Fishing off the Dock

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Part of the daily routine involves at least one swim session in the lake to cool off from the day's heat. There is pier and dive platform and the water is cool and refreshing below a warm surface layer. After a couple days of swimming, our guide Daniel asks if we would like to go piranha fishing off the pier. This is not a complete surprise because our orientation did explain that there were piranhas in the lake, but that the local species was "mostly" vegetarians. So several of us try our hand but are a little surprised when the bait turns out to be raw meat! 

All of the piranhas that we catch are about the size of my hand - too small to eat, and are released back to the lake. I did swim one more time later in the day, but it was a very quick dip.

Above the Canopy

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Much of what we do here has to be either by canoe or by hiking on trails through the forest. The only access is by a mile long trail from the river and then by canoe across the lake. One feature here however is unique and that is the series of steel towers and suspended walkways high above the forest canopy. I'm talking 150 feet above the ground, giving unobstructed views into the activity in the treetops. In the late afternoon, as the temperature cools a little, birds become more active, although a group of howler monkeys are still napping at the top of a tree over 10 stories in the air. Between three towers are walkways with rope handrails and mesh sides, in my mind only slightly more stable than an Indiana Jones bridge.

In fact, my reaction to the height is a little stronger than I had anticipated - more precisely, I am petrified.

Something about having air on five sides of you, so I look down at the walkway and concentrate on breathing. On the towers where we spend time viewing, I am much less freaked out and can enjoy the sunset. Down from the towers, we hike about a mile back to the lodge in growing darkness and the forest is alive with the sound of cicadas - really loud cicadas. Along the way we see flying click beetles that glow like fireflies.

To the Rainforest

Monday, January 24, 2011

We fly from Quito (at 9,200 ft) to Coca (at 900 ft in the Amazon basin). That involves gaining altitude for about ten minutes to get out of Quito and then descending out of the Andes all the way to hot, sticky Coca which an oil town that is on the Rio Napo. The Napo is a tributary of a tributary of the Amazon, but it is still a half mile wide and three thousand miles from the sea.

We are going to Sacha Lodge which is a two hour, high speed boat ride downriver in a needle shaped boat that throws a high spray wake. There is a driver at the outboard in the rear, and a spotter at the bow, looking out for sandbars or floating debris in the coco colored water. The lodge is set back from a small lake and access is only by a 1 mile hike from the river followed by canoe across the lake.

Otavalo Market

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Back from the Galapagos, we head north to Otavalo, a region with a strong indigenous culture. The Otavalenos were conquered by the Inca empire in the 1500's, and then by the Spanish about 50 years later - bad luck. But before, during and after all the conquering, they have maintained strong traditions. The market in Otavalo is the big draw for locals and tourists alike. Friday morning at the animal market is organized chaos. pigs, chickens, cows, guinea pigs (favorite food), and people wander the field where the market is set up.

Food vendors are selling their goods and a man is selling dishware out of the back of a truck - giving a sales pitch with amplified microphone. There is even an black voodoo witch doctor selling potions. The food market is a short walk away, stretching for many blocks with a wild variety of local foods, fruit and grains. The arts and crafts market is a bit further on, with hundreds of small stalls selling items for visitors. Prices are low and much to choose from. Perhaps the high point of the two days is not the market, but visits to a musician and his family to see traditional instruments made. Next day a local weaver demonstrates traditional techniques. It is all very wonderful.

Tip Top III

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Our ship is owned by the Wittmer family who were early settlers to these islands. Rolf Wittmer's parents arrived on Floreana Island from Germany in 1933 and Rolf was born shortly after IN A CAVE. At that time there were about 8 people living on that island. Our crew on the Tip Top III are all local Ecuadorians. Captain is Washington, First Mate and panga driver is Fernando, other panga driver is Israel, cook is named Wellington, cooks helper is Jonathan, ship's engineer is Julio, and Polo takes care of the bar and dining area. Pepe, our naturalist guide is the only one who is fluent in English, but crew and guests all get by with Spanglish. We get used to the daily routine.

I am here with my early coffee at 6:15, and we are anchored in calm seas off Ferandina Island at the beginning of our last full day in the islands. Polo is taking orders for eggs and most of our group is up and chatting before our 6:30 breakfast. Always juice and fresh fruit for breakfast. Out one window Sally notices a striated heron on the ship's rail. In a little while we will go on shore for a walk at a large sea iguana colony, this afternoon we will swim. We swam every day except one - sometimes off the pangas in deep water; sometimes from a beach.

