San Cristobal Island

My journey to San Cristobal in the Galápagos Islands brought me face to face with incredible animals in their natural habitat - the famous Blue Footed Booby resting on lava rocks, Giant Tortoises cooling off in shrubs, massive Marine Iguanas sunning on the beach, and baby Sea Lions so friendly they played with me when I was snorkeling.

GETTING THERE

San Cristobal Island is nestled in the Pacific Ocean, off South America. San Cristobal Airport SCY is one of the two major airports in the Galapagos. Flights arrive from mainland Ecuador, Quito UIO and Guayaquil GYE. Visitors can also ferry in from other islands in the Galapagos chain. I took a two hour flight from Guayaquil to San Cristobal. The view arriving in the islands was spectacular and the airport was conveniently located on the coast just a mile from town.

AMAZING EXCURSIONS

The main town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno was near the bay where renowned British naturalist & biologist Charles Darwin first went ashore in the 1800’s and started to hone his theory of evolution. The seaside town paid homage to him in many ways, with monuments, streets, and businesses named after him. Rental cars were not allowed, so there were land tours focusing on the southern side of the island, called the Highlands, and boat tours to the rugged coast along the northern side.

I hiked to a beautiful hidden beach, Playa Punta Carola, which was also a nesting spot for the dark colored, large Marine Iguanas. The cove had a long white sand beach with volcanic rock on the both sides and lush green foliage rimming the shoreline. The huge iguanas were everywhere - on the sand, in the water, in the bushes and sunning themselves on rocks. These big iguanas were about three foot long and their faces looked practically prehistoric! They were the only iguanas in the world adapted to live on the land and in the sea! There were also a lot of cute baby Galapagos Sea Lions in the cove and they were very playful. They came up to me while I was snorkeling and swam circles around me. It was here that I saw my first Galapagos Island Blue Footed Booby. I had to carefully climb through sharp lava rocks to get a glimpse of the tall pear shaped bird resting on a cliff. I was far far away, but this first look inspired me to search for more elsewhere.

I took a day trip to Puerto Chino to try to find the Booby up close and see its distinctive, light blue colored feet. My guide dropped me at a trailhead and I hiked to the secluded beach, then scrambled up a hill of lava. At the top I came face to face with one Booby, scratching its head with its unusual, large blue feet, and preening its grey and white feathers. It looked me in the eye and went back to giving itself a clean. A second Booby was flying in the air, swooping down trying to catch a fish.

Not far away was La Galapaguera Giant Tortoise Reserve. I started walking the trails and soon saw a Giant Tortoise staying cool in the scrubs. It had a thick five foot long shell, leathery wrinkled skin, and legs about a foot long. I watched as he raised his long neck, looked me in the eye, did a big yawn, then took a nap. I found several other tortoises here, all protected and living in their natural habitat. They could live more than 100 years and many weighed well over 500 pounds.

I also hiked to the scenic viewpoint of Cerro Tijertas. Walkways made of wood & volcanic rock meandered through tall Cactus, lush green trees, and low laying scrubs. The area was home to Darwin Finches, and I saw many of them fluttering around. From the viewpoint I saw the stunning cove at Muelle Tijertas with sapphire blue water, lava walls and a small wooden dock with a stone walkway into the ocean. Sounds idyllic so I hiked down to it, but several sea lions were laying on the dock and one big boy was very territorial, showing his teeth and barking at anyone who tried to step foot on the dock. I watched a few people try to walk past him, unsuccessfully. I tried to climb lava rock around him but he rolled my way and gave me ‘the eye’ so I retreated. After about 15 mins of watching other people try and fail, all of a sudden the big boy got distracted chasing after another sea lion, they swam off together and about six of us seized the opportunity (took the risk) and jumped into the water. I will say the drama was worth it — I swam with a Galapagos Green Sea Turtle and I was surrounded by many schools of fish, some small and some huge. As I was floating around the big boy sea lion jumped back on the dock and literally chased a dozen people up the wooden staircase, yes honestly he galloped up about 10 feet. So I’m thinking, how on earth am I going to get out of here? Since big boy was up the stairs, I jumped out of the water and went on the dock, then climbed lava rocks like Spiderman to get above him!

Playa Mann was the closest beach to town, it was easy, busy, and fun with a couple restaurants and lots of sea lions. Large Frigate birds soared through the sky, their tail feathers had a trademark split down the middle and Pelicans mulled around hoping fishermen would come to port with their catch and share.

Not far from Playa Mann, I visited the Interpretation Center which had interesting exhibits on the island’s history, its plants, and the animals which called the Galápagos Islands their home.

On every road in town, simple family-run restaurants offered meals of fresh lobster, shrimp, and fish, all of it could be grilled, breaded or infused with a delicious coconut soup. All types of ceviche were also on the menu, along with many other seafood options.

There were quite a few different boat tours from San Cristobal. The popular 360 tour took visitors snorkeling with sharks at Kicker Rock and exploring Punta Pitt, where three types of Booby birds lived together. There were also many dive tours and day trips to Española Island, Floreana Island, Los Lobos Island and elsewhere.

With so much to see and do, San Cristobal could easily be a stand alone trip. But most visitors combined San Cristobal with voyages to other islands in the Galapagos chain, after all the entire area is a UNESO World Heritage Site. San Cristobal is usually the starting point or the ending point because it has a main airport. For me, it was a great beginning to my Galapagos journey, the first of several islands I visited.

My experience in San Cristobal exceeded my Galapagos hopes and dreams. I swam with baby sea lions, found the iconic Blue Footed Booby, hiked to secluded beaches to see marine iguanas breeding, and watched giant tortoises surrounded by nature. The trip gave me the thrill of the Galápagos Islands and filled me with excitement for more unique adventures to come on the other islands.