On our final day in the Galapagos we woke up early, 0630, as the Captain of the Evolution was going to be maneuvering around one of the most well known sites in the archipelago, Kicker Rock. The island got it’s name from the fact it looks like a boot.
After getting on deck Fletcher pointed out all of these Frigate Birds catching a ride on the yacht’s rigging.
The view of Kicker Rock from the other side.
I took some photos of the interior spaces of the Evolution, as my friend Casey was interested in seeing more of the yacht. This is the dining room. We only ate in here about 30% of the time. The rest of the time was spent dining alfresco on the stern.
This interior passageway connected the dining room with the reception desk and the lecture area.
This is the lecture area, where we watched various videos and received daily briefings on what to expect for the next day.
All in all the ship was very comfortable, the food was quite good on most nights, and the crew was super friendly. It’s obvious they love their jobs!
I wanted to give a quick shout out to the “All-Stars” of the crew. First up was the naturalists:
Bolo – He’s the lead naturalist, and for good reason. He’s been doing this longer than anybody, and he was a walking encyclopedia of information, as were all the naturalists.
Diego – He’s an expert photographer and diver. Very passionate about his work and he speaks perfect English. If you want somebody to take your photo, Diego is the guy!
Gabby – She’s super into her job, and loves to mimic animal movements and make animal sounds, even though every animal sound she made was almost identical to the other animal sounds. She was very funny, and a joy to be around.
My other top crew member was our Cruise Director, Steve. He communicated very well and seemed to be everywhere on the ship…serving meals, working at the bar, whatever was needed. No matter the situation, he was always upbeat and friendly. He’s also the funniest guy on the ship, cracking jokes all the time. An expert bar tender, if you are on a cruise with him make sure you get him to make your drinks…as he has a free flowing hand with the cocktails. Yum!
The above is not to say the rest of the crew wasn’t great…they were! I’m just saying that as a former manager, if I was to evaluate the crew overall, these 4 would get my “Outstanding” reviews. Most everybody else would be “Exceeds Expectations”. If you plan to visit the Galapagos, I highly recommend using Quasar Expeditions! With everything that’s happened on this trip, they have truly been excellent to work with.
Here’s a shot of the Evolution pulling into San Cristobal. It seems there is a bird in nearly every shot in the Galapagos!
We walked around the little seaside town for a half hour. The waterfront is absolutely filled with sea lions! Are the locals feeding them? They sure seem to be sleeping something off.
One last video of sea lions on the waterfront.
I found it funny that they arranged a bus for a 2 minute ride to the airport….not sure why we didn’t just walk! This is San Cristobal upon departure, and my last photo of the Galapagos Islands, as we were in the clouds about 3 seconds after I took this.
On the way to Quito we passed this volcano with the peak rising above the clouds. This is Chimborazo, the highest mountain in Ecuador, at 20,548 feet! I’m not going to cheat like a Harvard President, so this next sentence is from Wikipedia (see how easy that was Claudine?)
“Despite not being the tallest mountain in the Andes or on Earth, its summit holds the distinction of being the farthest point on Earth’s surface from the Earth’s center, due to its location along the planet’s equatorial bulge.” Pretty cool fact!
Up next, we finally get to see Colonial Quito.