Hello from Ecuador!

Day 15: Mindo to Chicago

Updated: June 22, 2026

Today may be our last day in Ecuador, but it’s the first day we don’t have to do a darn thing until after noon! Conveniently, check out from Las Terrazas is also at noon, so we slept in until the sun woke us up and had a leisurely breakfast.

Speaking of breakfast, we finally figured out the perfect breakfast order. Always start with coffee and yogurt and granola. But then, order the authentic hot chocolate drink and the homemade bread along with the scrambled eggs — in order to make a delicious egg sandwich. Too bad it’s our last day. Pro tip, also order a second pot of hot chocolate to go.

Perfect breakfast

We heard reflecting pools were in the news lately

After breakfast, we finished packing all of our bags into their travel-ready mode — gaining further appreciation for our super-light Galapagos packing mode. Shortly after noon, we said goodbye to Las Terrazas de Dana and met Santiago who drove us to a nearby butterfly farm. A butterfly expert told us about the life cycles of butterflies. We saw all the stages from egg, to caterpillar, to chrysalis, to butterfly. We then went into the butterfly garden where there were tons of butterflies flying around and snacking on flowers.

Hanging with the butterflies

Owl Eyed Butterfly camouflage

Sharing flowers

We took some time to admire all the different kinds of butterflies and flowers. We also were told how to get them to land on you. Dab your finger on the fruit, and then hold it close to them.

Adding to Matt’s Disney Princess status

Employees were trying to catch a bird that got trapped in the garden

Hey, Jo gets princess status too

We were about to leave the garden when Santiago called us to come outside. He spotted yellow-throated toucans hanging around and calling out in a nearby tree. Mission accomplished A great end to our time in Mindo.

We hear you, Toucan…

…And we see you!

From the butterfly farm, we continued along the windy road back towards Quito. Surprisingly, Jo only slept for part of it. We stopped at Mitad Del Mundo, a monument and museum complex that is located at 0 degrees latitude – aka. “The Middle of the World.” There is also a park area (bouncy-house castles) with stores nearby, and as a bonus these days, a giant monitor set up to watch the World Cup games.

Street-side vendors and World Cup fans

Middle of the Earth Monument

In the museum, we learned how explorers and scientists from the 1700s used triangulation, stars, and mapping to figure out the curvature of the earth, and thereby locate the equator. Ecuador was uniquely suited for this endeavor because it’s one of the few locations on the equator with mountainous terrain. But, it turns out they were slightly off. The monument is technically about 300 meters from the actual geographic equator, but hey, for the 1700s they did a pretty good job.

Santiago explains triangulation, vantage points, and the Avenue of Volcanoes

Latitude Zero

The monument itself also has stores on the inside, with stairs to the top featuring more information about Ecuador’s history. Of course, we went up there.

View from the top of the monument

The monument

One local is very unimpressed with Santiago’s ability to balance an egg at the equator

In unrelated news, the lightning port on Matt’s (apparently ancient) iPhone 14, stopped working — claiming there was water inside the port, which is not true, but then again, it’s REALLY humid in the Cloud Forest, so who knows. As a result, following our visit to the Middle of the Earth Monument, we went on a side quest to find a magnetic charger that would not require plugging in the phone.

Santiago suggested the mall we passed on the outskirts of Quito. Since it’s Saturday, the mall was crowded. But we managed to get a good parking spot. After wondering around for a bit looking for an electronics store (hey, is that Radio Shack?!?!), we were navigate to a store called Smart Buy. With a helpful sales associate, the mission was a success and Matt’s phone was functional again.

Rainbow greets us at the Quito airport

We arrived at the airport just after 6:00 pm, and said farewell to Santiago. Since we’re not allowed to check in until three hours before flight (which would be around 9:30 pm), we went across the street to the Airport Center. It’s on the other side of the drop off lanes, and is part of the airport. We found a restaurant where we could charge our electronics, order some food and drinks, and most importantly, watch the Ecuador World Cup game.

Bye, Santiago! Thanks for everything!

Worlds’s second best trilogy

Watching our second Ecuador World Cup game with the locals was fun. But, turns out we might be bad luck. Since becoming Ecuador World Cup fans, the team has failed to score a single goal. At least they didn’t lose this time, as they battled to a 0-0 tie. Progress! (But I don’t think they are gonna advance out of group play)

0-0 Tie!!!!

Once we were able to check in, we dropped off our bags, cleared security, and passed thru customs. We then located what might be the best Priority Pass lounge we’ve ever accessed. The bartender crafted of the best Amaretto Sours we’ve ever tasted.

Amazing lounge, but what kind of scam requires so many card readers? lol

Our flight from Quito to Houston departed at 12:35 am as scheduled and everything was smooth. We successfully slept for most of the fight as intended (in order to not be too sleep deprived tomorrow). The extra legroom we had the exit row was worth the upgrade.

Mostly to not be annoyed by other passengers

The last leg of our journey from Houston to Chicago was delayed a couple hours due to weather, but, if there was ever a good time for a flight delay, it’s on the final flight of a trip when you are in no hurry. Turns out domestic United flights don’t feel as special when they are not part of a Hub Run Marathon. With a quick train ride and bus ride back home, we have another awesome trip in the books.

Day 14: Waterfalls and Rapids

by Joanna

Updated: June 20, 2026

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After yesterday’s mid-day nap and a full night of sleep, we were ready for the waterfalls hike today! We ate breakfast, and met Santiago at 9:00 am in order to drive to the trail head another 20ish minutes via dirt road into the rainforest.

Morning walk to breakfast at Las Terrazas

The full “Santuario de Cascadas” features three routes with waterfalls, one auxiliary route, and a cable car. We decided to start with the auxiliary trail to the first waterfall. We were starting at a higher elevation, so it was a nice hike slightly downhill. We could hear the calls of a yellow-throated toucan, but were not able to spot it. After about 30 minutes of hiking, we were rewarded with the Nambillo waterfall.

