Oophs, forgot to include this in the first post.

Percy: there are actually decendents still living on that island from the one family that remained on the island, the name is slipping my mind. It is a small community, but they still there, our guide told us.

Based on what we saw, I think the following islands are must-see: Genovesa, Bartolome, Santiago James Bay, Rabida, Espanola Suarez Point and South Plaza. You can cover Santa Cruz yourself. Each of them offers something unique.

If you can find cruise covering them all in 4 days, take it. I think it is difficult to do, due to the distance.

Our guide told us due the low reproduction rate of albatross (10% in 2003), the government is debating whether to close Espanola for 2 years. I agree with them. However, that is a beautiful island you don't want to miss.

belhr....glad to read your report and your experiences on the Eden.

I did not have those problems on the Isabella 2, but then maybe I was lucky,!

Half the passengers of 36 got sick or at least queezie, the only time that the yach had to travel at 7PM(dinner time) to get to the next Island.

I managed to eat in the dinning room, but for the first half hour it was touch and go !!! then I was okay.

cheerful...... I saw all those Islands and I agree with you.
You only go once and you might as well see as much as you can.

I did a lot of research and I knew what was on each Island before I got there.

So I was never bored nor thought anything was repetative.

Peg:

The only "sane " family there was on the Island were the Wittmer Family.
Heinz the husband died back in Germany in 1962.

They had two children born on Floreana Island.. Rolf born in 1932 and Ingeborg a daugther born in 1937.

I am very amazed and impressed that the children still live there.!!!

Of course Rolf would be 72 now and Ingeborg would be 67...

It would have been something to have met them.
They must live on Santa Cruz now.

Thanks again Peg, I would never had read the book if it were not for you.

Percy

That's right the Wittmer family is the one I was thinking of.

I think Espanola was my favorite island out of the ones we saw. We only did the southern and part of Santa Cruz.

Hi All-- thanks for the great advice!

Percy / Peg--- What Galapagos book do you keep refering to?

The name of the book is :

"The Galapagos Affair"
by
John Trehern
it is
published by Randon House.

The ISBN number is 0-394-53327-5
( By the way ISBN stands for International Standard Book Number).

Itis easier to attempt to get a booif you know the ISBN.

The book is only 216 pages and if you are going or have been to the Galapagos
this is almost a must read for your interest.

In a nut shell...it is about some German people that decide to come to the Galapagos about 1929-1930.

How they got there and their adventure of living on the Island of Floreana is something to read.

They were written up in almost allof the major newspapers of the day.

In this small group, most of the people either died,were killed ( by whom !!?) or vanished .
How do you vanish from an Island ,when there is no boat to take you away !!!!!?

The only sane family among the group of three , were the Wittmers.

Apparently their daugther ,whowas born on the Floreana Island in 1937 is still there.
That would make her 67 today !

http://www.discovergalapagos.com/floreana.html

Well,I JUST found this website ,had to do a lot of searching.

1.Go to the website.
2.Scroll down and on the right hand side you will see a list of the Galapagos Islands.

3. Click on Floreana

4.Now scroll down until you see a picture of Margret Wittmer and a tourist.!!!
Amazing ,that Margret is still alive , she must be in her late 80's now.

In the book are picture of Margret in the early 1930's.

She had two children while on Floreana Island .

Rolf in 1932 and Ingeborn in 1937.

All three are still at the Galapagos.

You really have to read this book.

Where did I get the book from??

From my friend Peg in Toledo!!

Percy

I've enjoyed all your posts. WE're leaving for a trip w/ Oat to the amazon,peru & galapagos the 1st of October. Questions:
How long to they spend on the island each day? I understand they won't let you "pee in the bush" so to speak...& that aspect worries me alittle.
Also any infor on wetsuits...a shortie or should be purchase full length?
Also foot wear on the islands & what about walking around machu picchu?
we have heavy hiking boots?
Any information would be appreciated...joan

One educational and exciting way to visit Galapagos is with Linblad Expeditions. They are known the world over for their ecological cruises. Traveling with them is similar to taking trips through a museum, something we used to do in Tucson.

The Polaris is staffed with locals who service the rooms and prepare the meals. The officers come from a variety of countries, as do the guides who are naturalists, botanists, zoologists, historians - folks who broaden your knowledge and enjoyment of whatever you are visiting.

There is always something to do, from the glass-bottomed boat for the less adventurous to snorkeling to diving. The Zodiacs get you in and out of places easily and up close and personal with the sea life. We spent one afternoon surrounded by playful dolphins. There were so many that it looked like the sea was boiling.

