AT LAST—cruising again—Live from the Silversea Origin August 28-September 4, 2021

[englishusa]

Loving this blog! Wonderful memories of both of you!

[Stumblefoot]

Food as you describe it sounds tasty.  Sorry that you had to miss the iconic view since a couple of passengers wanted to be let off.

[zqtchas]

11 minutes ago, Stumblefoot said:

Food as you describe it sounds tasty.  Sorry that you had to miss the iconic view since a couple of passengers wanted to be let off.

maybe not by choice!

[RachelG]

August 30, 2021–Isabela and Fernandina Islands, Galapagos

 

The oceans was completely still during the night, making for very smooth sailing and a great night’s sleep.  I awoke at 6 am due to the bright sun peaking through the slit in the curtains.  We were not ANCHORED in the caldera of a volcano. The ship has a special system which holds it in place without dropping an anchor so as to not damage the sea floor.

 

Again, perfect weather with the temperature right at 70, though a high of 80F is expected this afternoon which is way warmer than it has been the past few weeks.  There was a slight breeze but not bad.

 

The plan for the morning was a zodiac tour followed by a deep water snorkel.  The zodiac took us to the cliffs where there were some birds, mostly blue footed boobies and flightless cormorants, and a single hawk, but the real highlight was the sea turtles in the water.  There were hundreds, and the water is so clear that you could easily see them.  There were also lots of iguanas taking in the sun on the rocks as well as several fur seals in the water, and some babies on land.

 

While George went deep water snorkeling, I got my steps in walking up on the top deck.  It is possible to go all the way around, though that does involve going through the area by the grill—so can’t do during meal times.

 

George returned stating this the best snorkeling of his life.  He got to play with sea lions, saw lots of sea turtles up close, saw a penguins plus thousands of fish of all sizes and types.

 

He was hungry, so we went upstairs to eat lunch outdoors.  They have a salad bar as well as a grill menu. Not lots of options, but everything we tried was delicious.  The iced tea on this ship is perfectly brewed, which is a big deal to us.

 

Afternoon brought a hike of Fernandino island.  We had been here before.  Lots of iguanas and super sharp volcanic stone surfaces are what I remembered, and I was correct.  Literally thousands of iguanas piled on top of each other.  We also saw some cute baby seals and lots of birds.  The hike definitely was challenging, not because of elevation change but because of the sharp irregular volcanic rock.  This would be an easy place to get injured.

 

We had a lovely dinner with friends, with really good red snapper which is what everyone ordered.  Then George went to the stargazing.  I went up for a few minutes, but it was freezing cold.  Not worth it for stars IMO.

[RachelG]

Sea turtles 

[RachelG]

Afternoon hike

[Fletcher]

Fernandina Island is where the BBC wildlife unit filmed that astonishing sequence when the racer snakes chase the baby iguanas across the rocks.   Never saw a snake there myself.

[mbanks1220]

Loving your report - thanks!    Question for you.   Is there a SPA on board for massages and is the a store in which to purchase items, say with SS Logo and such?

[RELS]

2 hours ago, mbanks1220 said:

Is there a SPA on board for massages and is the a store in which to purchase items, say with SS Logo and such?

 

The deck plan shows a spa, but no boutiques.

[RachelG]

3 hours ago, mbanks1220 said:

Loving your report - thanks!    Question for you.   Is there a SPA on board for massages and is the a store in which to purchase items, say with SS Logo and such?

There is a spa, very tiny, which offers massage, mani/pedi, haircuts.  Prices are pretty reasonable for a ship. No gift shop, but they have things for sale on display in a glass case.  George bought a hat.  They have some Galapagos themed jewelry which looks nice, expedition type shirts and pants, hats, very basic.

[RachelG]

August 31, 2021–Isabela Island

 

 

We only sailed a very short distance during the night.  When we awoke, we were in a protected cove, Tagus Cove, where the ship Darwin was on had anchored.  There was a lot of graffiti on the rocks coming down to the water left by sailors years ago—the names of ships and the dates they were there.

 

It was overcast and windy, chilly compared to yesterday, but a perfect temperature for hiking.  George was in the power hike group, while I was in the regular group.  Same trail, the power hikers just did it without the stops for commentary by the guides.  

 

The zodiacs took us over to a rocky landing, and we went pretty much straight up from there, first rocks to scramble over, but that was a very short distance, then 140 wooden stairs, then a hard packed dirt trail which wasn’t as steep but steadily went up.  

 

We hiked around the rim of a caldera with a large crater lake in the center to an outlook over the other side where we could see a huge lava field.  This hike was more about geology and plants rather than animals.  We did see a few mocking birds and finches, but otherwise no wildlife except for some penguins in the water when we came back down.  The landscape is very arid, with plants adapted for dry conditions—cactus and dead looking trees which really aren’t dead, small bushes and a little dry grass, sort of like southern Utah.

 

The views from the top were great, but it was very windy.  Coming down, the sun finally came out, and it got warmer quickly, so I was happy we were on the way down.

 

There were zodiac rides and kayaking on offer for those who didn’t want to hike.  Then George went for another deep water snorkel.  I walked up on the top deck.  George reported seeing puffer fish, a very spiked fish that he doesn’t know the name of, a couple of octopi fighting, as well as thousands of other small fish.

 

At lunch,George tried out the pizza and said it was great. I stuck with my usual soup and salad, but may have to check out the pizza later this week.  