Maps are helpful

The Merlin app is Shazam for birds

Making our way down

Nambillo Waterfall

We crossed the Nambillo river and continued up the trail on route 1, which doesn’t have any falls, but eventually connects to the cable car. From route 1, you can choose to hike route 2 or route 3. We decided on route 3 because it’s slightly shorter and has multiple waterfalls along the way. Route 1 only has one waterfall at the end.

Guarúmos Waterfall

Madre Waterfall

Made it to the end with Maderos Waterfall

The trail goes up and down, but is well maintained and features steps and railings when needed. We stopped at most of the waterfalls until we reached the end of the trail. These aren’t the biggest falls we’ve ever seen, but the spray was refreshing and they made for a really fun hike.

Maderos seemed like a perfect place for one more Ecuador flag picture

The trail was an out-and-back, so we returned the same way we came in. We didn’t stop at all the falls, so it went a bit faster. We headed for the cable car station to plot our next move. We could go for route 2, but that would add at least two more hours and only one waterfall. Instead, we opted to catch the next cable car, and grab a celebratory Ecuador beer while waiting. In total, the hike was about 4 miles and took two and a half hours.

The cable car is a tarabita, which is a traditional form of hanging basket/gondola transport used in the Andes. It’s basically an open air, people-sized tool box. We loaded in along with another family. Apparently you’re allowed to stand for the ride which seems bonkers. It was quick and we were back at the car in just a few minutes.

Human tool box

The main reason we didn’t want to hike for two more hours in the sweltering heat and humidity is because we wanted to go river tubing in the Mindo River! We drove back to the hotel for a change of clothes and a quick snack, then we jumped back into the car to go to a nearby river tubing company. We were doing this on a whim, so we didn’t have a set time. But we wanted to get there before the afternoon rain, and were hoping another group was there so we could meet the four-person minimum.

When we arrived, a group had left about 10 minutes earlier and there wasn’t anyone else scheduled. But… it turns out the four-person minimum is for the cost, so Santiago negotiated a price ($15 total! usually $6 per person) for a two-person excursion and we were good to go! We put on our life jackets and helmets, literally jumped into the back of a pick-up truck bed (with the raft tied above), and drove to our starting point about 10-15 minutes up river.

Suit up!

Our next mode of transportation

This adventure is a cross between lazy river tubing and white water rafting. The primary watercraft is seven inner tubes tied together upon which you sit — and hold on for dear life — while you move down the river. The river moves quick and there are many rocks, so you actually need to sit where the tubes are tied together, rather than inside the donut holes. If you did that, you’d hit a lot of rocks. The guide does an incredible job maneuvering the raft through the river and somehow not breaking his ankles. The ride lasted about 20 minutes and was whole lot of fun.

Rapidly going down the river

It was, in fact, not calm enough to eat an apple most of the way

Thanks to our guide, who despite his shirt, was not named Ricky

We timed everything perfectly. When we got back to the hotel, it started to rain. But surprisingly, that weather quickly passed and we spent the rest of the afternoon sitting by the pool, blogging, and birdwatching.

See, we vacation like normal people

Heard and spotted a Black Phoebe

This Lobster Claw plant near our room looks fake (but it’s not)

Santiago picked us up at 6:00 pm for dinner and took us to a restaurant in town called Serenity. They had some Ecuadorian food, but also international food as well. We both ordered a version of Paella. They also had Micheladas on a two for $8 special, so we had to try them. They have a kick. Micheladas are beers with lime juice, salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Pretty much like a Bloody Mary, but with beer instead of vodka and tomato juice. We ordered one traditional and one with passion fruit beer.

To continue tasting local flavors, Santiago told us about the Ecuador method of eating ice cream with cheese on top. So after dinner, we walked two blocks to a shop selling this concoction. We played it straight with chocolate ice cream, strawberries and bananas — and then covered in shredded mozzarella cheese. Looks ridiculous, but it was pretty good! The cheese adds an extra creaminess to the ice cream without adding any weird cheesy flavor. Is it really necessary? No. It is the definition of “putting a hat on a hat”, as one might say.

Mozzarella chocolate ice cream

Friday night church services in Mindo are hoppin’

We made our plans for tomorrow (last day!) and went back to the hotel for the night. On the docket is a butterfly farm, the middle of the world monument, and finding a bar/restaurant outside airport security to watch the Ecuador World Cup match at 7 pm before we are allowed to check in for our midnight flight back home.

Day 13: Birding and Chocolate

by Joanna

Updated: June 19, 2026

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One of the most sought after birds in the cloud forest is the Andean Cock-of-the-Rock. So today, we scheduled a bird-watching tour with Anderson, the son of the owner of San Tedeo Birding (where we stopped yesterday). The only catch is we had to wake up at 4:30 am to get there in time to see them when they are active!

We got dressed and met Santiago at 5:10 am. We picked up Anderson along the way and headed to a farm to start the journey to see the birds. The farm owners could clear the forest to make more pasture for the cows, but Anderson rents the farm from them to preserve the forest (and the birds). We walked uphill on one of Anderson’s trails for just under half-a-mile as the sun was just starting to rise. We could hear the distinctive call of the Andean Cock-of-the Rock as we got closer.

Heading out before dawn

The sun is starting to rise

At the end of the trail, Anderson built a protected area with a tarp and a fence where we could stand to view the birds. It’s mating season, and a female Andean Cock-of-the Rock lives here, so all the males are stopping by to vocalize and dance in an effort to get the female to choose them.

Bird watching tent

Anderson is a master at this

The bird is named the Andean Cock-of-the-Rock because these birds are found in the Andes region, their red heads look like a chicken’s head, and they typically live on the rocks of rivers. The sound of the river helps mask the sound their wings make when they fly, giving them more protection from predators. They are up in the trees and bushes in the mornings before it gets too sunny out so they can hide better, but still be visible to the female.

Andean Cock-of-the-Rock

Another good shot

I feel like I’m being watched

We spent about an hour watching and listening to the birds before heading back down to the car. We made a quick stop at San Tedeo Birding to drop Anderson off and say hello to the hummingbirds again.

Fun mushrooms on the tree

Hiking back to the car

Wow, thats a big one!

