Galapagos Islands Tourist Information

Galapagos Islands

After marveling at the spectacular view from atop the volcano on Bartolome Island, we were ready to cool off in the Pacific Ocean. A blond-haired boy was the first to plunge into the clear water. When his head bobbed up, we noticed a second nearby. But this one was chocolate brown and had long whiskers. For the next 10 minutes or so the boy and the sea lion pup romped in the surf, splashing and chasing one another, until the boy crawled exhausted onto the beach. The sea lion followed him, but soon realized the game was over and disappeared into deep water.

There aren't many places in the world where you can play tag with a sea lion. The Galapagos Islands are one of them, which explains why these islands 600 mi/970 km off the coast of Ecuador are so special. Their remoteness from other land masses and the absence of human settlements until the last century allowed their inhabitants to live without fear of most predators. As a result, the islands have an abundance of animals, birds and reptiles that are unafraid of human contact. In some cases, they actually seem to relish it.

The islands are best known as the home of giant tortoises that can weigh as much as 600 lb/272 kg. But you'll also see marine iguanas (they resemble small dragons), scarlet-breasted frigate birds, blue- and red-footed boobies, tiny penguins at home in the tropics and giant, graceful albatrosses. About 50% of the islands' species are found nowhere else on Earth.

Volcanic in origin, the archipelago has 13 larger and scores of lesser islands whose terrain is mostly stark and barren, save for a few cloud forests. The islands themselves are interesting geologically, though most people come to see their rare fauna and flora. One of their most famous visitors was Charles Darwin, whose five-month stay in the 1830s led him to note that some species of birds had changed as a result of their environment and evolved into a distinct species. From his observations came his famous book The Origin of Species and the theory of evolution.

These days most visitors see the islands as part of a cruise tour. On our most recent trip, we flew to the Galapagos from mainland Ecuador, then boarded our ship and spent the next seven days sailing to different islands. Small boats or pangas dropped us off on individual islands, where knowledgeable naturalists introduced us to the lifestyles and mating rituals of the native species. We swam and snorkeled at most sites, often accompanied by curious sea lions, sea turtles and an occasional penguin.

Wandering about on your own, though, is not allowed. Strict rules imposed by the Galapagos National Park require that all visitors be accompanied by licensed guides and that you stick to about 60 designated sites on the islands, most of which are uninhabited. You may walk only on marked trails, and you cannot touch or feed the animals - even allowing a bird to drink from a water bottle is forbidden to avoid making the animals the least bit dependent upon humans. As we soon discovered, however, some contact cannot be avoided: you'll be amazed at how close some of the animals will come to you. Darwin's famous finches landed on our shoulders and sea lions lounged next to us on the beach.

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