The Evolution of Cruising. Silver Origin to the Galapagos Islands

[twangster]

It didn't take long to begin to see some marine life.

From here we board zodiacs for the ride out to the ship.

They can only accommodate one zodiac arriving at a time followed by the check in process so we took a tour of the harbor while waiting our turn to arrive to the ship.

[twangster]

Radio chatter gave us permission to proceed so away we went to catch our first glimpse of the Silver Origin.

Our guide points out a Blue Footed Booby near us.

 

A glass of sparkling wine was waiting for us.

After a brief wait to check in it was up to lunch.  Not a bad lunch view...

 

 

[WAAAYTOOO]

How exciting !  Enjoy it all.

[AlmondFarmer]

3 hours ago, twangster said:

along comes a giant centipede measuring about six inches long.

How many feet did it have?

[twangster]

Basic internet is included and the Silver Origin has Starlink internet service.

A look back at the harbor.

Kicker Rock in the distance.

How the island looks from the sea,

At 3:30pm our suites were ready.

I'm staying in a Classic Balcony cabin.   Walking into the cabin the bathroom is on the left and a walk in closet is on the right.

The bathroom.

A sliding mirror panel allows you to see through the balcony door to the sea or it can be closed for privacy.

This cabin connects to the suite forward and the connecting door is in the walk in closet which can be closed off with a set of sliding mirror doors.

The balcony.

A bottle of Prosecco was waiting for me on ice. 

[twangster]

At 4:30pm we had the mandatory safety briefing.  We had been instructed a number of times to watch the safety briefing on our cabin TV's and acknowledge the video on the cabin TV.   After the safety drill we all gathered in the Explorers Lounge on deck four for our first orientation talk.  

After the talk some groups were asked to meet in the marina on deck 3 to secure snorkeling equipment.  I headed up to deck 8 forward to see Kicker Rock up close as we had been sailing slowly in this direction since the start of the safety briefing.

Sunset was taking place and a National Geographic ship had completed their sail past Kicker Rock.

With the naked eye you could easily spot hundreds of birds flying around or nesting on the rocks.

With that it was my turn to visit the marina to get my snorkel gear.

[twangster]

At 7pm we had our destination talk specific to our next day at Prince Philip's Steps.  This back in the Explorers Lounge.

The bar menu for the lounge.

I saw the dinner menu outside the main dining room while walking through this area.

 

[WAAAYTOOO]

Ohhhhhh...that room is soooo nice.  Well done !!!

[twangster]

The destination talk.

I'm not going to post these for every day but here is how the rest of today and day two will play out.

 

[twangster]

The ship offers a premium internet option which I knew I'd have to purchase if I wanted to post very much at all.  $183 unlocks higher speeds and up to four devices.

 

[WAAAYTOOO]

Very classy

[AlmondFarmer]

Were you able to pack appropriate clothing given you will be seeing both Spring and Fall seasons between the islands crossing equator? 

[twangster]

Two passengers who I sat beside on the plane invited me to join them for dinner.   Who am I to turn down two beautiful ladies?

 I ordered the Beef Tenderloin.   Our waiter informed me due to Galapagos regulations beef has to be cooked before Silversea can bring it to the Galapagos.   Consequently only medium through well done is available.   

The steak was good but about what one would expect for a reheated cut of meat.  The ladies enjoyed their Salmon.  We all enjoyed a very nice glass of red wine.  

[twangster]

After dinner I ventured outside to see how the night sky was looking.  The cloud cover from earlier remained so I returned to my cabin to go through some pictures. 

Around 10:00pm I went out on my balcony and saw what I thought might be the Milky Way off my balcony.  Sure enough an app confirmed it so I went out to the deck eight forward star gazing deck that I took the pictures of Kicker Rock from.

I haven't spent a lot of time tweaking this just yet, but here is what I captured with a long exposure. 

 

[27th Lady]

Thanks so much for posting all this. Your pictures are fantastic! What an amazing trip!! Hope it continues to be amazing  

[teddy]

Thank you for bringing us along.   