Early morning in Mindo

On our return to the hotel, we found the restaurant and ordered breakfast. We ordered coffee, juices, homemade yogurt and granola, fruit, pancakes, eggs, and did I mention the coffee?

Even so, we didn’t get much sleep the past few nights and by 9:00 am, we were still pretty dang tired. We called an audible on our post-breakfast plan to hike to a waterfall, and decided it would be best to do that tomorrow morning instead. We took the rest of the morning and early afternoon to nap and birdwatch from our awesome balcony. Mindo is in the top five locations in the world with the highest biodiversity for birds. So, even sitting at the hotel, we could see a large variety of species. And sleep.

Steps to our room

Blogging and bird watching

After resting and recharging for the afternoon, we resumed our activities. Santiago picked us up at 4:30 pm and we drove into Mindo (the hotel is technically just outside of the town) for a tour of Yumbos Chocolate. On the way, we stopped by Mechita’s Restaurant — owned by a woman who specializes in traditional food from the Esmeraldas province. She also typically closes around 7:30-8:00 pm, so we pre-ordered before the chocolate tour.

Mechita drive through service

The Yumbos Chocolate building is not a giant warehouse with huge machines and a ton of people working on assembly lines. This is a small, open air, museum exhibit/production center.

We started the tour with Jonathan, one of the employees. He explained the process of how chocolate is made. First you gather the cocoa fruit from the trees. The yellow ones are the best, but red will also do. The cocoa trees only grow near the equator and in low altitudes. So, the trees do not grow here in Mindo. Instead, they work together with a neighboring community who grow the trees, harvest the fruits, and also dry the beans (the rainforest is too wet for that part).

Jonathan shows us cocoa fruits

Close up of the actual fruit

The inside of a coca fruit is white and fleshy and tastes sweet. It’s almost like a pineapple/passionfruit flavor with a lychee texture. You can eat the fruit, make juice, or use it to make alcohols like cocoa wine (with is sweet, not chocolaty). Inside the fruit is the seed — that’s where the chocolate comes from. The seeds have to be harvested by opening each pod and washing away the fruit. Then the seeds are dried.

The dry seeds are sent to Mindo for the rest of the processing. Here in the “factory” they roast the beans, which allows the shell to be peeled. Inside is 100% chocolate. When using good fruit and going through the proper steps, this is tasty, not bitter chocolate. It can be used to make hot chocolate, pure chocolate bars, or for cocoa nibs. They use a machine to separate the peel from the bean, but all mixed together. They then use a sieve and a fan to separate them. The peels can be used along with the chocolate for things like tea, or poor quality “chocolate” candy bars, They also use the shells as fertilizer.

One the pure chocolate is collected, the next step is further grinding into a paste, then mixing until you have a smooth chocolate liquid with the cocoa butter still combined. The can use a press to separate the cocoa butter for other uses (skin care, additional ingredients and such), but all of their chocolate bars include the natural cocoa butter. From there, sugar and additional cocoa butter can be added to obtain the different percentages of dark chocolate.

The next step is tempering the chocolate, which is done by hand on a marble slab in a cold room. natural flavors can be added here ad well, such as ginger, mandarin, coffee, mint, etc. Once it’s tempered and flavored, the chocolate is poured into molds, left to set, then packaged for selling.

When we finished the tour, Jonathan brought us our samples. We started with hot chocolate, made from melting a pure 100% chocolate bar with milk. It was rich, but not sweet since no sugars are added to the 100% chocolate bars. Jonathan also offered us a chocolate face mask (per the aforementioned cocoa butter skin care) which we took up. We sampled the various levels of chocolates from 100% down to 60% along with some of the flavors. The last two samples were a tea made from the cocoa nibs and shells, with lemon and brown sugar added to bring out the flavor. It was great. We now know how to prepare the chocolate tea we have at home. Finally, we had a delicious, rich, and fudgy brownie bite.

Chocolate samples

All of the samples were great, and we learned a lot about the chocolate making process and what makes a good quality chocolate bar. We met back up with Santiago who was waiting for us in the front and took some time to walk a few blocks to check out the town before going to dinner.

Mindo Street Art depicting our morning

Mindo town after a light rain

The food at Michita was amazing, and absolutely huge portions. This was very fortunate for the dog who got a few table scraps. We also had Quinoa Chica to drink, a fermented quinoa (similar to a kombucha). When we couldn’t possibly eat any more, we went back to the hotel for the night.

The restaurant started as an ice cream truck, hence the car

Food for paws

Tomorrow we plan to start with the waterfall hike, and we’ll see where it goes from there!

Day 12: Santa Cruz to Mindo

by Joanna

Updated: June 19, 2026

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Today starts Part 3: Cloud Forest. The only planned adventures for today are traveling back to the mainland and driving to the town of Mindo, which is in Ecuador’s cloud forest region. We have an early wake up (5:45 am) to make to the airport for our 9:50 am flight.

As we were only allowed a small carry-on for our inter-island Galapagos flights, we packed VERY light. This makes it really easy to get ready in the morning and have plenty of time to enjoy breakfast. Based on Martin’s recommendation yesterday, we had yogurt and granola. It was, in fact, very tasty yogurt.

Non-endemic LEGO plum blossom spotted

Martin and Higinio picked us up and 7:00 am and we headed north across Santa Cruz Island. The drive took about 40 minutes, where we proceeded to board the ferry. We waited about 20 minutes more until the boat was full before departing. We didn’t see any tiger sharks (as Martin has before), but we did spot a sea turtle. The boat ride only took about 5 minutes, and we boarded the bus to the airport. The driver carefully avoided any land iguanas on the road.

Driving back through Santa Rosa

View of Baltra island from the highlands

Thanks for the ride, Notorious H-I-G!

We made it to the airport at about 8:30 am. Good thing the airport only has three gates. Pretty much everyone on the boat/bus was on our flight. Since we didn’t have any bags to check and we already had our boarding passes, we were ready to go. We bid farewell to Martin and headed through security.

Thanks for everything, Martin!

