We left Quito early to catch our morning flight to Galapagos. Before even checking in our bags had to be scanned for any fresh fruits, seeds, nuts—anything that might be harmful to the environment here. They work hard to keep non-native species from even getting to the islands. With the ever increasing tourist industry, this is getting harder and harder to monitor. Before collecting our bags at the Galapagos airport, we watched a specially trained dog jump up on the conveyer belt and walk across every bag sniffing for who knows what. Any bag that the dog “flagged” got pulled from the belt for closer inspection. Thank goodness Kevin left the suitcase of beef jerky and sunflower seeds at home this time!
The airport is on Baltra, a small island on the north of the larger Santa Cruz Island. After meeting our guide, Eduardo, we took a short shuttle ride to a public boat taxi from Baltra to Santa Cruz. We then took an hour long bus ride across Santa Cruz island to Puerto Ayora harbor. The ship’s pangas (small rubber motorized boats) were waiting to transport us to the ship—the Tip Top II and our home for the next 8 days..
Once settled in we loaded back into the pangas for the short ride back to Puerto Ayora and the Charles Darwin Research Station. This is a breeding center for the giant tortoises operated by the National Park Service. They are working to ensure that the remaining tortoise populations endemic to the various islands survive. Of the six original species, four are now extinct. This was our first look at the giant creatures.
Of note is a mausoleum with Lonesome George who was the last remaining Pinta Island sub-species of the giant Galapagos tortoises. He was found on the Pinta island in 1971. Over 100 plus years old, they tried to cross-breed him for decades without success. Any eggs produced by his various partners were infertile. Finally, they decided to try artificial insemination by collecting George’s sperm. The day before they were to do the collection, the scientist’s visa who had been practicing for months to get the procedure right—as no one had ever tried to collect the sperm of a giant tortoise before—ran out and she was deported. Poor George died before she could get back and with him the last of his kind became extinct. Or so the story goes. He now is stuffed in a climate-controlled building dedicated solely to him. Like Lenin and Ho Chi Minn’s preserved bodies, you can stand for a brief moment and gaze upon this giant of a tortoise.
After George’s autopsy they discovered that his penis was too small and hence could not successfully impregnate any of the females he had been presented with over the years.
George’s successful successor is a 100+ year old tortoise named Diego who has now fathered over 800 offspring.
