travel to Fernandina. |
| Day 6 - Wednesday |
Fernandina is the youngest island of the main
islands with active volcanos. See marine iguanas by the thousands
at Punta Espinosa. Travel to Isabela again. Tour Tagus Cove and
walk two km to the lava slopes of Volcano Darwin. |
| Day 7 - Thursday |
Isabela, Urbina Bay. Uplift occurred in 1954
which created a coral reef on land. See flightless cormorants, pelicans,
and marine iguanas on land and rays and marine turtles in the bay.
Travel to Elizabeth Bay and take a panga ride. See mangroves and
penguins. Boat to Puerto Villamil. |
| Day 8 - Friday |
Take day trip via truck, horse, and foot to
the slopes of Sierra Negra Volcano, second largest caldera in the
world. View fumaroles at Volcan Chico. |
| Day 9 - Saturday |
Visit Villamil Lagoon to see numerous different
species of migrant waders including flamingos. Tour the Interpretation
Center. Snorkel at Tortuga Island. |
| Day 10 - Sunday |
Floreana (Santa Maria). See lagoon with flamingos
and many other wading birds. Visit Post Office Bay. Good snorkeling. |
| Day 11 - Monday |
Santa Cruz. Tour Puerto Ayora, largest town
in the islands and home to the Charles Darwin Research Station.
Travel inland to the highlands and visit tortoise reserve. |
| Day 12 - Tuesday |
Espanola (Hood). At Punta Suarez take a two
km trail to see masked boobies, blue-footed boobies, marine iguanas,
and a waved albatross colony. Watch aerial action around blow
hole. Snorkel in Gardner Bay and see white-tipped reef sharks.
Overnight to San Cristobal. |
| Day 13 - Wednesday |
Visit the town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno and
the Galapagos Interpretive Center. Boat to Kicker Rock and then
to Isla Lobos to nsorkel and view sea lions and nesting frigatebirds.
Overnight to Isla Santa Fe. |
| Day 14 - Thursday |
Walking tour of Isla Santa Fe to view land iguanas
and nesting brown pelicans. Great snorkel opportunity to see white-tipped
reef sharks and many other sea creatures. Boat to Islas Plazas.
Cactus forest, land iguanas, sea lions and seabirds galore. |
| Day 15 - Friday |
Genovesa. Visit red-footed booby colony. Also
seen at the two different landings are masked boobies, great frigatebirds,
red-billed tropicbirds, swallow-tailed gulls, storm petrels, Galapagos
doves, short-eared owls, and sea lions. Good place to snorkel and
maybe see hammerhead sharks. |
| Day 16 - Saturday |
Boat to Sombrero Chino where we will follow
a 400 meter trail to view the volcanic landscape, sea lions, marine
iguanas, and nesting pelicans. Great snorkel opportunity. Penguins
are often seen. Boat to Isla Rabida and follow a 750 meter trail
by a lagoon and it’s bachelor sea lion colony. Another good
snorkel site. |
| Day 17 - Sunday |
Travel to Black Turtle Cove on Isla Santa Cruz
to view sting rays and white-tipped reef sharks. Return to Baltra
and board bus to Puerto Ayora. Free afternoon. |
| Day 18 - Monday |
Free day in Puerto Ayora. |
| Day 19 - Tuesday |
Bus to Baltra and fly to Quito. Free afternoon. |
| Day 20 - Wednesday |
Take walking tour of Old Town, the colonial
center of Quito. Free afternoon. |
| Day 21 - Thursday |
Return to US. |
