Ultimate Galápagos Exploration & Ecuador's Amazon Wilds (2012)

You depart from the U.S. and fly to Quito, arriving late in the evening. Your OAT Trip Leader or our local staff will meet your flight at the Quito airport and help you transfer to your hotel. Quito is Ecuador's capital city, nestled at the foot of the Pichincha volcano.

After breakfast, we’ll begin the day with a Welcome Briefing by our Trip Leader. We then explore the city paths and historic sites of Quito, a charming colonial city that has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Quito is South America's oldest capital city, founded by Sebastián de Benalcázar on December 6, 1534. Today we experience its delicate blend of Spanish and Indian cultural influences.

We’ll first journey to Itchimbía, a hill overlooking the city, where we’ll visit the grounds of the Palacio de Cristal (Crystal Palace) museum and take in the view. We’ll then take a walking tour of the older part of town, where many colonial-era structures remain to this day: the Presidential Palace, the Metropolitan Cathedral, and the Jesuit church of La Compania de Jesus. We walk through the first Catholic church in South America—San Francisco—where we see some remarkable artwork: wood carvings, paintings, sculptures, and period furniture.

We then enjoy a Home-Hosted Lunch, as a welcoming local family invites us into their home to share the mid-day meal and conversation. We might find much to discuss. How has Ecuador weathered its governmental changes, from democracy to military rule and back again? What are the nation’s economic prospects? We think you’ll find both the meal and the personal experience muy delicioso!

While the specific menu will be up to your hosts, it will give you a chance to sample some typical local specialties. In Ecuador, highland inhabitants fight the cold of the mountains with locro de papas, a filling soup of potatoes and cheese. Seco de chivo is a stew of goat meat in wine sauce. Corn is an Andean staple that figures in many dishes, including tortillas de maiz (usually served with avocado) and humitas, a sweet mush of corn and eggs served tamale-style in a corn husk. And like most Latin American countries, Ecuador has its special version of the empanada; in this case it’s made from fried green bananas and filled with cheese.

Next, we head to the equator for a visit to the famous Inti Nan Museum—an interactive museum where you’ll discover if there really is a change in the water’s swirling direction between the northern and southern hemispheres. Afterwards, we’ll make a quick stop at the Equatorial Monument, where we stand on the boundary between hemispheres and enjoy some great photo opportunities.

Tonight we’ll enjoy a special Welcome Dinner at our hotel and get to know our traveling companions.

After breakfast we enjoy a special concert by the music students of the Sinamune Disabled Children's Orchestra, an organization that is supported in part by Grand Circle Foundation. Sinamune is a Spanish acronym for the "national system of music for disabled children." Here we'll delight as students who range in age from children to adults exhibit their musical talents for our small group. Sit back and listen, or join in the festive dancing.

Later, we take a 30-minute flight from Quito over the eastern slopes of the snowcapped Andes to the town of Coca; the views from aloft are outstanding. We travel upstream to our lodge by motorized canoe up the most important tributary of the Amazon River, the Río Napo. We view the Amazonian tropical rain forest and glimpse the daily life of the native people who live on riverfront farms and in thatched-roof homes. We will be staying at an Amazon lodge on a beautiful riverbank, where you will have a window on the environment and culture of the people of the Amazon.

In the words of writer Joe Kane in Running the Amazon: "The Amazon cannot be understood just as a river. It is a whole wilderness, a great integrated system of rivers and jungles." For three full days, we'll have a rare opportunity to increase our understanding of the Amazon jungle—because it'll be our home.

Competition among the plants and trees for rain and sunlight is fierce here. Ultimately, only about 5% of light from the sun penetrates the jungle canopy and reaches the forest floor. Interestingly, conditions in the very top of the rain forest are quite desert-like. In fact, many plants at this upper canopy level are actually cacti. This unique climatic variation in such a compact space is one reason why the Amazon Basin is home to such phenomenal biodiversity.

En route to our lodge, we will have a boxed lunch. Our rain forest lodge serves as our comfortable home base in the Amazon. Here, you can explore trails that take you into the surrounding forest, take siestas in your own private hammock, and enjoy meals of fresh local fare while enjoying beautiful views of the nearby Napo River.

After we arrive, there will be time for an orientation walk and some nature exploration before dinner at the lodge.

