Sat, 9 Mar - Part 2

Bike Trip - Part 2
Tortoise Breeding Center and Flamingos


i headed down the road (just in case you weren't hot enough already, the road is made of black lava cinder), ....towards the Tortoise Breeding Center here on Isabela ....

i rode up just in time to see 2 of the tortoises breeding ..... i have some video, but only this 'still' photo .....

ok, ... and for those 'perverts' ....this one too :) ....

i don't know how interested she was ... i read that the females usually try to get away ... that only the large males catch them ...  after she 'escaped', ....he 'sniffed' around for awhile, but she ignored him, and he eventually moved away ... and she went to the 'swimming pool' to visit with her girlfriends who were waiting for her... :)   (at the top of the photo) ...    :)

they have a lot of tortoises here .....

all different ages, and in many different enclosures ....
but none that you can walk around in ... San Cristobal had the nicest, non-zoo-looking, center ...

i never noticed before that tortoises can get that much 'clearance' between them and the earth; ...maybe more characteristic of this species ....

and many different species as well.... this is one has a 'squashed shell' unlike any other tortoises in the Galapagos.   it is from the Volcano area here and only a few individuals were found.    18 adults were moved here in 1998 when they were rescued from an eruption of Cerro Azul Volcano.   fortunately all the males are sexually active and the females are quite fertile.   so just 2 years after bringing them here, they produced over 200 baby tortoises !   ...   :)    (don't know what the count is today)

that leg reminds me of an elephant !    ...

what a face ... no wonder Mothers never hang around to see their young grow up :) ....

i tried to find someone to talk to about doing a few hours of volunteer work, but couldn't find anyone ...


then i biked up the road further to find the Flamingos ..... they were down in this 'pit' that looked like an old quarry .... not exactly the image i had in mind for a beautiful delicate pretty pink flamingo's home ...:(  ....

there were 6 of them; and although they COULD have been further away ..... they were still too far for any good photos .... :( a tripod would have helped :( ....

i like the reflections in this photo ....

i have one video of a flamingo feeding .... i found this particularly intriguing .... it shows how they go about finding food ..... mashing their feet up and down, turning in a circle, while their beak is in the water, filtering food ...  oh ... and i love how their knees bend the back, the opposite way of ours   :)   ...

i guess if i go back later in the day, (when it's even hotter) ....i might see more .... i'll keep trying ... i have some video, but not sure it's much better ....

got back into town and thought i had some time left, and i wanted to ride through town because i still don't know where i went the first day i was here .... when i took my bike back ..... i'd been gone for 7hrs ... :(

i was dripping with sweat .... took a cold shower and a 'siesta' ... i'm getting in the groove here with the locals ... worked on my blog and then it was 'Sunset Time' ...

i was walking next to the beach, when a guy yelled and motioned for me to come over .... it was a National Park Guide, in uniform, so i did ... i recognized him, but couldn't remember from where .... we talked for awhile, and he finally reminded me that he was my Snorkel Guide when i went to Kicker Rock ... the one that was so good at calling in the sharks and Spotted Eagle Rays ... and here he was on Isabela ... far far away from San Cristobal. i think some of the Guides (maybe all) are 'free-lance' and go where ever they are needed. he was 'Guiding' a group on a 4day tour from San Cristobal. ...... you never know who you might run into again here!


came back home and finished up my chicken rice soup and sat in the lobby using the internet .... the mosquitos were relentless tonight, i had 2 on me at once several times, and so quick, they are hard to kill. when i returned tonight the girl asked me how long i was going to stay here .... i think i am the ONLY one here .... i mean only one ... none of the staff are here at night .... i own the place :) .... so, i'm going to buy some fans, put WiFi in the rooms, and better equip the kitchen :)