We were served dinner on the beach, visited the whalers' mailbox where we left unstamped mail for home and picked up mail from others to deliver near our homes when we returned. We learned the history and lore of each island we visited, were introduced to the wildlife, and were allowed free time to explore - minding the rules, of course.

Each night in the lounge, there was a recap of the day given by the various leaders. If a person didn't want to attend, it could be heard over a speaker in the room.

Meals were worthy of a much fancier cruise and were served on tables draped with linen. One dinner, we were served typical Ecuadorian fare. Excellent. There was also entertainment in the form of local musicians, again available over the speaker, if desired. We enjoyed all this in casual attire.

My husband was ill one day on the ship. The doctor on board treated him and the staff was superb. They made soup especially for him and brought it to the cabin.

We have traveled all over the world with this unpretentious line. Rather than investing in fancies for the ship, they invest in quality staff that go out of their way to see that every person, no matter their age or capabilities, has the best possible experience.

Galapagos with Linblad was one of the best trips we have ever taken.

Hello Pat,

We are going to the Galapagos with Lindblad in October. I was pleased to read your report and know we made the right choice for us.

A question about clothes... How did people dress for dinner? I would like to pack wisely and your observation would be helpful.

Also, did the ship handle the seas well or did people get seasick<

Let me try to answer the questions that I can.

sassyrn:
You cannot going "peeing" onthe Islands but that was never a problem to any of us,because after breakfast or lunch it is about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hour before you leave for the Island tour.
So you have lots of timeto go to the bathroom.

At noon we got back about 11:30Am and did not leave again for another Island until about 1:45 to 2 PM.

evelyntrav:

On our yacht the Isabella 2 we dined wearing our shorts..always.
The dinning room was very nice ,and fancy looking but when it is over 80F on the islands ,you do not wear long pants.

We were in shorts,shirt and sandals all the time.
Sometimes in the evening in the bar/lounge ,someone would wear long
pants/slacks,but this was just for a change rather thana necessity.

brink:

About that book.
I will let Peg answer you on the details about the book.
Peg informs me that she read somewhere that Margret Willmer died in 2000 at the age of 99..Wow!!

What a life she must have had on Floreana.... maybe the Galapagos is the place for longivity !!!

Her two children are still there ,ages 67 and 72.

Percy

All I can really add about the book is that it is out of print. I bought it used off a private dealer through the internet. It has its slow parts, but it is interesting to read about a place you will be visiting.

All activities are half day, since you had to get back for lunch. Most hiking is 1-2 hours. We did have a 8-year girl in the group who "had to go" on Santa Cruz. But our guide let her dad took care of her.

We had full suit, 3/2, for snorkelling and we still felt really cold. The only place we did not need it is Genovesa.

We wore sandals all the time. The guide recommended hiking boots several times. Our sandals worked fine. Hiking boots can get a little messy, esp. with wet landing.

Technically, you can't really go anywhere without the guide. However, there is plenty of time. So you can linger behind, as long as you stay on the trail.

Can someone tell me what book you are all so enthralled with. I'm just starting to plan a trip for next year and Percy, Patty et al are so helpful. You got me wanting to read this book!

The name of the book is:
"The Galapagos Affair" by John Treherne
published by Random House

On the paper jacket of this hard cover book it is written"

"The true story of the strange events on Floreana Island half a century ago that have teased and mystified investigators ever since"

I must read if you are going to Galapagos, then when you get toFloreana Island you can still see some of these places.

Percy

I just was surfing an saw how I seem to be a "lone voice" about my 7 day, $9000 trip, to the Galapogos Islands.
First off, the $9000 was in 1998 when fewer vessels were allowed onto the islands as well as mostly smaller ships than now. Therefore, there was a premium at the time.
It would have cost us $7000 for one of the seven 120 sq.ft.cabins. We decided that we would spluge and take the Owner's Suite where the Queen of Sweden used to stay (she or the monarchy actually own the boat). But we took it because it was about 260+ sq. ft. so we paid a hefty $1900 premium for the only suite on the 90 ft.ship. I truly believe that 3-4 full days vs. 7 would have made it much more worthwhile and cut our cost to about $5500 but such a trip was not available at the time unless we went in very cramped quaters on a "live-aboard" tpye vessel.
We also had 1 night at a deluxe hotel in Quito and flights from JFK in the $9000 figure.
If you enjoy nature's magic a 3-4 day trip is worth the adventure but that's after Costa Rica, the interior of Belize and an Amazon cruise from Recife to Maneus, in my opinion.
Maybe this clarifies why I said what I did but I truly believe at the time they were our impressions having done a reasonable amount of travel around the world before and since then.
I hope that clarifies it for anyone that is considering a trip there.