[twangster]

Currently it's almost 7pm on day two.   Great day in Genovesa today with three excursions.   Unfortunately that means I've got a lot of pictires to go through.    

A recap discussion and lecture on the Galapagos is about to start, then dinner.    

Today's photo dump when I can.

[Ampurp85]

That room is beautiful and thanks for the photos, you always deliver. 

[twangster]

Day Two - Genovesa

Three excursions today starting early with an advanced nature walk.  

After a short ride in the zodiac we climb a set of steep stairs to reach the top of Genovesa.

A Frigatebird.

The path is clearly delineated.  Our guide talks about the nesting grounds we are about to explore. 

There are birds nesting just about everywhere.

These birds have no natural predator in the Galapagos so they are not afraid of humans.

Juvenile Red Footed Booby.  Later in life their feet will become red.

A very young Booby waits for it's parent to return.

There are a couple of Finch varieties in the Galapagos.

A juvenile Frigatebird.

A Nazca Booby with a chick.

The Red Footed Booby.

Red Footed Boobies are the only Booby that nests in trees.

[twangster]

Marine Iguanas have adapted for life on the Galapagos islands.  Their food source has become algae on rocks in the sea and they excrete excess salt their cousins on the mainland don't have to worry about.

Everywhere around us Boobies are nesting.

A Galapagos Mockingbird.

[twangster]

Our walk takes us closer to the edge of Genovesa where we hope to see an Owl that is not nocturnal as most owls have become.  The Owl is the top of the food chain here since there are no hawks on Genovesa.  Consequently they hunt in the daylight.

There are hundreds of birds in the sky in every direction.

Everywhere you look there is a bird.

And of course more Marine Iguanas.

A Finch and an Iguana ignore each other as they don't compete in any way.

Mockingbird.

Lava Cactus.

 

[twangster]

Boobies and a dove living side by side with each other as they each do their own thing.

A finch looking for seeds.

Nazca Booby tending to a chick.

A young Frigatebird.

Galapagos Dove.

A Nazca Booby chick attempting to get a meal from an adult. 

A Booby using it's feet to keep an egg in the nest incubated.

An adult Frigatebird.

[Ampurp85]

Omg I love all the birds and the pictures are amazing.

That Lava Cactus reminds me of corral from the sea for some reason.

[twangster]

Not bad as our first expedition excursion but it was time to return to the ship going back down the steep set of stairs roughly carved out of the rocks.  Our guide explains how best to proceed.

Silver Origin waiting for us.

This is considered a "dry landing" as we don't get wet getting in or out of the zodiac.

Looking back at Prince Philip's Steps.

The short ride back to the Origin.

[Xaa]

I've been cruising the wrong way.  Really amazing @twangster.  Thank you.

[twangster]

Mid-morning were snorkeling excursions.  A beach excursion with snorkeling for beginners was offered along with an advanced deep water snorkeling excursion.  If you are not into snorkeling you could simply go to the beach.  As a certified diver I chose the deep water excursion.  

A Sea Lion joined us.

We would snorkel along the edge of the cliff face.

Our guide wore a red bandana so we could easily spot him.

Once again Prince Philip's Steps we used earlier.

A resting Sea Lion.

 

[twangster]

Our guide points out some Manta Rays mating on the rocks below.

Then along comes some Sea Turtles.

Further along our guide finds another Sea Turtle resting in the rocks.  They can stay down for several hours when resting like this.

The waters were teaming with life.

Another curios Sea Lion swims past.

After approximately 45 minutes it was time to head back.  It was a great experience.

[twangster]

Time for a bite to eat, and an Ecuadorian beer. 

Not a bad view at all.

[FionaMG]

Just breathtaking.

[Curt From Canada]

Geeeez @twangster ... off the charts (and you adventure is just beginning).  I have too many questions, so just a critical one.

If a "bot" did not do their homework, I would be shocked.  Therefore, did you consider Celebrity's Galapagos similar sailings, or was the SilverSea "expedition style" a deciding factor?  

We would be very interested in your thought process in booking SilverSea over Celebrity (and others as well).  Galapagos is very high on our wish list.

