The Galapagos Islands - Los Alemanes, Bay Tour & La Loberia

Los Alemanes, Punta Estrada and La Loberia 
Feb 24 ' 10
Day 4


A free morning. Javier suggested we go "shopping". Galapagos wasn't the place for shopping! So we decided to spend the morning in 'La Playa de los Alemanes' - a local beach.

We hiked again down the main street that we knew so well by now. It was nice to leisurely walk down an "soak in" what we had been zipping past the last few days - the palms, the waterfront, the sea lions etc,


The Panga:

We were taking the "Panga" - A Water Taxi. in 2 days there would be a Tsunami alert after the Chile earthquake and our Panga driver would be all over youtube giving interviews <Link to Video> ( @ 3:25)

Thank god we have this picture of him!


We disembarkd, to be greeted by the ubiquitous iguana. <click> <click> <click>






Iguana Colony:
The hike was down the path to "Las Grietas", past an iguana colony. Why was this special? This was the first time i saw a 20-30 iguanas together. Some of them were over 2 feet in length! Got some interesting iguana shots.

Right past this colony was a boardwalk that took us to the beach.

What did we do all morning - Some Tried learning how to swim and some swam,

some of us took some silly pics in the water ,

all of us watched saw an iguana transition from land-> water.

La Playa de Los Alemanes:
Are you an activity seeker ? - Not for you
Are you a chill-on-the-beach-sipping-margarita person ? - Not for you
You have nothing to do and do not want to shop? - Perhaps





Bay Tour of Santa Cruz:
The boat was supposed to take off at 2:00, but we got delayed by an hour.
Our Guide: Gandhi ( No, he was Ecuadorian )
Travel Mates: 
1. This super sporty couple from Colorado. Tori - i think is a fish. I am not sure she is human.
2. Romanian lady who claimed she could communicate with sea lions.

Where the Sharks rest:

We hiked over red soil and groves of opuntia cactii to a little lagoon where white tipped reef sharks rest during the day. While hiking down, the group got really excited about seeing a caterpillar. One of the ladies exclaimed " it's that thing that becomes a butterfly!". Despite having grown up with tons these thriving in my aunts backyard , i should mention, i clicked pictures of it. Mob Mentality , i think.

It was a little cloudy and the water was not clear enough for us to see through. I highly recommend a pair of polarized sun glasses for this - it really helps!But we did get some spectacular views of puerto ayora.

Iguana on the rocks:

A short hike further down took us to a rocky beach with black lava rocks where there was another iguana colony. A fearless bunch. We got quite close to some of them to get some shots.

Here is sunil getting up-close and the shot that he got!

Punta Estrada:

We had to get to it by boat and got delayed by an unexpected obstacle on the jetty.
A Sea lion peacefully lying down. When he saw the crowd, he looked suspiciously

Soon after he was driven off. He splashed back into the water and gave us its innocent "poor me" look

That's when i think it realized that it had an audience. So it splashed back on its back and gave us an sleek-swimmer performance.

Punta Estrada is a great spot for snorkeling. It's right at the mouth of a "crack". We saw some pelicans and Frigate birds in the vicinity. You can actually see a hint of its red pouch in this picture.

For the first time we saw some green sea turtles. This place was slightly rougher for me, with water crashing against the rocks just 20 feet away. But it was scary by no means. The water was between 20-30ft deep. It works for me, so long as i can see the bottom.

La Loberia

It's a beach that's an 15-20 min boat ride from Punta Estrada. on the way back, we did catch a glimpse of the the jetty-sea lion. He was back to where he was. (How did he climb up there?)

One of the highlights here is snorkeling with sea lions. But when Gandhi said the words "some of these could bite", i decided to stay on the boat. Prashant told me that it was quite rough and that he couldn't see the ocean floor. That validated my decision to stay back.

The Romanian lady kept us company by trying to communicate with the sea lions. ( i have a video which i shall upload shortly, it's hilarious). After failing to elicit as much as a turn of the head, she decided they didn't understand her accent.

That was the end of the day.

In retrospect, i think i would have preferred to go to Floreana or North Seymour with a guide like David ( from yesterdays trip to Santa Fe) . But those who swam in La Loberia too disagree.

My Tip:

If you plan a land-based trip to the Galapagos Islands. Keep a whole day vacant. You may not be able to get all the tours you want initially, but cancellations always happen and these last-minute deals are always the best you can find. So use that day to take advantage of these and make your trip even more satisfying.