We had two missions before boarding the plane. The first was pick up a copy of Galapagos Uno. We saw it at the bar yesterday, and they said we could find it at the airport. They were correct. Next mission: relax in the Priority Pass lounge. We found a nice seat outside(!) and grabbed a latte and some snacks. But then we immediately heard the announcement our flight was boarding. Ah well. Still, mission accomplished.

We proceeded to the gate, which was right outside of the lounge (to be fair, all of them are), and boarded the plane. Like the flight to the Galapagos, this one was definitely not full, so we were able to take the aisle and window, leaving the middle seat open. Also, we were assigned “plus” seats for free this time.

Back to slightly larger planes

Flying over Baltra – you can see the road to the airport and the water we crossed

The flight went well, except during our first approach to the Quito airport, we had to pull up just before landing, circle around and try again. The captain said the landing was called off by the tower, and that everything was fine… “standard operating procedure.” We think today’s winds are stronger than normal (and confirmed that later with Santiago). Everything was smooth on the second go-around.

Fun fact, when deplaning, Avianca re-closes the curtain between first class and economy sections until the first class passengers are deplaned. Really guys??? You know we can still see you around the sides of that cheap gray shower curtain.

Approaching Quito

Love they made a sloth the mascot of their health insurance wellness program

We met Santiago outside of baggage claim and found our (upgraded) van in the parking lot. We made a pit stop at the Wyndham to pick up our large suitcases before continuing on to the cloud forest. The winding road that drops in elevation after leaving Quito put Jo to sleep immediately. Our lunch stop was at Mirador Guaycapi, where there were multiple humming bird feeders and bananas set up. We sat outside and watched the birds while we ate delicious fish.

Good to see you again, Santiago!

Lunch stop…

…with a view

…and the biggest juices ever!

Next stop was San Tedeo Birding. We will be back very early tomorrow morning to try and catch sight of the Cock-of-the-Rock bird. Santiago wanted to let the owner know and figure out the best time while we bird-watched. We observed a bunch of hummingbirds and a variety of other colorful species. We also saw an Ecuadorian Thrush that is endemic to Ecuador. One appeared to be feeding a much larger crow, which has been “adopted” by the Thrush thanks to a “swapped egg in nest” behavior from crows… like the movie Elf, basically.

Admiring the birds

We went to a different part of the trail where there were TONS of hummingbirds. We held bottle caps of sugar water in our palms and hummingbirds landed on us to drink. It was all a very cool experience.

How many hummingbirds can Matt attract… so far… Zero…

One…

Two…

Theee…

Four! Disney Princess Level Unlocked

It started to drizzle as we were leaving, and turned to full rain by the time we passed through the town of Mindo about 10 minutes later. Apparently, it’s common to rain in the afternoons. This is the rainforest after all. Fortunately, we had no other plans for the day. We checked in and relaxed in the room for the rest of the night.

Bird lady goes through 5kg of sugar a day to feed the hummingbirds

We’re special!

Relaxing in the rain

Tomorrow we have an early bird-watching and a tour of a chocolate factory. We’ll try not to fall in any chocolate rivers or eat anything we aren’t supposed to.

Day 11: Santa Cruz Island

by Joanna

Updated: June 19, 2026

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The first portion of today’s itinerary was once again traveling. We woke up early for a leisurely morning and breakfast overlooking the ocean. The fried plantains were, not surprisingly, delicious (think banana-flavored Krispy Kreme donuts). Add some chocolate drizzle, put them on a stick, and bam. State Fair food. Martin and Jonathan picked us up at 8:00 am to head to the airport.

Our 2nd floor cabana

Morning views

There are two ways to get between the islands. By boat, or by air. Most people take the boat ride (which is longer and usually involves choppy waters). We presume it is the cheaper option for larger groups. But we are obviously the jet set. Upon our arrival, the entire airport had eight people inside when we arrived — including staff and passengers. Like our inbound flight, we weighed our bags, then waited for the plane to arrive. Since the Isabella airport is much smaller than the San Cristobal airport, and only goes between the islands, there was no lounge this time. Alas, we survived.

Yup, that’s pretty much the entire airport

When we were ready to board, Martin said hi to the pilot, Marcello. The Galapagos are very small, and everyone knows each other. Marcello is Martin’s sister’s best friend’s cousin from when they were little. Hence, Martin calls him Marcellito.

Now boarding group everyone

Boarded and ready

The other passengers on our flight were a family of five. The oldest kid (probably about 13) got to be the co-pilot. The flight only took about 30 minutes and we landed at Baltra Airport.

On the way to Baltra… Las Tintoreras in view

Wait, who is flying the plane right now?

While the airport is on Baltra island (a remnant of the US Military base), the main attractions are on Santa Cruz Island. So, from the airport, everybody takes a bus to the pier. While waiting in line, we saw Ariana – the guide from our Kicker Rock excursion from Day 9 — who was waiting for a ~30 person EF Education tour to arrive.

We loaded on the bus, which left once it was full. Since Baltra has flights to and from the mainland, it is much more busy than Isabella. The bus filled fast and we were on the way. The only delays occurred when the driver had to stop, exit the bus, and shoo the land iguanas off the road.

The next step in our travel adventure was a boat ride across the canal from Baltra to Santa Cruz Island. The boat is a large water taxi to ferry us across. We arrived about 5 minutes later. As we were disembarking, we spotted a Santa Cruz Brewing Company sticker with Darwin’s face in the middle. Let’s go there later!

Get in losers, we’re going ferrying!!!

We officially made it to Santa Cruz! Our driver, Higinio, picked us up. We immediately drove south toward the highlands. First stop was a quick viewing of Los Gemelos, a collapsed lava tube causing what looks like a big crater.

From there we drove a little further to El Rancho El Chato, a giant tortoise reserve. Unlike yesterday’s breeding center, where the tortoises are in captivity before they are released into the wild, these tortoises are wild and free to roam wherever they want. They are also a different species since this is a different island and tortoises are fully terrestrial. Before heading out on the reserve, we had lunch at the reserve’s restaurant/gift shop. They were selling a local beer called Reptillia. We picked the one with the tortoise on the label, obviously. As we ate, we overlooked the grounds and could see a few tortoises hanging around.

