Fantastic flight across to Isabela Island. Could see amazing patterns in the ocean..I'm guessing they were the result of the different currents.
Very exciting to see Tortuga Island come into view. Such a spectacular example of an eroded Caldera.
Crossing the southern coast the volcanic landscape was quite incredible to see from the air. So barren. Isabela is one of the younger islands in the archipelago and is the largest island (made up of 6
merging volcanos)
We land at Puerto Villamil . We pay $10 tax that goes toward maintaining the town.
A drive through the barren terrain in a minibus to our lovely hotel La Casa de Marita ..right on the beach.
We enjoy breakfast then after a short rest, we head out to walk through town to the Turtle breeding centre. It's hot.
We set off on a board walk that we share with Marine Iguanas
What delight to see these amazing flamingoes.
We eventually made our way to see the turtles..wonderful.
This guy reminded me of Bailey crawling...just went over the top of what was in his way..
We enjoyed a cool drink and a poke about in the air conditioned souvenir shop while we wait for transport back. Gretchen had a lovely chat in Spanish with the woman in the shop.
Tom and I took the back seats on the drive back to our hotel...was a fun and bumpy ride through town.
After checking into our rooms, we had lunch together.
One of the things I had trouble with in Ecuador was the toilet ettiquette. Toilet paper was not to be flushed but placed in a bin (often an open bin) next to the loo.
But I did like the Sewerage trucks..
Tom and I decided to walk about 15 mins to Concha la perla...a good snorkeling spot.
It was a hot walk..along a lava stone paved road.
Marine Iguanas are to be seen warming up in the sun.
We have to step over this guy..
Tom is in his element..
We take a look at the wharf and little beach and see lots of 'locals'.
It's a hot walk back.
Tom headed out to swim in the ocean out front of the hotel.
I join Gretchen and Jeb as they partake of their daily beer..we enjoy chatting about all sorts of things.
Such delightful happy people.
Tom and I take a walk into town for an ice cream ( 5 minutes walk).
We walk out to the Pier and watch locals jump off into the water. A young man jumps first, (and it is quite a jump) then counts for his girlfriend to jump. Tom and I have a good lesson in counting to 3 in Spanish...Uno Dos Tres...Uno Dos Tres.....Uno Dos Tres...still she does not jump. I speak to her friend in English and say I would not jump either...too scarey, She agrees with me.
Tom is stunned at the knocked together steps that go up to a viewing platform on the Pier.
Obviously no WHS regulations here.
I walked (Tom swam) back along the beach to our hotel . I have to call Tom out of the water so we can be ready to meet Gus in the lobby at 7pm.
We walk to a restaurant in town where we have BBQ chicken/fish/salad/ plantain followed by Vanilla Pudding.
Gus does a wrap up of the day's activities then gives us the plan to the next day.
9am start for Sierra Negra Volcano walk!! Slept like logs in our lovely room.
Next morning after breakie we are on the bus by 9am. We stop at a local hotel where we make up our own lunch pack from a selection set out on a long table.(cheeses/chicken/ham/tuna/salad/fruit box drinks/ chocolate bars/apples) One of the female staff is amused at how much Tom packs and has a bit of a giggle.
It is a 35 minute drive up to the volcano. It is a very hot morning. Gretchen considered not coming with us as she feels the heat badly. But she comes prepared with a reflective umbrella and ice water soaked towels and although a slow walker she does the whole distance.
We rest under the shade of this little tree before continuing on our 10mile round trip.
We drive back to our hotel and enjoy a shower and I have a bit of a snooze..while Tom has a swim out front. Then we take a walk into town to have a look about.
We asked the barman if he made any non-alcoholic drinks....and he said Si...pointing to the list 'alcohol sin' on the menu.. (I now know that Ãn Spanish sin means ''without'')
My Mocktail...no idea what is in it (except for the coconut) as I could not recognise any other Spanish words so I took a punt
We enjoy dinner.. if somewhat unusual presentation..
Tom has a Hamburger served on bread.I have a Fatja
We walk back to our hotel and crash for the night.
7.30am start for our trip to Los Tuneles and El Finado. We get a ute ride down to the wharf. We are sharing the boat with another group and they are about an hour late ...much to the distress of Gustavo.
Eventually we set out for the 45 minute boat ride to our first snorkel stop at Los Tuneles.
Los Tuneles is the most AMAZING place to snorkel.
We see fish, white tipped sharks , giant turtles and sea horses,
We get back on our boat and travel about 15 mins further to El Finado. We have a fast and furious ride surfing just behind breakers do we can get into the entrance of this enchanted place of underwater lava tunnels. We stop and snorkel again..finding lots of colourful fish and a ray.
Navigating the narrow and shallow waters of El finado is quite a challenge for our captain...
Our group is told to sit up front to balance the weight...and we certainly don't mind!!
What a fabulous view. We spot lots of fish and turtles in the clear water.
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We pull into a landing site and walk a short distance to see Blue footed Boobies. I am so thrilled to finally see them close up...such amazing and amusing birds.
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We head back to town and are just nearing the bay when we spot some Galapagos Penguins...very exciting to see them.
Tom and I rode in the back of the ute to our hotel
We have a brief rest then set out for Conch la Perla ...high tide again...but we have a lovely dip. There are 2 sealions on the bench and we delight in them.
We have a fresh coconut drink to cool us down on the hot walk back.
WE love this bus that picks up a tour group.
Tom heads to the surf and I have a sleep...
I meet Gretchen and Jeb downstairs and we enjoy a chat as we sit on the deck charis and watch the staff set up a swanky table.....turns out it is for us!!
A very special last night on Isabela.
Tomorrow it is a 5.30am pick up to go to our boat trip to Santa Cruz
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