May 3 – Isla Isabela

Puerto Villamil

Unbeknownst to us, our last day on Isla Isabela was to be "an adventure!" We woke in the picturesque harbor of Puerto Villamil surrounded by many other small boats.

"Woody"

The panga ferried us to shore where we all clambered aboard a real "woody"...an open air contraption, sort of resembling a bus, that was colorfully decorated with Galapagos wildlife.

We dropped Kay, Mariley and John (who opted out of the hike) at the Galapagos Tortoise Breeding Center where they proceeded to have a lovely, relaxing day including a private tour of the center by one of the biologists. They then ambled the Puerta del Jelí lagoon nature trail and strolled back to town to sip beer in an outdoor cafe. 

The rest of us continued in our "woody" up the mountain to the head of the trail that would take us to the rim of  the Caldera of Volcan Sierra Negro one of the largest calderas in the world.

The ride up the mountain was bouncy, but beautiful...flamingos in a quarry, white washed island buildings, lush greenery and banks of (....can't remember the name of those plants with the yellow flowers that I think are supposed to be the source of some narcotic).

On the trail

At the trail head we were met with cloudy, downright misty skies. After a quick stop at what passes for a "comfort station" we proceeded to follow Biti....UP and UP the muddy, gushy, slippery terrain.

Trail?

Bob at caldera

Eventually our trail became only barely recognizable.....mud holes separated by slippery hummocks that we prayed would hold us until we secured footing on the next one.

After about and hour and a half of this kind of fun we finally reached the overview of the caldera only to discover it was completely covered by mist and fog. But wait....by the time we caught our breath and collected ourselves, the fog had cleared and we were able to see one of the world's largest calderas. However, by the time Biti assembled us for a group photo to prove WE MADE IT, the fog had obscured the caldera again!

After about 15 minutes at the top we began the long, slow, and very wet hike down....rain pouring on us the whole time. Some of us fell on the way up, some fell on the way down, and everyone got very muddy.  But, by the time we were reunited with our "woody", we all felt we had conquered the elements and had a true adventure.

Before returning to the harbor we stopped at the Galapagos Breeding Center where recently two varieties of tortoises have been bred in captivity bringing them back from the brink of extinction. Kay, Marilee and John (the wise ones) received a private tour of the facility earlier in the day and were able to observe the breeding in action.


Back on board The Beagle the crew greeted the hikers with scrub brushes with which they proceeded to scrub feet and legs, even venturing up to our bums as Eva laughingly remembers! They confiscated our muddy clothes and shoes for laundry while we sat down to a very delayed but much enjoyed lunch.

The Beagle then began the long and very rocky navigation to Isla Santa Cruz. Some of us went below for a nap while others relaxed on deck. As the evening wore on, the seas worked themselves into such a state that when an equally delayed dinner was finally served the swells were so large that Triki gave up trying to set the table....the dishes, silverware and water pitchers were rolling so from one side of the table to the other.

But rocking seas and rolling tableware didn't deter us from having a fun final evening on board The Beagle. Pleasant conversation, humorous bantering abounded, as well as farewells to the crew and the beginnings of heartfelt goodbyes to fellow passengers.