Penguin in Bartalome

We woke up at 5:15/5:30 am. Thats early.

Our shuttle was picking us up at our place at 5:50am. Ty, my parents and I were out the door at 5:47 and our ride pulled up and the gentleman who booked our trip jumped out (the nice gentleman who didn't speak much English). Only the four of us were outside so we yelled for our companions to join us. "Ride's here!!" But sense there was only room for four per taxi, the gentleman assured us that he would wait there for the next taxi and the rest of the group so we jumped in and hoped that the rest would arrive after!

Our driver stopped the truck (white trucks are used as taxi's down there) and said something in Spanish which we all assumed meant "get out" or something similar in nicer language. So we hopped out, grabbed our stuff and met our Naturalist for the day. After a few minutes of waiting for the rest of our group and thinking each white truck would be them, they finally showed up and joined us and so we all went on to our tour bus.

The last of the (whole) group showed up right on time and off we went in our little bus. The Naturalist was telling us all that we would be doing for the day and also giving us a little history on the parts of Santa Cruz that we were driving through.  We played "rock or turtle" on the way and also took naps. It was still early.

We drove all the way to the canal between Santa Cruz and Baltra (where we came after we flew in) to catch our dingy to our catamaran for the day! The boat was beautiful. Perfect for our day trip to Bartalome. Once we all got our shoes off and ventured into the cabin, it smelled amazing. We were all able to sit together at one of the larger tables in the kitchen.

Breakfast included eggs, that and juice. It was delicious and I don't even enjoy eggs. We all inhaled our food since we did not have breakfast and had been up for two hours already. Then it was time to enjoy the boat.

Catamarans have lovely decks to enjoy and so we all went out to the front of the boat to relax. The water was almost like glass and the clouds dimmed the sun to a purplish color; it was incredible.

First we came to a small island, Daphne Mayor, where we checked out all the birds that lived there and our naturalist told us a story of a family that lived there for years (like 15+ years) to study the different species and see how they evolved over time. Thats dedication. We saw a blue footed booby and maaaaaybe a penguin in the water, but nobody got a good look at it.

After exploring the island, we had about an hour on the boat until we got to Bartalome. So, we took this time to relax on the front and many of us took naps. We also managed to spot some wildlife. We saw some turtles poking their heads out of the water to get some air, a sea lion who was surprised to see us cruising by and others saw some mantas jumping out of the water (I missed them all...). Also we watched some dolphins race towards the boat, turn around and then raced at the front. Its always a magical moment when you can experience that. They are so fast and smooth in the water! They jumped at the bow of the boat for a few minutes before bidding adieu and going on their way.

Then we arrived to the island of Bartalome. It was a stark island surrounded by blue waters. When we arrived, we noticed the huge swell that was hitting the rocks. Our guide mentioned that this swell was not normal for the area. We all got onto the dingy to get transported to the island and saw how the swell was making it very hard for boats to drop off and pick up passengers. The wave would go down below the last step and then sweep in and take up four steps. It would be a challenge and not to mention dangerous. After we watched one group struggle to get all its passengers back into their dingy (they were successful and we all cheered them!), we also watched one dingy give up "too dangerous" the guide said. We were determined though, so we took have of the group at a time. My group was first. Im not gonna lie, I was a little nervous. Big, crashing waves make me slightly uneasy.   Our driver timed the waves right and we started jumping off and most slid once we got to the stairs as they were covered in water and slick, but we made it! 

Then the next group. They were waiting for the waves and were all lined up and most of the boat got off and then a wave hit, bumped the boat up and a girl went flying headfirst towards the stairs. Our guide caught her and she was in the water up to her knees. Good thing she was light; our guide pulled her up and plopped her back onto the rocks. We all sucked in some air at that moment but it turned out ok! Just some wet feet.

We were all safely on land so we began our hike to the top of the island. It was a pretty steep climb and we stopped along the way to talk about the geology of the island which I found fascinating. Geology is one of my hidden passions thanks to my previous job in California (shoutout to Pathfinder!). We learned about how the crust moves and how the islands are slowly sinking as they pull away from the hot spot which is currently making some of the islands in the Galapagos still grow. Bartalome is not an active island anymore but it sure looks like a barren, lava wasteland. The only thing that grows here is a very small shrublike plant and cacti. 

The rocks here are so porous that they are very easy to lift. Our guide showed us this by making one of the kids hold a large rock over his head, then of course we all wanted to do that. (Look mom I have super strength!!)

Once we got to the top of the island, we saw one of the most photographed spots in the Galapagos. It was super windy up there but the blue water went on for forever and it was beautiful. 

After spending some time up top taking in the views, it was time to hike down and brave the dingy ride back to the boat. It went swimmingly or maybe not. Nobody went swimming, it was a success. 

On the boat it was time for snorkeling. I was actually able to get fins that were not adjustable and fit! So Ty dove and I jumped into the water to snorkel to land from the boat. Everyone else took the dingy to the beach and snorkeled from there. 

The water was really murky again because of the swell so we couldn't see much. Some fishes (lots of large parrotfish). Then I poked my head out of the water, the dingy was close by and the driver was pointing at the rocks. I looked and didnt see anything immediately but upon closer investigation saw a freeking PENGUIN just CHILLIN on the rocks!! A PENGUIN people!! It was low on the rocks near the water and as the swells came in and out, we got pushed closer with the water. The penguin was sitting with its beak slightly ajar and its flightless wings held away from its body. Every time it got splashed it would shake its head dry, otherwise it would stay very still. Ty and I were hoping it would jump in the water with us but it was content sunning on the rocks. I probably watched this penguin for 10 minutes and it hardly moved!

When we got back to the boat, it was time for another boat-made lunch! Everyone ate fish which they said was fantastic. I just ate rice with veggies with was also very delicious. After gorging on food, it was nap time. The ride back was bumpy but we still managed to lay around on the boat and try to avoid the strong sun.

Later that evening we made it back to the house and were wondering what we would do the next day so on our way to dinner, we stopped at our favorite travel agency to see what ideas our friend had. He greeted us all with smiles and I'Nity and I did our best to translate (but mostly I'Nity, that girl knows her stuff!). We were there for an hour thinking about different things we could do. I desperately wanted to see Flamingos and others wanted more snorkeling and exploring. In the end, we didnt book any trips and decided to explore more of the island on our last full day.

Dinner that night was at a Ecuadorian place that was absolutely delicious! We had, what felt like, a half hour introduction to the restaurant by the owner who was very nice and excited. They try to get all the ingredients locally (which we noticed at many places there) and tried to cook as traditionally as possible. So in other words, it was the hipster place of Ecuador lol. Everyone enjoyed their dishes, I think it was my favorite meal. My meal was all vegetarian but different from the traditional vegetarian foods and sooooo fantastic! We all left happy.

And not to mention, we all slept well that night too. A long exciting day will do that to you!