Santa Cruz (Indefatigable)
Given the name of the Holy Cross in Spanish, its English
name derives from the British vessel HMS Indefatigable. It has an area of 986
square kilometers (381 mi²) and a maximum altitude of 864 meters (2834 ft).
Santa Cruz is the island that hosts the largest human population in the
archipelago at the town of Puerto Ayora. The Charles Darwin Research Station and
the headquarters of the Galápagos National Park Service are located here. The
GNPS and CDRS operate a tortoise breeding center here, where young tortoises are
hatched, reared, and prepared to be reintroduced to their natural habitat. The
Highlands of Santa Cruz offer an exuberant vegetation and are famous for the
lava tunnels. Large tortoise populations are found here. Black Turtle Cove is a
site surrounded by mangrove which sea turtles, rays and small sharks sometimes
use as a mating area. Cerro Dragón, known for its flamingo lagoon, is also
located here, and along the trail one may see land iguanas foraging.
Puerto Ayora
Puerto Ayora is a town in central Galápagos, Ecuador. It is
located on Santa Cruz Island, and it is the seat of Santa Cruz Canton. It is
named after Isidro Ayora, an Ecuadorian president. The town is sometimes
mistakenly referred to as Santa Cruz.
Puerto Ayora is the most populated town in the province, with approximately 10,000 inhabitants. It also has the most advanced tourist infrastructure in the archipelago. Most flights from Ecuador fly to the small island of Baltra just off the north end of Santa Cruz. Tame and Areogal are the two airlines available. Tame will generally cost tourists (extranjeros) 390 dollars round trip. Areogal is often less expensive, but the planes are older and fewer flights are offered.
Puerto Ayora has a privileged location, along the shores of Academy Bay. During most of the year, it receives a refreshing breeze which gives the town wonderful weather. The months of the hot season (December to May) make Puerto Ayora in Santa Cruz island a tropical paradise.
The bay is a good location to spot brown pelicans, marine iguanas, herons, Galapagos sea lions, and large numbers of blue-footed boobies, which fish by spectacular plunge diving.
Puerto Ayora in Santa Cruz island holds a very important communications infrastructure, including a bank (Banco del Pacifico) and several cybercafes with Internet access.
3 June 2007 – Afternoon Visit to Bachas Beach, Santa Cruz Island (Indefatigable)
Located just west of Turtle Cove, Las Bachas are two small beaches, one of which contains the remains of a floating pier, a remnant of World War II activity in the Islands. While an excellent place to swim, the shoreline and saltwater ponds behind the beach are a good habitat for blue herons and other shore birds, as well as occasional flamingo. The beach is a favorite nesting place for the green sea turtle.
PRINCIPAL ATTRACTIONS: bathing beach; remnants of floating pier
OTHER ATTRACTIONS: brackish water ponds (in season); occasional flamingo; green sea turtle nests; occasional great blue heron
PRINCIPAL PLANT SPECIES: black mangrove, red mangrove
7 June 2007 – Morning Visit to Charles Darwin Research Station, Isla Santa Cruz (Indefatigable)
Galápagos visitors come to the Charles Darwin Research Station to learn how the protection and conservation of the Islands is carried out. By visiting these facilities you will begin to realize that not only scientists, but also professional administrators and Park wardens exert an enormous effort to maintain the Park’s ecosystems and endangered species that inhabit them.
PRINCIPAL ATTRACTIONS: adult Galápagos tortoises in captivity; center for raising young tortoises; Van Straelen Exhibit Hall; National Park Information Center
OTHER ATTRACTIONS: Opuntia cacti; Darwin’s finches; other land birds
MAIN PLANT SPECIES: Jasminocereus thouarsii (cacto esbelto or candelabra cactus); Cryptocarpus pyriformis (monte salado or salt bush); Parkinsonia aculeate; Rhisophora mangle (mangle rojo or red mangrove); Opuntia echios gigantea (tuna or prickly pear cactus); Tournefortia rufo sericea (palito negro); Scalesia affinis (lechoso); Scutia pauciflora (espino); Croton scouleri (chala); Alternathera filifolia (palo santo)
7 June 2007 – Afternoon Visit to Zona Alta, Isla Santa Cruz (Indefatigable)
Los Gemelos or “The Twins” can be a startling encounter for the first-time visitor. These two sinkholes are examples of Earth’s crustal weakness. There are many sinkholes on Santa Cruz, but these represent the major geological attraction. Sometimes damp fog emerges from their depths large sinkholes; Scalesia forest; humid zone vegetation
OTHER ATTRACTIONS: land snails; large-billed flycatchers; vermillion flycatchers; shorteared owls; Galápagos doves
MAIN PLANT SPECIES: Darwiniothamnus tenuifolius; Miconia robinsoniana (cacaotillo); Psidium galapageium (guayabillo); Scalesia pedunculata (lechoso); Cyanthea weatherbyanus (tree fern); Xanthoxylum fagara (cat’s claw); Ageratum conyzoides; Tournefortia sp.; Passiflora colinvauxii; Polypodium tridens (fern); Plantago sp.; Sida fhombifolia (escoba); Elaphoglossum sp. (fern)
7 June 2007 – Afternoon Visit to Zona de Reserva, Santa Cruz Island (Indefatigable)
After hiking through the agricultural area, maybe sighting several types of finches and other birds, you will arrive at the National Park boundary and the Tortoise Reserve. We visited “Caseta” and “Cerro Chato” – both of which offer excellent viewing of the giant Galápagos tortoise in its native habitat, as well as tall trees, vines, and tangled vegetation typical of the humid zone areas, found only on a few of the taller Galápagos Islands.
PRINCIPAL ATTRACTIONS: giant tortoises; humid zone vegetation; vermillion flycatchers; paint-billed crakes (rails); yellow warblers; Darwin’s finches; Galápagos rail
OTHER ATTRACTIONS: short-eared owls; broad-billed flycatchers; freshwater ponds; whitecheeked pintail ducks (in season)
MAIN PLANT SPECIES: Azolla microphylla (aquatic fern); Scalesia pedunculata; Psidium galapageium; Zanthoxylum fagara (cat’s claw); Pisonia floribunda (pega-pega); Piscidia carthagenense; Tournefortia pubescens; Psychotria rufipes; Croton scouleri; Clerodendrum molle, Hippomane mancinella; Tilandsia insularis (bromeliad); Caesalpinia bonduc; Pennisetum purpeum (elephant grass)
10 June 2007 – Morning Visit to Caleta Tortuga Negra (Turtle Cove), Isla Santa Cruz (Indefatigable)
This impressive Galápagos marine site consists of a maze of tranquil seawater inlets, similar to an estuary. Inlets are surrounded by three species of mangroves, forming thickets that support developing forms of marine fishes. The still, murky waters are the resting – and sometimes mating – place for marine turtles, rays, and small sharks.
PRINCIPAL ATTRACTIONS: sea turtles; white-tipped sharks; spotted eagle rays; mustard rays; mangrove-surrounded coves
OTHER ATTRACTIONS: oysters; lava herons
MAIN PLANT SPECIES: Rhisophora mangle (mangle rojo or red mangrove); Laguncularia racemosa (mangle blanco or white mangrove); Avicennia germinans (mangle negro or black mangrove)