After lunch, we stopped at the botas hut to switch our shoes to rain boots. The trail can get muddy and/or wet, so the boots were much appreciated. As soon as we started on the trail, we saw a giant tortoise right next to the path. As we walked, we continued to see and admire the several tortoises of varying ages and sizes.

Giant tortoise!

Look, you’re on the flag

This trail has some of the poisonous apple trees that are also on Isabela. Technically, they aren’t really poisonous – but they will make you itchy. There was a family with two little girls near us. When their guide told them not to touch or eat the apples, one of the girls said, “when you tell me not to do it, it makes me want to do it more.” Good luck with that one.

Tortoise friends

Giant tortoise close up

Martin led us to a section that had mandarin trees. We picked the ripe ones that were reachable and had a fresh, sweet, trail treat as tortoises wandered around us.

Teamwork!

Delicious mandarins

From there, we walked through three lava tubes. They were big enough to stand up nearly the entire time. Plus, Martin is about the same height as Matt (maybe a little taller) so he has tall appreciation for him. It also helps when Martin enters lava caves first, Matt knows he can fit.

Entering the cave

Matt (mostly) fits!

The end of the last lava tube exits right back where we started – conveniently near the gift shop. We didn’t see anything particularly interesting in the shop, but we did become one with the turtles by getting into their shells.

Humans in a tortoise shell. Tortoise power.

We got back in the car and drove to the next stop – the Darwin Research Station. On the way, we passed by cattle farms that produce very good yogurt and cheese (according to Martin). When we arrived, we followed the outdoor loop with various exhibits along the way. There is also another tortoise breeding center here, so we got to see some more baby giant tortoises.

We passed by the buildings where the actual research takes place, but couldn’t go inside. It is their place of work after all. The published papers are available online for your reading pleasure. We were able to go into one last exhibit with tortoise shells, a whale jaw (huuuugge) and of course, a Darwin life-size diorama. Here, we did give in to the gift shop and bought shirts. As a bonus, the cost is fully a donation to research (yeah, science!).

The research station was the last scheduled activity of the day. Higinio dropped our bags off at the hotel, so we were able to walk to town. Along the way, Martin pointed out the shops and restaurants he recommends. We made it to the hotel and checked in. We took a moment to admire our giant room, then promptly left to check out those shops.

Blue-footed Jo

We did some souvenir shopping, but agreed we were solid in the magnet department. We did make a point of going to Darwin and Wolf, a trendy, high-quality beach clothing store that Martin recommended. It was designed to feel like you are underwater and smelled great. We focused on the sale section where Matt found red swim trunks with a map of the islands on them and Jo found a cute blue-footed boobie purse (not on sale, but worth it). Darwin and Wolf are the names of two islets where lots of sharks are found. A portion of every purchase helps protect the sharks.

Our new favorite store, Darwin + Wolf

Shopping was officially done, and we still had time to check out the aforementioned Santa Cruz Brewery (with Darwin on the label). We walked through the boardwalk to get there, then found a table on the open air top level. At first we sat in the back, but once some Norway World Cup fans cleared out, we upgraded to a prime location with a nice breeze and a great view of the harbor and street below.

View from the boardwalk

We looked over the menu of drafts beers, and decided that picking one is silly when you can get a flight of nearly all of them (except the Gringo, obviously). We tried everything, ranked our favorites, and agreed on a trade (extra tart cherry to Jo, extra porter to Matt).

Try all the beers! For science!

Before dinner, we made a stop back at the room to get ready. We met Martin in the lobby and walked over together. Dinner was great, but the real excitement was after dinner. Martin suggested we walk back to the pier as you can sometimes see sharks. He was spot-on. We found a sting ray and about six baby blacktip sharks swimming and eating little fish in the low tide.

Dinner decked out for Darwin and World Cup

There are baby sharks (do do do do) in there

On the way back to the hotel, we made a detour to a connivence store to get ice cream bars that we had been eyeing all day. Overall, it was a pretty great last day in the Galapagos. Tomorrow we rewind the route (drive to dock, ferry to Baltra, bus to the airport) to fly to Quito to start Part 3: Cloud Forest.

Day 10: Isabela Island

by Joanna

Updated: June 19, 2026

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We had an early wake up today in order to eat breakfast and get to the airport for our first inter-island flight leaving at 8:00 am. But because the airport is tiny, and so is the plane, we didn’t need to leave the hotel until 7:15 am.

Martin picked us up with a taxi and it took about five minutes to get to the airport. When we arrived, all we had to do was check our bags (after they weighed them to make sure they were under 25 pounds, which was probably the part of checking-in they took most seriously).

Check in at the only open gate

The airline only has two planes, and our flight only had about 10 seats. So there wasn’t exactly a long line. When everyone was checked in, they walked us to the main airport to go through security and wait at the only gate. As a surprise bonus, there was a Priority Pass lounge that we gladly utilized for 10 minutes.

Just a bunch of VIPs in the lounge

When it was time to board, we all went onto the tarmac and loaded ourselves into the plane. We were sitting right behind the pilot. Probably could have sat shotgun if we asked since there was no co-pilot. We took off just after 8:00 am and were in the air for about 45 minutes before landing on Isabela Island. Totally beats the boat ride, which would have been at least two hours to Santa Cruz, then another two hours to Isabela.

I’m not used to being taller than the plane

Captain Luis gives us the sky team rules briefing

Starting the decent to Isabela Island

After landing, we grabbed our bags as they were removed from the cargo hold and walked a few feet to the road where our taxi driver Jonathan picked us up. Like San Cristobal, the main town is pretty compact and it only took a few minutes to arrive at the hotel. Since it was only 9:00 am, our room wasn’t ready yet. No problem, we got ourselves ready for the morning adventure and left our bags with the hotel before Jonathan picked us up and took us to the docks.

Hotel Casita de Marita

Similar to yesterday, we were once again part of a larger group on a boat, but with Martin as our guide, it was still effectively our own tour. The first part was a short boat ride to see any wildlife we could spot. We saw blue footed boobies and some other various birds.

