This year’s journey to the enchanting Galápagos Islands offered many fascinating wildlife encounters and extraordinary nature experiences – both above and below the surface. Our guide Zet Freiburghaus has recently returned from the expedition and shares his experiences here in both text and images. He, like many of the travellers, agreed on one thing: The Galapagos Islands are a little paradise on Earth.
We have now landed on the Galapagos Islands! We step off the plane at Baltra Airport and begin our walk to the terminal, a stroll of about 200 meters. Before we even reach the terminal, we are greeted by a large land iguana. Shortly after collecting our luggage, we meet our local guides and hop on a bus to the nearest pier. From there, we take a Zodiac ride of about 10 minutes to our ship, Coral II.
We are served a well-prepared lunch as soon as we arrive, and we only have a few minutes to settle into our cabins before it’s time for the safety briefing and changing clothes for our first excursion to North Seymour Island.
At the landing site, we are greeted by Sally Lightfoot crabs – those typically red crabs that truly stand out against the black lava rocks. During the walk, we spot land iguanas, blue-footed boobies, frigatebirds with their red pouches, and sea lions.
Back on the boat, we barely have time to change before dinner is served. At 8 PM, we have a briefing on the next day’s activities. Everyone is excited, exhausted, and in bed by 9 PM.
Just back from a snorkeling session where we saw sharks, turtles, a ray, and – perhaps the most spectacular sight – millions of fish eggs!
n a bay where we snorkeled, a species of fish had just spawned, and we swam through a pink shimmer of fish eggs that moved like a magical Northern Light beneath the water.
A bit chilly when we returned to the boat, we barely had time to get dressed before hopping back into the Zodiacs. Suddenly, over 300 bottlenose dolphins approached, and we followed them as they played around us and surfed the waves created by our Zodiacs. It was an unforgettable encounter for everyone, and after landing, conversations bubbled with excitement as smiles stretched from ear to ear on all the expedition members.
We all agree – the Galapagos Islands are truly a little paradise on Earth.