Rolf Wittmer and Michael

Why We Came

Thursday, January 20, 2011

One of the reasons people come here is to experience the odd animal life that thrives in isolation. Darwin when he came here realized that there was something unusual about the place, but it took him some time to formulate the evolution theory that made all the fuss.

Post Office Bay and The Devil's Crown

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

We wake up off Floreana Island in Post Office Bay. The Island has been a informal communication for hundreds of years. Ships established a drop point for mail and messages in a barrel, ensured that another ship would be able to carry the packages if they were headed in the right direction. The tradition continues with visitors today personally delivering postcards so we land and visit the site and I drop off some cards and pick up some that I hope to get deliver ed to Jacksonville Oregon and Asheville North Carolina with help from friends. They don't know about that yet. 

Later we head off the boat in pangas for a deep water snorkel off the Devil's Crown, a volcanic outcropping offshore. It is a drift dive, with the current carrying us along the underwater wall and pick up by the pangas at the end. Great stuff to see, and Michael takes some wonderful video of a playful sea lion who interacts with us.

Galapagos Islands

Monday, January 17, 2011

Last night was a bit of a bumpy ride as we motored during the dark to a remote island with a large bird population. In fact, I think Pepe says the largest booby colony on earth. We wake up in a crescent shaped volcanic caldera - water over a thousand feet deep with cliff walls all around. After breakfast we land on a small sandy beach for a walk and close looks at the birds. I've always heard that the animals on the Galapagos have no fear of humans, and the walk is like a tour of someone's house. It's possible to walk right up to nesting birds without interfering in their activities, and spend time watching their behavior. Red footed boobies perch in trees - odd to see with their webbed feet. And they are really red. Yellow-crowned night herons, magnificent frigate birds, red billed tropicbirds, swallow-tailed gulls,

and Nazca boobies - you've got to love the names. The snorkel dive later is along the cliff face that plunges into the water and continues down. The water is a little cloudy, but the setting is wild and the water is warm. Sea lions slip into the water from the rocks on the cliff and swim with us.

Sombrero China = Chinese Hat

Peaceful night's sleep and good spirits in the morning. A shore visit gives a good overview of the islands' animal life.Our boat has an onboard naturalist guide who explains what we are seeing. Galapagos sea lions, Galapagos hawk, a lot of other species found only here due to the isolation of the place.

I understand they are now trying to be a bit more imaginative when naming species here but Michael . Back on board I change into wetsuit gear, and we all take pangas to a snorkel site along the lava shore with a riot of fish as well as rays, reef sharks, marine iguanas, and curious sea lions.

We come back on board and the energy level is way high after the amazing morning. In the afternoon, the boat moves to an iconic spot at Bartolome Island. This is the picture postcard spot and we anchor sharing the cove with several boats. A tall volcanic peak is familiar as one of the locals from the "Master and Commander" movie.

 

We climb to the top for the exercise and the view and are not disappointed. Each day is well scripted by Pepe and the boat crew and it seems as if there will be two morning and two afternoon "activities" each day. Still plenty of time to unwind at the end of the day before dinner and an early bed.

Galapagos - Baltra and Santa Cruz Island

Friday, January 14, 2011

We land at Baltra island, a WW II US military base and our boat waits at the end of a five minute drive. Sea lions and sea iguanas are greeting us the wharf as we wait for our panga ride out to the boat. In no time at all we are under way to a nearby mangrove bay to look for sea turtles from our two pangas. In a little while we cut the outboard motors as the pangas work their way into increasingly narrow channel and our 'driver', Israel,

takes out a single oar to navigate the twisting channel. Michael asks all of us for a quiet time of about five minutes to appreciate the surroundings so both boats fall silent. I hear only the swoosh if Israel's oar as he gently pulls us forward. Then the soft exhale as a sea turtle surfaces, swimming towards us. Soon the rustle of mangrove branches as a lava heron picks its way along the tideline. Little sounds seem magnified by our solitude. The quiet time puts all in a tranquil frame of mind, and takes away some of my first day apprehension - putting me in the hear and now.
  

