The Galapagos, Ecuador (day 4 & 5)

On Saturday we traveled to Santa Cruz Island. This was most definitely the day of the tortoise. We came into port in Puerto Ayoro, our first sign of civilization in days. Here we visited the Charles Darwin Research Station where we observed the tortoises in captivity with support for their breeding process.








Afterward we shopped around Puerto Ayoro and had lunch inland on a very nice ranch with lush surroundings, a welcomed change from the past several days.
The afternoon was a visit to the Giant Tortoise Reserve where we got up close & personal with the giant tortoises. The day's activities ended with a brief walk through tunnels created by lava flow many many years ago.




Yesterday we awoke on Floreana Island, my favorite of all the islands we visited. It is the prettiest of all the islands that I've now been to (in my opinion), and the water here is perfectly turquoise & clear. Here we visited the island's Post Office Bay where mail used to be left for hand delivery to the other islands. Now it is used for tourists to leave post cards as well as pick up ones whose address is close to home to make a hand delivery, thus maintaining the spirit of the post office's original use.




The beach here at Floreana Island is absolutely beautiful. Our afternoon was snorkeling in Devil's Cove, reportedly the best snorkeling in all of the Galapagos. 5 minutes into the snorkeling, a man was pulled into the panga and was in full cardiac arrest. ~7 minutes of CPR on our way back to the panga and I got a pulse & breathing back. The ship is seriously under-equipped for such emergencies, with my only resources being an epinephrine & scopolamine patch, defibrillator (which was not working!), oxygen & IV supplies. We diverted back to Santa Cruz (3 hours!) where I transferred his care to the MDs. Amazingly he was neurologically intact by the time he was taken to the hospital. Afterwards I learned he is on the heart transplant list. So much for being on vacation!
I made some nice friends here and wish we were traveling on together... Marie & Nicholas from Montreal, and Agnes & Thomas from Slovakia. Agnes & Thomas plan to meet me for dinner next week in Peru, and Marie & Thomas are coming to ski with me in VT later this winter. : )








Today we awoke on Baltra Island, and I fly on to Guayaquil, Ecuador where I am for the next 2 days before I depart Ecuador and move on to my next country, Peru...... Machu Picchu!

Location:Floreana Island