Before breakfast, you may join an elective bird-watching walk. The early morning is a good time to see the local birds at their most active. Following breakfast, we’ll visit a local community where we learn the craft of making traditional pottery and have the chance to participate in making bowls or weaving baskets. It’s an intimate encounter that gives us insight into the daily activities of the people from the Amazon basin. All of these experiences bring us closer to understanding the rain forest and its native traditions.

We return to our lodge for lunch, and afterwards we’ll have time to rest or have a siesta before heading out to visit a local high school, where the students will introduce us to local dance traditions and we’ll sit down for dinner with them.

After breakfast we take a short canoe ride on the Napo River to visit with a local healer, or medicine man. Here we learn all about ancient local rituals and have the unique opportunity to participate in a "cleansing," or healing ceremony.

 

We return to our lodge for a cooking class. Ecuadoran comida tipica (typical food) is wholesome and fresh, drawing upon the bounty of the land. We’ll learn how to make a typical Amazonian lunch from local ingredients, experiencing the preparation and flavor of the local cuisine.

In the afternoon, we'll visit a local family and learn how they harvest crops such as manioc and cacao. We’ll also go panning for gold along the Napo River and enjoy a leisurely scenic tubing adventure back to the lodge.

Once back at the lodge, we’ll have time to relax before we share our evening meal. You may want to join a nocturnal nature walk or lounge in your hammock and enjoy the brilliance of the stars overhead.

After breakfast, we travel by motorized canoe down the Río Napo to Coca, where we transfer to the airport for our flight to Quito. We arrive in the early afternoon and check into our hotel. You have the remainder of the day free to make your own discoveries in Quito, and dinner is on your own this evening.

Early this morning, depart Quito and fly via Guayaquil to the Galápagos, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Upon landing in the Galápagos in mid-morning, we make a short bus transfer to the dock, where we board our small ship. You can stow your gear in your cabin, orient yourself on deck, and enjoy the anticipation of the cruise ahead. For seven days, we explore the archipelago by ship, enjoying comfortable cabins and the services of an expert crew and our certified Galápagos naturalist Trip Leader onboard.

Here we share an adventure of Darwinian proportions in the comfort of our small group. All meals are included during our cruise, and no matter which island you call on, each of the next days will follow a similar pattern.

After breakfast onboard our exclusive charter, the sight of an island seemingly floating off the bow may send a shiver of anticipation through you. A small dinghy brings us close to the islands for wet landings, which require wading through knee-deep clear water. On shore, a gaudily colored Sally Lightfoot crab may scuttle by your foot as you watch iguanas sunning on the sands.

After lunch on board, it's off to our next island stop. Hiking across volcanic landscapes, we might marvel at 15-foot tall scalesia “daisy trees,” as Darwin's finches sing their greetings. If time allows, we might swim near our boat, sharing the playground of sea lions. We'll have plenty of tales to tell at dinner on our boat as stars fill the darkening sky. And as you sleep, you'll be cruising toward another adventure in the Galápagos.

Although wildlife sightings are unpredictable, we may see blue-footed and Nazca boobies, frigatebirds, pelicans, Galápagos doves, swallowtail and lava gulls, Darwin finches, or herons. We’ll also marvel at sea lions and iguanas throughout our travels.

During the summer and fall, the Humboldt Current moves through the Galápagos Islands, cooling sea and land temperatures, and creating a mist that covers the islands—locally known as garua (soft rain)—during the day. The Humboldt Current is strongest from July to October, delivering choppy water that surrounds the islands.

Please note:The following description is meant only as a general guide to the cruise itinerary that you are likely to follow. The selection and order of islands visited cannot be guaranteed due to the Galápagos' frequently variable weather, marine, and environmental conditions, and changes in airline schedules between the mainland and the Galápagos. This is a carefully managed park with fragile ecosystems. To safeguard them (and to ensure your own comfort), boat and park authorities have the prerogative to revise our course at a moment's notice.

For the next six days, we continue our exploration of the Galápagos. Our Trip Leader will give us an orientation briefing, including conservation techniques suggested by the Galápagos National Park. He or she is a graduate of the elite certification program conducted at the Charles Darwin Research Station on Isla Santa Cruz by the Galápagos National Park Service. We file our Galápagos cruising itinerary with the conservation authorities of the Galápagos National Park. Park biologists periodically review it, and they have the authority to make changes to our plan to minimize our impact on the ecosystems of the islands. Our Trip Leader also provides the park with information on species behavior, and we are proud to work in cooperation with the park officials in preserving the priceless natural wonders of the Galápagos.

