Galapaville!
We know it is no small thing for folks to travel right now. Even as the world emerges from COVID and more places open and people feel more free to leave home and venture around the country or world. Still, having friends and family meet us at different places throughout this year has been the BEST and I cannot thank those who have joined us enough. This definitely goes for the 11 people who came along on an 8 day 7 night cruise of the Galapagos.
Though I had done my research and picked what I thought would be a great ship and cruise itinerary, the fact that a month out no one had fully paid for their cruise, because the company was unresponsive and seemed to be in no hurry to take our money, made me very concerned I’d destined everyone to a week with a less than reputable company and a boat looking something like this…
Thankfully, the company was legit and the cruise was fantastic! The Galapagos Legend is one of the largest ships to cruise the Galapagos with a capacity of 100 passengers. We never had more than 85 passengers onboard and at one point were down to about 60 pax; this meant our group of 16 from Louisville made up about 25% of all pax onboard.
Our week was spent exploring the southeastern and northern most islands.
Our itinerary (this is the D+A route; B and C hit the western islands).
It is hard to explain all the wildlife and natural beauty we saw during our visits to the southeastern and northern islands of the archipelago made famous by Charles Darwin, who actually only spent 5 weeks there when he was 22 years old; still it informed his theory of evolution published over 20 years later.
In the water we swam with giant sea turtles, playful sea lions, sting rays, and even sharks (hammerhead, white tip, Galapagos, etc.). On land, we were shocked at how close we could get to tortoises, iguanas, birds of all kinds, and their baby chicks - frigates, finches, albatross, tropical birds, owls, and boobies. Yes, boobies…of the Red and blue footed variety. 😉 Each time we pulled up to a new island, we felt like we were stepping back in time or into a scene from a Jurassic Park movie!
Ben, Chad and I took one day off ship to dive Gordon’s Rock, famous for the mix of sharks and marine life. We were blown away when we found ourselves swimming among 30-40 hammerhead sharks. Even our guide screamed underwater with joy (or maybe terror) at the sight. We also got up close with a sea turtle and an eagle ray. Easily one of the most memorable (and deepest at almost 90ft) dives of our lives!
The boat was fabulous. Great food, spacious rooms, a fun crew and four excursions a day; usually, two land and two water/snorkel adventures. Though with a daily wake-up call at 6:30 or 7am most days, this was not a relaxation cruise. With so much to see in a relatively short amount of time, I totally understand and was happy to forgo a little sleep for the chance to see unique wildlife that only lives in this small part of the world.
Many thanks to our Galapaville crew: Ben’s mom and her friend Mona, our neighbors Erin and Cole (back with us for a third time!), Chad and Lauren (2nd time with us), their son Grayson, and Chad’s parents too, along with our friends Mary Ellen and Joel, for joining us! 💕
