Premo83
Contributor
In September I went to the Galapagos. What an amazing place both above and below the surface but I focus here on the diving part. I did go on the Humboldt Explorer for a seven day trip. The boat is fine, nothing luxurious, the AC in our cabin didn’t work so it got quite warm. Space is very limited but manageable and the boat never felt too crowded for me as there is a big sundeck to hang out. The dive deck has enough space. The crew is very helpful and fun, they did a very good job. The food was great and always plentyful.
We usually did 4 dives a day unless we were travelling to or from the northern Islands of Wolf and Darwin. The water temperature ranged from 16° to 23°. On the first day of diving at Punta Carrion we only had 5-10 meters visibility. There were lots of Jelly fish, a couple turtels, rays and reef sharks. Plus we got a glimpse of a Mola Mola. After a land excursion on the North Seymour Island, which was very impressive, we headed to Wolf Island. We were diving there for one and half days. Visibility continued to be bad but you could see how amazing this place was. Lots of Hammerhead Sharks passing by but it was it was more like shadows or silhouettes due to the poor visibility. Sometimes one got close when you held your breath and remained still. Galapagos sharks were also on patrol and the occasional eagle rays. Big pods of Dolphins we saw from the Zodiak. One time we jumped in for a short snorkel. Next we moved to Darwin. Visibility got better and there we could see the big schools of Hammerhead Sharks much better. There were also lots of Galapagos and Silky sharks and sometimes an Oceanic Black tip Shark. Also Turtels everywhere. Unfortunately no Whalesharks. The days before they saw plenty but that’s nature. I would have loved to see them but I came mainly for the Hammerheads so I was happy. After one and half days at Darwin we headed back to Wolf Island again. It was pretty similar to the first time lots of sharks but poor visibility. So we headed south overnight to Cousin’s rock for the last two dives. There you could see sea lions, white tip reef sharks and one group had a Manta Ray encounter. So I returned quite happy from the trip. I wish we had better visibility but the things I saw were already very impressive. The dives with good visibility at Darwin were some of the best dives I’ve ever had.
Below is a short 5 min. video of the trip.
We usually did 4 dives a day unless we were travelling to or from the northern Islands of Wolf and Darwin. The water temperature ranged from 16° to 23°. On the first day of diving at Punta Carrion we only had 5-10 meters visibility. There were lots of Jelly fish, a couple turtels, rays and reef sharks. Plus we got a glimpse of a Mola Mola. After a land excursion on the North Seymour Island, which was very impressive, we headed to Wolf Island. We were diving there for one and half days. Visibility continued to be bad but you could see how amazing this place was. Lots of Hammerhead Sharks passing by but it was it was more like shadows or silhouettes due to the poor visibility. Sometimes one got close when you held your breath and remained still. Galapagos sharks were also on patrol and the occasional eagle rays. Big pods of Dolphins we saw from the Zodiak. One time we jumped in for a short snorkel. Next we moved to Darwin. Visibility got better and there we could see the big schools of Hammerhead Sharks much better. There were also lots of Galapagos and Silky sharks and sometimes an Oceanic Black tip Shark. Also Turtels everywhere. Unfortunately no Whalesharks. The days before they saw plenty but that’s nature. I would have loved to see them but I came mainly for the Hammerheads so I was happy. After one and half days at Darwin we headed back to Wolf Island again. It was pretty similar to the first time lots of sharks but poor visibility. So we headed south overnight to Cousin’s rock for the last two dives. There you could see sea lions, white tip reef sharks and one group had a Manta Ray encounter. So I returned quite happy from the trip. I wish we had better visibility but the things I saw were already very impressive. The dives with good visibility at Darwin were some of the best dives I’ve ever had.
Below is a short 5 min. video of the trip.