Back on the boat, the group is pretty subdued , I think there is a concern about seasickness and nobody is drinking before they get their sea-legs. There are, in fact, one or two green faces as we get underway to our evening anchorage.

Around Quito

Quito is proud of being the center of the Earth, literally. We drove a bit north during our city tour today and visited the monument on the equator that commemorates the scientific verification of the equator's location in 1744, by Europeans who thought this would be the best place to do it (no jungles). Being here at zero latitude and at 9,200 ft makes for some interesting effects. The sun is intense - overhead quickly and bright clear sky combine - tropics in the mountains. What time does the sun come up? 6:00. What time does the sun go down? 6:00. Every day, all year long. The altitude makes this a constant springtime with pleasant weather all year. We get to the equator monument and find out that the elevator is out of order. No, someone corrects that to say it is just not working and closed for maintenance. So, most of us walk the nine flights for the view. It was not as tough as I thought, but I know all day long that the altitude is affecting me. A little buzzed with a slight headache.

Quito is a large city; 45 miles long, but skinny "like a worm" due to the limits of the mountains on both sides. Active volcanoes in the distance. Wonderful old section of the city with an insanely gilded cathedral interior. Alas, no pictures permitted.

Michael just had to hula hoop

Got to run out to dinner with our group - sixteen travelers. Packing tonight and off for Galapagos early am, and I fear no internet for a week. I will survive.

Ecuador Trip Planning

There is just about a week before I leave, and I think I am in pretty good shape with my plans. Weather looks to have some rain pretty much wherever we go, and we will be from sea level to 9,200 feet, so there will be a lot of temperature variation and clothing covers all possibilities. Just went to the chiropractor, also got prescriptions filled and bought Peet's coffee for the trip. Ecuador uses dollars as its official currency, so that's nice. Electrical plugs are the same as US - also very nice.

As always, I have fretted over what equipment to bring along on a trip. It seems like I always rethink what to bring along. I am now back to using the larger camera, with a waterproof point-and shoot as a backup and for underwater pics. New 7" tablet computer is a lot lighter than what I had used before. The tablet does have a few limitations, but I can work with them (I hope). This time, I will try something new and 'geo tag" photos with exact GPS coordinates using a little Sony device. That should help me keep track of where I took them. Charging batteries today for all this stuff.

• PENTAX K-7 SLR CAMERA
• LENSES: 100MM MACRO / 12-24MM ZOOM / 16-45MM ZOOM / 55-300MM ZOOM
• SONY GPS LOGGER
• PENTAX OPTIO W90 WATERPROOF CAMERA
  
• SAMSUNG GALAXY TAB COMPUTER
• BLUETOOTH KEYBOARD
• BLUETOOTH HEADPHONES
• BLUETOOTH TRAVEL SPEAKER
• BACKBERRY 9700 CELLPHONE
• AA BATTERY CHARGER
• USB CHARGE WALL ADAPTER

I Couldn't Make This UP

In doing some pre-trip research, I came across the flag of Ecuador which displays a handsome, but strangely intricate coat of arms that made me go right to Wikipedia, and so I quote:

"In the background of the oval shield is the mount Chimborazo, while the river originating from its base represents the Guayas. They both symbolize the beauty and wealth of the respective regions (Sierra or Costa). The ship on the river is named Guayas as well. In 1841 it was built in Guayaquil Caduceus representing trade and economy. On top a golden sun surrounded by the astrological signs for Aries, Taurus, Gemini and Cancer representing the months March to July to symbolize the duration of the March Revolution of 1845 and was the first seaworthy steamship built on the South American west coast."

(gasp)

"The condor on top of the shield stretches his wings to symbolize power, greatness and strength of Ecuador. The shield is flanked by four flags of Ecuador. The laurel on the left represents the victories of the republic. The palm leaf on the right side is a symbol of the martyrs of the fight for independence and liberty. The Fasces below the shield represents the republican dignity."

By the way, here's what we know about the three stripes on the flag:

"The flag retains the three main colors of the banner of Gran Columbia, the South American republic that broke up in 1830; the yellow color represents sunshine, grain, and mineral wealth, blue the sky, sea, and rivers, and red the blood of patriots spilled in the struggle for freedom and justice."

(When I was a school kid I thought that drawing the Stars and Stripes was challenging - counting stripes and whatnot. We are SO lucky.)