 

There was a lecture in early afternoon, but we took a nap instead.  Too many early mornings.  At 4 pm, we went on a zodiac tour through the mangroves. The water was teeming with life.  We saw lots of sea turtles, big and little fish, penguins, sea lions.  We even saw sea lions laying in a mangrove tree.  The guide turned off the engine, so it was very peaceful.

 

George and I watched the sunset again from the top deck.  This has become something of a tradition this trip, because the sunsets are spectacular.  And we saw the green flash.  I actually saw it the other night, but it is quick, and George missed it.  So tonight, I told him to be ready, and he caught it.

 

There was an interesting pre dinner lecture.  For dinner, George has finally learned the lesson to stick with the seafood, which is uniformly delicious.  We had a fish I had never heard of before, and can’t remember the name of, but it is local and very tasty.

[RachelG]

Tree seals

[Polecat]

Rachel, thanks for all the great information and photos.  On the days that you are doing a hike do you wear reef walkers for the zodiac wet landings then change into your hiking shoes?

[RachelG]

24 minutes ago, Polecat said:

Rachel, thanks for all the great information and photos.  On the days that you are doing a hike do you wear reef walkers for the zodiac wet landings then change into your hiking shoes?

They tell you if it is a dry or wet landing.  If it is a dry landing, you wear hiking shoes. For wet landings, I wear my water shoes then change if it is a longer hike but if it shorter and not on a lot of lava, I just wear my water shoes 

[RachelG]

Images from yesterday’s hike

[RachelG]

No idea why the last pic is upside down.  It was right side up when I submitted it.

[RachelG]

Mangrove cruise

[chefestelle]

1 hour ago, RachelG said:

No idea why the last pic is upside down.  It was right side up when I submitted it.

Other posters in other threads have had the same issue. It might be with the site as opposed to the user

[mbanks1220]

Rachel,

 

Can you tell me can you book excursions ahead of time?   What about spending onboard, is there a gift shop, SPA?

 

[cool cruiser 14107]

I'm interested in the gift shop too! does it have a lot to offer? If you don't buy stuff by day 2 is all the good stuff gone?

[cruisingagain1214]

We will be joining the Origin on the 25th.  Thank you for your postings, they have been educational and informative and I am looking forward to the rest of the trip.  We are flying in and out of Guayaquil due to maintenance of the runways in Quito.  Is there anything you wish you had brought or anything you wish you had left home?  

 

[RachelG]

To answer the questions, there isn’t an actual gift “shop”.  There is merchandise in display cases, then they have to see if they have what you are wanting.  They had the two things we wanted, but I have heard people saying they didn’t have their size, so if you see something you want, get it early.

 

as far as what to bring, make sure you have tooth paste , hairspray, that sort of thing.  They do provide spf 50 sunscreen and good shampoo and shower gel.  

[RachelG]

September 1, 2021–Floreana island, Galapagos

 

We sailed through the night on open ocean, so felt a little bit of movement, just enough to realize we were on a ship.  When we awoke, we were in Post Office Bay on Floreana Island.  It was very overcast and slightly cool, in the upper 60s.  But no wind.  Ahead was a wide crescent shaped sandy beach with lava rocks on both ends.  There were bushes, the type you see at the beach in a lot of places, but no real trees, and fairly flat.

 

George and I were on the first zodiac over for a wet landing.  You could walk on the beach or snorkel in the area by the lava rocks.  George saw a huge sea turtle while snorkeling with little fish eating something (algae?) off his shell.  From the beach, I saw several seals and a lot of birds, mostly finches, but also a pelican and a frigate bird.  The beach was really good for walking as the sand was pretty hard packed.

 

They had zodiacs running back and forth to and from the ship all morning, so you could come and go as you pleased.

 

George again pizza at lunch while I had a delicious face falls pasta dish with sundries tomatoes and mushrooms.  Deep water snorkeling was after lunch.  George went and came back totally frozen.  He did see a lot of fish but thought the water was much colder today.

 

We had a nice hike in an area where we had been previously.  It was a wet landing but pretty easy.  We saw a bunch of blue footed boobies nesting,some with cute fluffy white chicks then hiked to a lagoon where there had been a bunch of flamingos last time.  None today, so we hiked on an easy trail to the other side of the island to a wide white sand beach where we could see stingrays in the water as well as a small snark about 3 ft long.  We hiked back to be picked up by the zodiacs.

 

No zodiacs.  All the groups and guides were there, but no zodiacs.  It was starting to get dark.  One of the guides radioed the ship.  They told him it was going to be a little longer.  Finally the zodiacs arrived.  We loaded on, and the guide made an announcement.  There was an electrical problem on the ship, and they were not able to lower the marina where the zodiacs load and unload.

 

SO—-we would be getting back on the ship via rope ladder into the cargo bay.   Yes, you read that correctly.  And we did it.  Something I have never done before.  The guides and sailors gave good instructions and helped.  Fortunately everyone who had gone on the hike was reasonably fit, and we got to see a restricted part of the ship.

 

Recap and briefing was pushed back by 15 minutes.  Very unusual dinner menu—lamb which was braised and on top of big potato cake, a blue cheese and fig mousse, a Camembert cheese cheesecake.  It was tasty but not for the unadventurous eater.

[RachelG]

Booby babies

[RachelG]

Pics from the beach