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ECUADOR GALAPAGOS NATIONAL PARK May 17 - 27, 2010 $4,995 Click here to go to Strabo Tours to register. |
| The Galapagos offer a way to magically step back in time, to visit an isolated, relatively untouched place where you can be at one with nature as nowhere else. Animals have no fear of humans--birds light on your arm, curious sea lions come to get acquainted, fur seals and penguins join you for a swim in the clear waters. The Galapagos offer a good example in which tourism has been instrumental in preserving a fragile island ecosystem. While island groups throughout the world have had their wildlife and habitat devastated, the Galapagos have yet to lose a single native species. Nature tourism and these islands are now interdependent, relying on each other for survival. |
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Itinerary: May 17: Home to Quito May 18: Ecuadorian Highlands--After breakfast your will drive up to the moorlands on the Northern slope of Pichincha Volcano, following the route of the hummingbird. Within thirty minutes your surroundings are transformed from the urban streets into lush greenery of the Ecuadorian highlands. The village of Nono is a small town where countryside people work at haciendas. In one of the country houses you will enjoy hiking possibilities and the chance to take photos of the beautiful scenery, hummingbirds, and Andean flowers. After lunch you depart to the Solar Museum of Intinan on the Equator, the museum is a small, privately-owned institution with fascinating exhibits on the indigenous awareness of the Equator.
May 20: South Plaza Island, Santa Fe Island--Sea lions, land iguanas, tropicbirds, frigate birds, blue-footed and masked boobies. Snorkeling is an option. May 21: Espanola (Hood) Island--Sea lions, 5 species of nesting sea birds including waved albatrosses, Galapagos hawks, marine iguanas and lava lizards. Snorkeling is an option. May 22: Floreana Island--Flamingos, stilts & other wading birds, boobies, pelicans, frigate birds, tropicbirds, brown noddies and Audubon shearwaters, sea lions. Snorkeling is an option. May 23: Darwin Research Station, Santa Cruz Island--Giant tortoises and collapsed volcanic cones filled with lush vegetation. May 24: Barranco/Darwin Bay--We'll be taking several trails that lead through seabird colonies where we'll see boobies, frigate birds, tropicbirds, swallow-tailed gulls and storm petrels. May 25: Santiago/Bartolome Island--Fur seals, flamingos, Galapagos hawks, vermillion flycatchers and the famous finches. Snorkeling with Galapagos penguins is a possibility here. May 26: North Seymour/Baltra to Quito--Farewell dinner. May 27: Quito to Home |
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| To see images from the last Galapagos Tour, click here. |