Blue Footed Booby

Next up was a short walk on the lava flow next to the water. Isabela island is the biggest of the Galápagos Islands and was formed by volcanic activity resulting in large areas of lava. On the path were Iguanas (full grown and a bunch of babies) and lava lizards. We also saw a few sea lions playing in the water and could see a sea turtle in the distance.

Just sea lion around

A bunch of marine iguanas on the rocks

The final event of the morning was snorkeling. The water was pretty clear and was mostly shallow, though it did drop off to deeper sections. We saw sea turtles, lots of different fish, a few different types of sting rays, inlcuding the marbled sting ray (which was huge), and sharks! This tour was called Las Tintoreras, which is the type of shark we saw. Aptly named tour. As an added bonus, we saw Galapagos penguins on the rocks at the shore. Overall, a great snorkel day.

Ready to jump in

Following a sea turtle

We saw penguins!

We climbed back onboard and headed straight back to the pier. Jonathan picked us up again to take us back to the hotel. Our room was ready and we had some time to change before lunch. The Mexican restaurant was a few blocks away, and we walked along the beach to get there.

Isabela Island shoreline

Met another penguin

Blue Heron enjoying a beach day

After lunch, we walked to a lagoon where you can sometimes see pink flamingoes if you are lucky. And we were! We saw about 10 of them hanging out in the lagoon. I don’t think you can see both penguins and flamingos in the same day in most places.

Next stop was the Giant Tortoise Breeding Center. Jonathan was busy, so his cousin picked us up. When we arrived, Martin told us that introduced animals, like goats, became invasive and threatened the tortoise population. Now there are projects to get rid of the goats and increase the tortoise population back to what it was before humans arrived. The center has different areas for different ages of tortoises. We saw little babies all the way to fully grown giant adult tortoises.

Giant tortoise breeding center, obviously

Baby (not so) giant tortoises

From the center, we walked a path to a different lagoon (no flamingoes this time) then continued on back to the main town. Now having an understanding of where we were, we said bye to Martin for the next few hours. We walked around the shops and were successful in finding a little stone turtle (that doubles as a magnet), blue footed boobie, and a sea lion to add to our collection.

Oh, look. Isabela Island likes Darwin too

We walked back along the beach to the hotel and tried to relax on the back porch. We were in the shade, but there was no breeze and it was just too hot. Plus the hotel bar’s “special” two for one cocktail deal was still ridiculously expensive. We took all of this as a sign to go find one of the many bars on the beach. We walked to the first bar we saw that had (1) shade, (2) a breeze, and (3) a good happy hour special. We enjoyed our drinks and the view while catching up on some blogging.

Tracking the elusive Galapagos beach chair

Our plan was to stay to watch the sunset over the ocean, but it was a bit too cloudy by that time. We stopped back at the hotel to drop off some things before walking to dinner. The restaurant was on the beach and aptly named Beach Restaurant. Pro tip: when you are on an island, always order the fish.

Martin surfs and knows things!

Tasty fish and octopus

Tomorrow takes us to yet another island — technically two. We will first fly to Baltra (because that is where the airport is), then take a ferry to Santa Cruz (because that is where the giant tortoises are).

Day 9: Kicker Rock

by Joanna

Updated: June 17, 2026

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Today started with breakfast at the hotel. However, you really have to keep your guard up at these tables, because the locals are lurking to steal your delicious omelettes the first chance they get!

This is for me, yes?

Martin picked us up shortly thereafter and we walked a few minutes to the pier. For our adventure, we would be sharing a boat with a tour group of about 12 people. As we waited, we watched a guy shoo all of the sea lions lounging on benches and tables back into the water by banging a broomstick on the ground.

Meet at the pier for the snorkel adventure

Where did Martin go? Getting coffee!

Local art featuring more Darwin

Eventually, our entire group boarded a water taxi that ferried us to the boat — named Shark Sky. The boat’s first stop was a beach (only accessible by boat). We spent about an hour and a half snorkeling here. There were many sea turtles, a variety of fish, and a few sting rays. There were also marine iguanas resting on the beach. We snorkeled up, walked along the beach to get a closer look. When we were ready, we opted for the dinghy ride back to save energy for the next snorkel later today.

“Give me three shots and drop the anchor!”

When we returned to the boat, the chef prepared lunch. We ate while still anchored to maintain some semblance of balance. After lunch, the boat set sail to the main attraction — and our second stop of the day — at Kicker Rock, which is named as such because it looks like a shoe or a boot. The Spanish name is El León Dormido, the sleeping lion, because from high on the mainland it looks like a sleeping lion.

I could get used to this

Kicker Rock was created by volcanic activity. The ash from the volcanic eruptions interacted with water and became heavily compacted, creating a large tuff cone. The boat drove around the rocks (there are technically two) before we started snorkeling. We spotted a red-footed boobie resting high on the rock, which is very rare for this spot. Many other birds were around as well, either as nesting ground or stopping ground. We spotted Nasca boobies, blue-footed boobies, and frigate birds to name a few.

Close up of kicker rock

Party boat ready!

Let’s snorkel there

The boat found a calm spot for us to start the snorkel. We first swam between the rocks, then around the large rock. On one side of the rocks, it was a bit choppy and not quite as clear. Even so, we still saw plenty of marine life. Martin (who may be part fish) swam down a few times to get a closer view of anything below. He saw a school of hammerhead sharks that were swimming just under us.

Snorkel time

Trying to pose underwater

Kicker Rock

Reflecting on Kicker Rock

After we navigated our way around the rock and returned to the boat, we headed back to port. We had a couple hours to spend before dinner, which was a good opportunity to shop for the ‘ol magnet collection. We started walking around, but almost all of the shops were closed. Just as we were about to give up having only acquired two iced coffees, some shops started opening up for the evening (siesta over, I guess?). We found the magnets we were looking for.

Giant map of where we are

We then learned the town was setting up a big projection screen in the town square for the Ecuador vs Ivory Coast World Cup match at 5pm. Count us in! We’re Ecuador fans now. After asking a few people in stores and on the street where to find shirts, we were directed to the Continental Market store that sold a bit of everything, including (knock off) jerseys. We each got one and were ready for the game.

