Sunrise and Sailboats, Puerta Villamil, Isla Isabela
"Isabela Town"
We had a busy day planned today with a morning visit to Isla Tintorelas for a long walk around followed by a snorkeling excursion on the reef beside the island. During the afternoon we would be going ashore to visit a Galapagos Tortoise Breeding, Rehabilitation and Nature Center before having some free time to browse through shops and visit bars with wifi if anyone was desperate to reconnect before our return to Quito. Shops and bar and wifi?? We had not seen civilization in days and we had been completely disconnected digitally. What would we do with ourselves when confronted with so much modernity? But first there was more nature to explore.
Isla Tintoreras is named for the White Tip Shark that inhabits these waters and finds sanctuary in a canal that runs through the island. We had a couple of sharks circling our boat alongside the ubiquitous harleguin puffer fish that were always hanging about so we knew we were in their home waters. We took the Pangas the short distance over through the sailboats and past a couple of channel markers that made a great resting spot for Sea Lions. In fact, Sea Lions loves this area as much as the sharks. One of them was waiting to greet us on a bench beside the docking spot.
These sailboats are all part of a huge around the world sailboat rally. They were anchored here and in Puerto Ayora, too, for a mandatory two week rest and restock before heading into the open Pacific to Fiji.
The little Islet Tintoreras is basically made up Ah Ah (jagged) Lava covered with lichen and some sandy, rocky soil. For some reason it is a haven for Marine Iguanas and a very popular place for them to lay their eggs. As a result, it is also a popular place for Frigate Birds to hover and Galapagos Hawks to hang out. They both love the eggs and the defenseless young Marine Iguanas, however they will never swoop down on a mass of the creatures which is one reason why they are always so bundled together in heaps.
The lichen on the lava looks like snow!
These two Iguana ladies were in quite a fight over this nesting location.
This Frigate Bird was causing quite a fret among the nesting crowd on the beach.
The White Tip Sharks love to congregate in this canal. The banks were swarming with young Iguanas, and in fact a sign indicated that this was a Marine Iguana kindergarten!
Sea Lions love this island, too, and this beach is only for them.
I wanted to go down there, but the sign just over my left shoulder said that no humans were allowed beyond that point. The beach looked so much like my favorite Beach 69 on The Big Island in Hawaii.
This fellow was standing guard right beside me as I had my picture taken with a look that seemed to say, "I am here to enforce the rules. Remember, no humans allowed on that beach!"
We followed the hot path back around to our docking spot, and by that point I was so ready to jump into the beautiful surrounding waters and snorkel for one last time on this amazing journey. Our Pangas had not yet arrived so this fellow invited us to sit down and wait with him.
We were more than ready to join him in the shade. It is necessary to cover winter white and Irish/English skin from the direct Equatorial sun, but those long sleeves and long pants are hot!
Again it would only be the stalwart 9 who were willing to jump off and climb back into the Pangas who went snorkeling on this day. The others had to be content with cooling off in the air conditioned lounge or in the breezes of the decks. They had no idea what they were missing. Snorkeling today was in the clearest waters all week. Due to the protective reef, there was absolutely no turbulence and nothing to blur the vision. Unfortunately, there were also fewer fish and other creatures about, but it was still beautiful and I managed to spot a few I had not seen before.
This is a huge Bumphead Parrotfish
Strange long spiny sea urchins were everywhere.
Looking down at my feet and
then up at the Panga.
One last selfie before reluctantly climbing back into the Panga. Sigh, when would I get to go snorkeling in such waters again??
After lunch and siesta, which several of us spent on the top deck this time, luxuriating in our last full day of warmth and sunshine before the return to what we suspected were still very cold and unpleasant northern climes, it was time to dress for our trip into town!! We hopped the Pangas for the short ride through all of the sailboats to the bustling dock. It was full of people with surfboards, scuba bags and luggage waiting for the water taxis to take them to the airport. Small planes fly people to and from Isla Isabela from Seymour Airport on Baltra. The area is very popular with surfers, wind surfers, divers and hikers.
As a result, Puerta Villamil has very much a youthful surf culture kind of vibe with many bars lining the main street, and clusters of dive and surf outfitters nestled among them. There is a lot of government money going into Puerta Villamil, and there was much construction and improvement work going on all over. It reminded me in many ways of our old Isola Tremiti haunt, San Domino. I could very happily have stayed there for a few days! One of my favorite spots in the city was the wonderful church. I have been in many churches through my travels this year, but this one was my absolute favorite of them all!
Before we could wander about town, we boarded a small bus that Hanzel had arranged to take us to the wonderful Galapagos Tortoise center. We toured the facility and meet the friendly fellow who is proudly in charge of helping these magnificent creatures regain footing in the islands after having their numbers so reduced by pirates and other seagoing peoples through the years.
We apologized to these two, but we just had to watch.
She needed a snack after that ordeal.
But one of these cuties will be the result of all that effort. This little fellow is one month old, and he will probably live happily to well over 100 years of age!
These 7 and 8 year olds are ready to be released into the wild sometime later this year.
After we left the center, we took a beautiful nature walk through two lagoons full of birds into the town itself. We saw Flamingos, Oyster Catchers, Whimbrels, Warblers, Darwin Finches and many more as we walked along.
A few Flamingos enjoying their snacks.
And then, we knew we were back in civilization..
Hanzel had told us not to miss the church, Iglesia di Cristos Navidad, so we went there before stopping at a bar on the beach for a tall, cold Pilsener.
The stained glass windows featuring Galapagos birds instead of Saints and
Jesus happily rising over the Pacific Ocean instead of hanging bleeding upon a cross
made this light filled and cool oasis a breath of fresh air after the gilded Baroque we had seen in Quito, Austria, Germany and France this year. The floor of this church was the cleanest, whitest tile I have ever seen. Don't know how they keep it that way with all of the dirt streets in town, but it is evident that the townspeople take great pride in their church. I just loved it in there!
Street view leading to the church from the beach.
Dos Chicas and two long, tall, cold ones! Salute!!
Hanging at the Bar Las Brisas with Mario, Jorge, a young German couple on their honeymoon who were in deep conversation with our German speakers, Pete and Marlene.
Gazing out toward the Tip Top II in the shirt that says it all. Remember the commercial during the Super Bowl?
We stayed so long on shore that we had a sunset to look at on our Panga ride back to the boat.
Cocktail hour and dinner tonight were bittersweet as we bade a fond farewell to our crew of the week and received our last briefing from Hanzel all about our departure plan.
Left to right - Juan, Jorge, Mario, Carlos, Javier and Jacinto
We would be sailing overnight to Puerto Aroya on Isla Santa Cruz where we would disembark for the overland trip up and over that island to Baltra and the airport. The time had come to settle the bar bills, get packed and start to think about reentry into the real world. Our time in this amazing natural paradise was rapidly coming to an end, but it had been truly magnificent in every possible way!
The crossing from Isla Isabela promised to be another rough one due to the open Pacific section we would be traversing so everyone again went to their cabins immediately after dinner. I put on my pajamas but decided that I just had to stay outside for a little longer tonight. It was simply too beautiful and warm an evening. I went back up to the covered deck and pulled a chair over to the bench seat. I put my feet up and just sat there watching the lights of Puerta Villamil fade in the distance as our trusty little ship headed into the open sea. I stayed out for a least an hour and a half until my eyes began to close, and I knew it was time to head downstairs to bed.
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