Day 402 – Santa Cruz to Isabela
Island Hopping
Today was our last day in Santa Cruz. The ferry from the Island of Santa Cruz to Isabela Island was at 1pm. Since we had the first half of the day free, we packed our bags and left them at the accommodation, Best Hostel Galapagos.
Taxi Tour of Santa Cruz
We decided to walk around town to find a taxi to see some of the inland sights. We negotiated with a few taxi drivers and eventually settled on a price of $40 USD ($59.52 AUD). This included travel to Los Gemelos, Lava tunnels, Tortoise Ranch (Rancho Primicias), return to pick up our bags from the hotel before getting dropped off at the pier.
Los Gemelos
The first stop was Los Gemelos (aka The Twins), which became surrounded by a thick fog as we approached. The taxi driver dropped us off and told us where to go. The twins are not volcanic crates, but they were made by lava. Lava flowing underground weakened the ground which eventually collapsed.
Around the Twins, there is a nice walk through a forest. The fog was very thick so we couldn’t even see the opposite side of the craters. The walk took less than 30 minutes.
Lava Tunnel
From the Twins, we went to some lava tunnels. Here we were dropped off at one end of the tunnel and the taxi driver would meet us at the other end.
We descended the steps into the lava tunnel. The tunnel was really large and long. You could easily drive a car down the tunnel. After a few hundred metres, there is a point that we needed to crawl. On the other side, the tunnel continued and was slightly narrower but a lot taller than before.
There are several lava tunnels in the area. We really enjoyed the one our taxi driver took us to.
Tortoise Ranch
Close to the lava tunnels is the tortoise Ranch, Rancho Primicias. The entrance here is $5 USD ($7.44 AUD) per person (p/p).
I’m not sure why they have tortoises here, but there were heaps of the giant animals. They move so slow and it almost felt like therapy, watching the tortoises do their thing in slow motion.
Most of the tortoises were concentrated in the mud pools throughout the ranch.
Afterwards, we headed back to Puerto Ayora to pick up our bags from the hostel. Finally we were dropped off at the pier.
Sine we still had some time before our ferry ride, we left our bags at the ferry ticket shop (close to the supermarket). We had purchased the tickets yesterday for $25 USD ($37.21 AUD) p/p.
At Fish Fry Street, we had another delicious and cheap lunch, before we purchased ice cream cones for $1 USD ($1.49 AUD) from a corner store.
Nymphs Lagoon
After lunch we walked to Nymphs Lagoon (‘Laguna de las Ninfas’ in Spanish). It was closed for maintenance. Therefore, we headed back to a restaurant near the pier for coffee as we waited.
Getting to Isabela Island
There was an immigration like check at the pier. No fruits were allowed and shoes must be clean. An additional $0.50 ($0.74 AUD) p/p was required for the little boat to take us to the larger ferry. The ferry ride was bumpy due to the waves and it took 2 hours.
Close to Isabela Island, we had to get into another small boat. This cost $1 USD ($1.49 AUD) p/p. Then there is a Council Tax of $10 USD ($14.88 AUD) p/p.
Isabela Island
At the pier we could see heaps of sea lions and black marine iguanas on the pathways and beaches. We decided to walk the 1km to the accommodation, Punta Arena, past the quiet streets.
The hotel was really nice and clean. There is a massive common area and kitchen.
We decided to walk around town looking for bicycle rentals. We ended up in the main Plaza and ate pizza nearby.
Inside the Church
