Monday, October 20, 2025
The Galapagos Islands: Ugly Creatures
Thursday, October 16, 2025
Birds, Birds, Birds – So Many Birds!
Full disclosure – we are not birdwatchers. And Netflix’s terrific show “The Residence” didn’t convince us to take it up; neither did this trip. Yet the Galapagos did provide a lot of inspiration and respect for avian diversity. Honestly, I broke out laughing when I saw Jeff taking photographs . . . of birds! He never takes photos, much less of birds. So that tells you how intriguing and impressive the birds are.
It’s hard to know where to start. Obviously, the Blue Footed Booby was high on our list of “must see” creatures. And we saw one on the first day – what a relief. But in the end, the Blues (or Bloobies as one naturalist jokingly called them) were not even my favorite bird of the trip. Although watching them dive into the sea as they hunt is mesmerizing. They do seem to have the best talent agents though, based on their representation in all things souvenir.
There are 3 types of boobies in the Galapagos, and each has its own “look.” The Blues seem like the conspirators of the islands, or perhaps the secret service. They have a very serious and skeptical gaze. In the photo below, they seem to be plotting with one keeping a lookout. The Red Footed Boobies are multi-colored and perhaps the prettiest birds we saw.


The Nazcas are vocal and bossy and appear mischievous, like the lemurs in the animated film “Madagascar” – you’re waiting to see what they might do next.
The pelican is also fun to watch diving to catch fish, albeit a much shallower dive than a booby, but you can see pelicans in many parts of the world. We did see a baby pelican in a nest for the first time, and it was quite noisy.
We also saw the Great Blue Heron and Lava Heron, both of whom are elegant.
One of the most amazing things about all these birds is that they are not afraid of people. They don’t fly away as you are walking among them or near their nests, even with a fledgling inside. They practically pose for photos.
The second photo above is a Nazca that had adopted and was raising a Frigatebird chick. It’s an unusual situation between 2 distinct species. But nature has a way and never ceases to amaze.
Swallow-Tailed Gulls are nocturnal, note their distinctive eyes. The pairs generally stay together year after year.
This was the only type of bird that took umbrage to our presence and squawked at us to move along after our group had remained close for too long.
While kayaking and snorkeling we saw Flightless Cormorants who are very good swimmers and divers.
We saw several other types of birds that I didn’t even photograph. Some are just too elusive to capture, especially when you’re relying on a phone. We were lucky enough to snorkel with Galapagos Penguins, who are swift and nimble in the water. And the binoculars came in handy for getting a glimpse of a Galapagos Short-eared Owl.
While the birds in your neighborhood may seem less interesting than these, keep a lookout, as you never know what you’ll see!
Shana & Jeff
Tuesday, October 7, 2025
The Galapagos Islands: Sea Lions!
We saw many amazing animals in the Galapagos, but probably our favorites were the Galapagos sea lions. We saw them everywhere: in the water while snorkeling, resting near or on the shore of several islands, even in town. We also saw many adorable pups, including some practicing their swimming in smaller inland pools left as the tide retreated.
Here is a sea lion who decided he was done with his nap, so he jumped into the water fight in front of our kayak:
This adorable little guy was only a few weeks old, and was waiting for his mother to return from feeding:
Sea lions are always looking for a "comfortable" place to warm up and sleep after going out in the ocean to eat, or even swimming from island to island.Saturday, October 4, 2025
The Galapagos Islands: An Introduction
We headed to the Galapagos Islands to conclude our trip to the western hemisphere. The Galapagos had been on my bucket list for some time, and we thought of it as a “prize” after our US sojourn. The islands are a unique destination that did not disappoint one bit.
We chose the National Geographic / Linblad Expeditions’ Gemini, a 48-passenger ship. We rarely take group tours, with the occasional allowance for a day trip, but we made an exception as doing the Galapagos on our own would have been difficult and inefficient. The islands are a national park and visiting any part requires a licensed tour guide. By choosing the cruise, we were able to visit 8 islands in 7 days – Baltra, Santa Cruz, Rabida, Santiago, Isabela, Fernandina, Genovesa, and Bartolome. Everything about the trip exceeded our expectations.
There are no large ports in the Galapagos, and for this reason the cruise ships are small (generally about 100, 50, or 16 passenger capacity). 48 passengers was our “Goldilocks” solution – just the right size. We splurged for a balcony to ensure that little bit of extra space and fresh air. The balcony came in handy for drying swimsuits and water shoes.
Without ports, you never actually dock, which means that egress from and ingress to the ship is by zodiac. We learned that driving a zodiac is truly a skill. Note the crane on the back of the ship to raise the zodiacs up each evening and that zodiacs can tow multiple kayaks.
While zodiacs are not the most comfortable mode of transport, you do get used to them quickly.
Despite our study of the Spanish language, we did not know the significance of the word “Galapagos.” It has a dual meaning, signifying tortoise and saddle. Tortoise is related to the famous gentle giants who have roamed the islands for centuries (as opposed to turtles who gracefully glide through the sea), and saddle for the shape of the shells, especially a certain sub-species with the marked saddle shape (which allows this type to reach higher trees and shrubs).
That’s Lonesome George, the most famous Galapagos tortoise, known for being the last of his species, the Pinta Island tortoise. He died in 2012, and the American Museum of Natural History (NY) helped preserve him for posterity. Explorers ate tortoise meat and mostly captured the smaller females, leading to challenges for reproduction, and leaving George without possible mates. He is on display at the Charles Darwin Research Station, which is doing amazing preservation work. More on that later.
The Galapagos are a photographer’s dream – a target rich environment. I only used my phone for the photos featured in these posts, having given up on schlepping all the camera gear I previously owned. These days, phones take very good pictures. Several others on the trip had the big guns out, and their photos were definitively a step above. And although sometimes I miss shooting with a “real” camera, overall, I don’t.
Here are a couple of photos of Darwin’s famous finches, which are still thriving throughout the islands – some species better than others. Being so small, they are tougher to photograph. These are the only 2 photos of them I took. But don’t worry, there will be plenty of bird photos in a later post.
Lastly, the Galapagos are volcanic islands. The landscapes are barren, wild, and rough. I wasn’t sure I’d appreciate this geology, but the amount of wildlife it supports, and the unusual scenery was fabulous.
Much more to come soon,
Shana & Jeff




















