Thanks for taking us along ...

Curt from Canada

[twangster]

Our third excursion of the day was a nature walk starting with a wet landing on the beach of Genovesa.  

Sea Lions were resting on the beach when we arrived and they completely ignored us.

A pair of Swallow-tailed Gulls.  The red ring around the eyes is only present during mating season.  

A young Frigatebird waits on the nest for a parent to return with food.

Along the beach more Sea Lions are resting.  This is a male Sea Lion along with... 

... A female Sea Lion nursing a pup.

A Nazca Booby with a chick.

Another group from our ship is greeted by a very playful Sea Lion pup who was zooming around the sheltered tidal pool and posing for pictures.

A Lava Gull was checking us out.

Another Lava Gull.

A juvenile Frigatebird.

A female Great Frigatebird

An adult male Great Frigatebird.

A Lava Heron.

[twangster]

Our guide takes us in the shallow tidal pool among the mangroves. 

What pictures can't portray are the sounds of the various birds in the mangroves calling out to each other.

A number of Red Footed Boobies are at various heights in the mangroves.  It was basically like a Booby condo.  

Can you find the Booby in the mangroves?

[twangster]

At the same as this tour an optional complimentary Sea Kayak excursion from our ship was exploring the coast.

More variations of finch.

A Yellow Warbler.

Researchers have discovered that the finch can evolve with one generation.  Pretty remarkable.

A young Booby close to our trail watches us with curiosity.

If it's nesting in the trees it must be a Red Footed Booby chick.

Who brought their pet dog?  Oops, just another Galapagos Sea Lion.

With that it was getting close to sunset and time to return to the ship.

 

[twangster]

Some housekeeping items... literally.

I'm posting this so those that come after me will know what they don't need to bring or make the determination f you had better bring something.

The included water bottle has worked quite well for going ashore.  Filling station in the bathroom or other places around the ship.

Destination talk time.  

The Cerro Dragon (see bar menu posted earlier).

North Seymour tomorrow morning followed by snorkeling and Sullivan Bay in the afternoon.

Day two dinner menu.

[twangster]

Day Three - North Seymour and Sullivan Bay

This is a pretty great way to start the day...

Basecamp is where all excursions depart from.  Here the "Green" group is departing.  The Blue group that I am in will depart 15 minutes later on this occasion.

Team Blue on the move.

It's a short ride over to the shore.  At this point we are all "zodiac pros" like we've been doing this for weeks.

[twangster]

Our guide has found something.  Can you spot it?

Cactus is a favorite diet of a species of land Iguanas found on North Seymour so where there is a cactus, there is an Iguana protecting it.

Overhead several Magnificent Frigatebirds were soaring above us.

[twangster]

Nesting Frigatebird.

A Frigatebird with a young chick.

Time to warm up.

Gotta show off that big red chest.

A Blue Footed Booby with a chick.

A resting Frigatebird.

Where there is cactus, there is...

Not much farther down the trail.

 

[twangster]

Another male Magnificent Frigatebird showing off his chest.

A Blue Footed Booby near a nest.

North Seymour had many Blue Footed Boobies.  Along our trail were three sets of Boobies who appeared to going through mating rituals.

"Look at my blue feet!"

They were so close we had to walk around them to maintain some distance.  Absolutely no fear of us.

Pictures don't do this justice, you have to experience it right in front of you.

Check out those blue feet!

This guy had a slight turquoise hue to his feet which he continued to lift up and down to make sure she saw them.

Quite the moves.

She must have been impressed because it looks like success!

[twangster]

As we continued along the trail we came to a beach albeit a rocky one.

Sea Lion family.

Mangrove Finch

A young Booby.

[twangster]

These male Magnificent Frigatebirds are mostly likely younger males who have matured enough to have the inflatable red chest.  So impressed with their new capability these young male birds inflate their chest and take flight only to discover how awkward it is to fly with a fully inflated chest. 

 

Older males who have been around the block a few times probably know better.

With that it was time to head back to the ship.