We were 10 snorkelers gliding above tens of thousands of black-striped Salema fish. They stretched ahead of and behind us, seemingly endless. Every rock on the seabed 40 feet below was visible in the clear water. It felt like floating through a fish cathedral. Underwater, we heard the crackling sound of sea life going about its business. Above water, the retching noise of male sea lions reminding us who was boss of Champion Rock in the Galápagos Islands.
I was on a new four-night western Galápagos itinerary with Hurtigruten Expeditions. The Norwegian brand is best known for cold water cruising but expanded into the warmer Galápagos in 2022.
If the word “cruise” makes you think of casinos, nightlife, and a moving city at sea, know that expedition cruises are a different beast. The Santa Cruz II holds up to 90 passengers and is about getting outside and experiencing nature without sacrificing comfortable beds and upscale meals. As seasoned Hurtigruten guide Jhover Alvarez puts it, “Are the Galápagos for you? If you have a genuine interest in science. The thing is to understand what you’re looking at and the importance of conservation.”
Getting to know the islands
The Galápagos Islands are 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador and have been part of that country since 1832. Scientists estimate the oldest of these 127 volcanic islands to be around 4 million years old. They were formed by the Galapagos hotspot, part of the famous “Ring of Fire” around the Pacific Ocean. Magma came up through the Nazca plate, forming volcanoes. The volcanoes move with the plate, so subsequent eruptions through the hotspot formed more islands. Underwater volcanic activity is almost constant. “We are floating in an ocean of liquid rock,” Alvarez explained.
About 25,000 people live in the Galápagos, mostly concentrated in a few towns. Most of the islands are uninhabited and only reachable by boat.
Because of the area’s delicate ecology, the Galápagos strictly regulates visits. Ninety-seven percent of the land is a national park, and visitors must be with a licensed national park guide. You can fly into one of two airports in the islands and arrange tours on your own, or take the much cushier option of joining a cruise, where activities and permits are arranged for you.
Animals of the Galápagos
Africa has the Big 5 must-see animals. Guests of Hurtigruten Expeditions look for the Big 15. Since different animals live on different islands, you won’t see all of them unless you visit the right combination of places. On my short four-night cruise, I saw 12.
Galápagos wildlife watching takes place on land and in the water. Our activity choices included walks, rides in Zodiac boats, glass bottom boat rides, snorkeling, kayaking, and paddleboarding. On the more populated island of Santa Cruz, we also had a short bike ride.
The Zodiac boats, also called pangas, were great for animal sightings. At Punta Vicente Roca on the west side of Isabela Island, we saw six of the Big 15 — flightless cormorants, blue-footed boobies, Galápagos penguins, sea lions, marine iguanas, and fur seals — on a single panga ride. Plus lots of animals that didn’t make the cut, like pelicans, manta rays, sea turtles, and a bright orange wrasse. Don’t forget your sunscreen and water shoes for this action-packed tour.
Our walk at Punta Espinoza on Fernandina Island was a highlight for lizard lovers. The area is home to immense quantities of marine iguanas. The animals lay in vast formations of scaly glory, draped over each other on rocks, sometimes with a sharp-clawed arm around a neighbor like reptilian BFFs. These are some of the oldest animals in the Galápagos.
The theory is that the marine iguana’s ancestors floated over from mainland Ecuador on rafts of reeds millions of years ago. Lacking much to eat on the stark volcanic islands, they adapted to living on algae, diving underwater and scraping it off the rocks with their teeth. Most marine iguanas have evolved to be darker than other iguanas, “until the whole skin turns black and is working as a huge solar panel,” our Hurtigruten guide Daniel Moreano explained. This solar power is important, as marine iguanas can lose up to 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) of body heat in a single hour of algae foraging.
We also saw flamingos in several brackish spots around the Santa Cruz and Floreana islands. The lava really complements their pink.
Giant tortoise research
The Galápagos are famous for giant tortoises, so most visitors want to see these prehistoric relics. The Charles Darwin Research Station is the place to learn everything tortoise. This site has been essential for tortoise conservation and the repopulation of disappearing species. Workers hatch eggs in incubators, then number the hatchlings’ shells and color code them by island of origin. Giant tortoises are born with soft shells. The first few years are critical to their survival, as they’re easy prey for snakes, feral cats, and other hungry critters. A local exhibition center has more info on the center’s conservation programs and research.
Interesting as the science center is, a trip to the highlands of Santa Cruz to see wild tortoises is more exciting. As our bus approached Rancho Manzanillo, we saw tortoises in the fields, then on the sides of the road, then in the road. Our driver carefully navigated around them — not only would it be terrible to accidentally run over an endangered tortoise, but doing so carries a ruinous fine.
The tortoises roam freely on the land. Our Hurtigruten guide Veronica Sanchez told us about tortoise life as we examined the animals’ giant shells, elephant-like legs, and skull-like faces. If you get too close, they seem to be hissing, but Sanchez explained that’s just the noise they make drawing their head into their shells — like an airlock door. We also watched fascinatingly bizarre tortoise copulation. The much smaller females look squished and long-suffering as the males slowly thrust and grunt. “The females usually try to escape,” Sanchez said.
A long weekend cruise
Hurtigruten offers several Galápagos itineraries. I was on the new western loop. For people who dream of a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the Galápagos, four nights might be too short. You can choose a longer itinerary, or combine two cruises for nine nights, which many of my shipmates were doing. Or you can explore more of Ecuador by adding on a few days in Quito, or the Cloud Forest, or the many other special places in the country.
If you like outdoor activities, science, and wildlife, it’s hard to imagine a more perfect place than the Galápagos. As I paddleboarded in a calm turquoise bay watching sea lions leap and play, it really didn’t seem that life could get any better.