If Darwin is gonna be watching the game, we should too

Side quest complete

We booked it back to the hotel for a super quick shower and changed into our new shirts. The main square now had a crowd of people were there ready to cheer Ecuador on. It’s a bummer that they ended up loosing, but it was still a lot of fun and good energy.

Let’s go, Ecuador

Half-time score: 0-0

They lost

Bring your chairs back home

The game finished in time for us to meet Martin for dinner. We took a taxi to the house of Martin’s friend, Jackie. She currently owns a restaurant in the front of her house and previously owned the restaurant in the building where Martin and his family used to live. She led us around the back of the house to a porch where we were seated at a special chef‘s table for dinner.

She then proceeded to made us some incredible ceviche and freshly caught grilled fish with veggies right from her garden (limes and avocados picked today moments ago). When we were full and finished the bottle of wine, we walked the few blocks back to the hotel.

Best ceviche ever

We called it a night as tomorrow we get up early to fly to Isabella island.

Day 8: Quito to San Cristobal Island

by Joanna

Posted: June 16, 2026

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Today starts Part 2: Islands! Next stop, San Cristobal Island in the Galapagos. We woke up at 5:30 am and grabbed a quick snack at the Wyndham hotel breakfast buffet before catching the 6:30 am shuttle. The Wyndham is across the street from the airport, so it only took five minutes.

The Galapagos are part of Ecuador, so it’s a domestic flight, but there are a lot of extra precautions and steps that need to be followed (hoops to jump thru). The advice is to get to the airport at least two hours early, but three is better.

Once we arrived at the airport, the first thing we had to do was get our transit control cards. We had filled out all the paperwork online and only needed to confirm and pay. Other people in line were clearly having issues gathering the information they needed using their phones and spotty WiFi, so we could see how this line could take a long time.

First of many lines

Next, we had to put our bags through a bio scanner to make sure we didn’t have any plants, nuts, rocks, dirt, etc that would be brought into the islands. Again, we had completed the paperwork online, so it was super quick for us. Looked frustrating for those trying to figure out the website while in line. The strange part was we didn’t receive any confirmation/documentation that we had gone through the scan. I guess you are just “declaring” you don’t have any contraband. Multiple employees said we were fine, so we went with it.

Since we were early enough and had our paperwork figured out, we made it to security after 30 minutes. So yeah, early is the way to go if you’re going to the Galapagos. We had time to relax in a lounge until it was time to board.

Finally, some espresso

The flight was full, but had a stopover in Guayaquil. Most people got off, but those continuing to the Galapagos stayed on. A few new people boarded, and there were plenty of open seats and we were able to spread out to the aisle and window. This was especially helpful since the “extra space” supposedly in the Plus seats we bought definitely did not exist. An hour and a half later, we landed in San Cristobal airport.

Now boarding

Prepare for landing on San Cristobal Island

Before exiting the airport, we had to show our Bio screener QR code and scan our bags again. Our guide for the week, Martin, was ready and waiting for us. We found out later that Martin had also spent the last few days in the highlands, going to some of the same places we did, and only just arrived back home in the Galapagos on an earlier flight. The ride to the Casa Opuntia hotel only took a few minutes. The hotel manager explained the property and how the name Opuntia is a type of cacti found here. We took a moment to settle in and change, then walked to lunch.

Streets of San Cristobal

View from Casa Opuntia’s lobby/restaurant

Martin was born and raised on this island, so he knows it well. He explained where to find different types of stores (pharmacies, bakeries, etc.), and basically knew everyone we passed. We also saw a bunch of sea lions on the rocks and in the water right outside the hotel. There were also iguanas, geckos, crabs, and a bunch of birds. After lunch we got ready for our afternoon adventure.

Our room for the next two nights

Martin Explains our afternoon

The first stop was the Interpretation Center – a museum featuring the geology of the islands, the biodiversity, and the human history. Martin walked us though the museum and gave a summary of the entire museum. The Galápagos Islands are unique because while it certainly does not have the most diversity in species, it does have the most endemic species. Fun fact: Martin and his family are featured in the museum as they have lived on the island since his dad was young.

This is definitely the only statue of Darwin, right?

3D Topo Map of the island

Martin is famous!

Right outside of the Interpretation Center is a walking path to Tijeretas Hill. Martin told us about the species of cacti here. There is the Opuntia Cactus, which is rounded has soft quills on top, and the completely different species, the Candle Cactus, which is tall and thin and has pointy quills on top.

Headed up the hill

Endemic Candle cacti

Opuntia cactus – not endemic, but it is the name of the hotel

There were two view points we reached that overlooked Darwin Bay. Along the way, we saw Darwin Finches, Holy Wood trees (which have a resin that smell like incense, Frigate birds, pelicans, and a bunch of other birds.

Hiding heron

Galapagos flag at the viewpoint

View from above

After reaching the view points, we walked back down to the dock in Darwin Bay. We got ready to snorkel and Martin helped ease us in. We swam around for about an hour, staying in the bay the entire time. The water was clear and we saw sea turtles, a whole bunch of different fish, urchins, and very playful sea lion pups who would swim around us.

Playing with sea lions

When we finished, the sun was setting. It was beautiful, but we also had to get a move on before it got dark. On the way back to the interpretation center we stopped at another viewpoint, this time with a statue of Darwin. When we got back, it was dark and we took a taxi back to the hotel.

Oh, hey, another Darwin statue

Sunset at the bay

We took some time to change and get ready for dinner at a Galapagos/Italian restaurant (it was great). Martin told us the plan for tomorrow: a snorkel adventure at Kicker Rock. When we finished dinner, we made a quick stop to see the sea lions on the beach, then went right to sleep. In true South American fashion, there has been a party raging with loud live music from about 4:00 pm on into the night (until about 2:00 am ish) celebrating one of the towns on the island. We could hear it at the hotel and all the way up on the hill.