Today we continue our exploration of the Galápagos. Here is a preview of the islands you may call on:

Santiago (James)—Tidal pools reveal a profusion of octopi, starfishes, and other undersea life. Rare fur sea lions that were once on the verge of extinction cavort nearby, and we often spot oystercatchers, blue herons, and yellow-crowned night herons.

Bartolome—One of the youngest islands, Bartolome displays a fantastic landscape of lava formations—including the famous Pinnacle Rock. The mangroves often hide mating sea turtles.

South Plaza—Sea lions often greet us raucously as we step ashore. We also find land iguanas busy eating the opuntia cactus flowers and pads. There are colonies of swallow-tailed gulls, shearwaters, and red-billed tropicbirds.

Rabida (Jervis)—A reddish beach and steep volcanic slopes give this island its distinctive look.

Leon Dormido (Kicker Rock)—Cruise around this sheer 500-foot tuff cone formation, where blue-footed boobies and sea lions abound.

Santa Cruz—At the Charles Darwin Research Station, learn about pioneering ecological studies and the giant Galápagos tortoise-breeding program.

Floreana (Charles)—Like the other islands, Floreana has its coterie of remarkable creatures. But it’s the human stories that will engage you here as your guide tells of the first inhabitant, a shipwrecked Irishman, and the quirky “post office” in a barrel, where sailors have been leaving letters for delivery since 1793. This “post office” still operates today.

Santa Fe (Barrington)—Hike through a forest of opuntia cactus, where land iguanas doze, and then snorkel in clear water with coral reefs, manta rays, sea turtles, and colorful schools of fish.

North Seymour—Here you’ll find the largest colony of frigatebirds in the Galapagos and a major nesting site for the blue-footed booby. On the beach, sea lions ride the waves.

San Cristobal (Chatham)—The town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno on this island is the sleepy capital of the Galápagos province. Ochoa Beach boasts pelicans and other sea birds, as well as a delightful swimming beach. Nearby is Lobos Island, where you’ll see pelicans, frigatebirds, and a sea lion colony.

Española (Hood Island)—Sea lions, marine iguanas, and many kinds of birds are found here, including Darwin’s finches, Hood mockingbirds, and blue-footed and masked boobies. Along the southern shore, spectacular cliffs rise up from the sea. From November to April, the remarkable waved albatross, which can spend years at sea without touching land, can be seen performing their unique, perfectly-choreographed mating ritual.

Today we continue our exploration of the Galápagos. An OAT traveler commented that, “The Galápagos are sun, sea, and a workshop in evolutionary biology.” We'll make numerous landings by small dinghies that involve stepping into knee-deep water to wade ashore. Once on land, we'll walk with our naturalist Trip Leader along trails that bring us close to the many indigenous species.

Today we continue our exploration of the Galápagos. When we are not viewing wildlife on shore, we can swim, sunbathe, and perhaps go snorkeling among sea lions and vividly colored tropical fish. Throughout the trip, we'll see magnificent landscapes of white-sand beaches, sparkling clear aquamarine water, and black and red volcanic rock landscapes.

Today we continue our exploration of the Galápagos. As we take in their striking seascapes, we can consider how they have impressed great American writers in two different centuries. Herman Melville blended knowledge of the islands, gained from his days as a sailor, with fiction in his 1854 novella The Encantadas or Enchanted Isles. More than 100 years later, Kurt Vonnegut's 1985 novel Galápagos drew inspiration from the author's own visit to the archipelago. Unique and remote, the Galápagos Islands will no doubt continue to influence creative artists for centuries to come.

This is the last day we spend in the Galápagos, and we’ll continue to enjoy snorkeling, exploring, observing wildlife, and hiking around the islands. Tonight, we’ll enjoy a special dinner onboard during which we’ll bid farewell to the crew.

Today, we return to Baltra or San Cristobal, say farewell to our boat crew, and disembark. We fly to Quito via Guauyaquil.

After checking in at our hotel, we gather for a celebratory Farewell Dinner at a local restaurant to toast our remarkable journey.

Transfer to the airport for your flight to the U.S.