Day 7: Quilotoa

by Joanna

Updated: June 13, 2026

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Today is our last day of the first part of our trip – the highlands. After a delicious breakfast of homemade yogurt, banana pancakes, and French toast, we checked out of Hacienda El Porvenir.

Last breakfast at Hacienda del Volcan

Driver of the day – Jeicon

Our main stop for the day is Quilotoa Lake, which is about a three hour drive away. Jeicon was our driver today, and he was ready for us at 8:15. To no one’s surprise, Jo slept nearly the entire time. We drove through Zumbahua within the Cotopaxi province, one of the more traditional (AKA poor) areas.

On the road again

Cotopaxi peaking out above the clouds

Farming communities

We stopped at an art gallery of painter who supplied the art at Hacienda El Porvenir, Alfredo Toaquiza.

The inaugurationof President Rafael Correa Delgado in 2007

Delgado was champion of the people and pro military walking dogs

We arrived in Quilotoa village at about 11:15 and got ourselves ready for a short, but steep hike. Quilotoa lake is a three kilometer wide crater lake formed when the volcano erupted and collapsed about 800 years ago. We started at the top at about 12,760 feet and gorgeous overhead views.

Route 3, here we come!

View from above

We walked down a sandy, rocky path for about 40 minutes to 11,550 feet and the lake shore.

Matt is in a selfie that he didn’t take!

Some steep sections

Hiking down

When we made it to the bottom, we took some time to relax and take pictures before heading back up. Since the lake has no drainage (being a crater in a volcano and all) and the only water added to the lake is from rain, it is not advisable to go swimming. But if you do, legend says you will have only daughters since the crater is also known as Princess Toa’s Lake. Hopefully the group of 20ish year olds we saw swimming will get daughters, not dysentery.

Welcome to Lake Quilotoa

Questionable yellow bacteria?

The water is OK for the mules, I guess?

The hike back up was a bit more of a cardiac challenge than the way down. We took breaks when needed, but made it to the top in good time (a bit less than an hour). We were rewarded with a tasty box lunch from Hacienda El Porvenir that we ate while enjoying the view of the crater.

Making our way back up

Smoky the bear knock-off

From there, the last thing to do was make it to the Wyndham airport hotel. Quilotoa is south of Cotopaxi, which is south of Quito, so the drive took about four hours. Jo, again, fell asleep so has no idea what towns we drove through or what the scenery was like.

Harvesting season

We dropped off Santiago near his house along the way (we’ll see him again on Wednesday) and continued on to the airport. After checking in, we used our free welcome drink and appetizer for dinner. We spent the rest of the night organizing our bags for Galapagos. One large bag each will stay here at the hotel. We can take a total of 25 pounds each in a checked bag and a small carry on for the inter island flights, so we have to be selective about what we bring.

Mojito time!

Goooooo sports team!

Our flight leaves early tomorrow for Part 2: Islands!

Day 6: Tambopaxi to Cotopaxi

by Joanna

Updated: June 12, 2026

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Woke up today to a perfectly clear day. We got ourselves ready and met Santiago for breakfast.

Good Morning!

After breakfast, we made sure packing was complete and organized for the driver to pick up our bags. The plan for today was to hike straight from the Tambopaxi lodge all the way to the José Ribas Refugio (the base camp for summit-ers). There is a parking lot about 2 miles from the Refugio that we could have driven to, but what’s the fun in that?

Heading to breakfast

Breakfast views

We started our hike on the road, but soon meandered through the páramo. We even saw three white tailed deer! The pretty flat walk to the base of Cotopaxi took about an hour and twenty minutes.

Off to Cotopaxi

Deer Cotopaxi

The next section was a quite a bit harder. We started on the road leading up to the parking lot. It was a steep set of switchbacks. About halfway up Danny, our driver, met us on the road in case we needed anything from our bags or a ride. Tempting, but no. From there, we were able to take some “short cuts” to go straight up the hill and bypass the switchbacks. Less distance for sure, but also probably a bit harder.

Approaching the hard part

After about three hours on the road/hill, we were almost there. Danny met us so we could grab our micro-spikes. We weren’t on snow or ice (though there was a little off the path), but the extra grip on the loose rocks was really helpful. We made the final push up a shortcut and ended up past the parking lot. We were officially on the path to the Refugio.

Time for micro-spikes

Last short cut on the way up

Getting closer!

The trail had 21 switchbacks going up 814 feet. It took us about 45 minutes. Because it was designed for walking, it was actually a bit easier than the roads.

One of the 21 turns

View from (almost) the top of the trail

So close! Three more turns

Five hours after leaving Cotopaxi, we made it! By then, there were some clouds and it looked like it was going to start raining. We quickly took pictures, bought magnets and made our way down to the parking lot.

Ecuador flag series #3

The team!

Hikers have the option of taking the switchbacks back down, but the preferred route is the steep, straight shot from the Refugio to the lot. The path is soft, loose, sandy rock, so it’s a bit like slide walking. The good news is it took a whole 15 minutes. Plus, we had proper gear and bonus micro-spikes, so we didn’t fall (unlike some people in sneakers).

Sliding down the volcano

Made it to the van!

When we made it to the car, we could see some precipitation starting (tiny hail), but we were safe and dry. We enjoyed our box lunch in the car before heading to Hacienda El Porvenir. Stats for the day: 7 miles, 5 and a half hours, 3,684 feet of gain, max elevation of 15,977 feet.

The clouds here seem to always be so dramatic

Back at Hacienda El Porvenir

Much easier to do when its not raining

Matt already had his deep tissue massage booked for 5:00 and Jo decided to give a massage a try (but definitely not deep tissue). There was time available for a hot stone massage right before Matt’s appointment. Perfect. We had some time to settle in and take care of some miscellaneous Galapagos prep.

Sunset over the ropes course

Before dinner, Santiago led us outside to see the stars. It was a clear night and we could see the Southern Cross, Orion, and the Big Dipper. Since we stayed here before, we already knew what we wanted for dinner (delicious steak and chocolate cake). We had the rest of the night to relax. Tomorrow is our last day of the Highlands portion of the trip with a hike at Quilotoa crater lake.