A photo story of the best place on earth
“What was the best place you have been to during your trip?” is probably one of the most common questions that we get asked. And Lars and I would always answer simultaneously “Galapagos!” Yes, visiting the Galapagos Islands was a once-in a-lifetime experience that we will never forget. It was the perfect mixture of an incredible landscape and a unique wildlife. With its remote location in the eastern Pacific Ocean the Galapagos archipelago is home to animals you don’t find anywhere else in the world.
We expected a lot before we boarded the plane to Santa Cruz, the main island of the Galapagos. We had heard so many stories and had seen many pictures of other travelers who went there before. But we thought one has to be very lucky to see all those unique creatures. Only two weeks later it was our own memory card that was full of thousands of pictures of beautiful animals and amazing landscapes.
In our today’s photo post we want to give you some impressions of the Galapagos Islands and show you where and how we took those pictures (for all hobby photographers). All the pictures were taken with our Canon EOS 500D and a Canon EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Standard Zoom Lens. Get inspired and put this incredible piece of land on your travel bucket list; they are more than worth it. And if you are looking for more detailed information, have a look at our Galapagos on a budget post.
Canon EOS 500D; 135mm; f/5.6; 1/1600s; ISO-1600
The Galapagos Islands wouldn’t be the same without its sea lions. With a population size of about 50,000, the Galapagos Sea Lion is one of the first animals that you encounter. They are everywhere, sprawling on boats, decks, benches and beaches. We met these two cute baby sea lions playing around at La Loberia on
Isla San Cristobal. The beach of La Loberia was one of our favorite spots on Galapagos because sea lions live and move freely there and it’s great to be able to get so close to them.
Canon EOS 500D; 100mm; f/5.6; 1/25; ISO-3200
After having a nice bath in the evening this sea lion made himself comfortable at the beach of
Isla Isabela and didn’t care about all the people who were waiting for the sunset.
Canon EOS 500D; 135mm; f/5.6; 1/200s; ISO-200
During a boat trip on
Isla Isabela we spotted this little guy close to the marina. Galapagos Penguins are endemic to the Galapagos Islands and it is the only penguin that lives north of the equator in the wild.
Canon EOS 500D; 135mm; f/5.6; 1/200s; ISO-1000
Red Rock Crabs love the warm lava rocks of the Galapagos Islands. It doesn’t matter where you go on the islands. As soon as you see lava rocks you will spot the shiny red color of the crabs.
Canon EOS 500D; 135mm; f/5.6; 1/200s; ISO-160
However, Galapagos’s lava rocks are not only popular among Red Rock Crabs. Also Marine Iguanas love to warm from the comparably cold water. The Galapagos Marine Iguana is found only on the Galapagos Islands and is the only lizard that has the ability to forage in the sea. Not only the sea lions also these guys are a permanent companion while exploring the islands; as here on
Isla Isabela.
Canon EOS 500D; 135mm; f/5.6; 1/200s; ISO-320
Canon EOS 500D; 100mm; f/5.6; 1/125s; ISO-200
This is one of my favorite shots: Lars encounter with a giant marine iguana on the beach of
Isla Isabela. We shared this endless beach with only a handful of people and one iguana.
Canon EOS 500D; 18mm; f/8; 1/60s; ISO-100
Kicker Rock, also called León Dormido, is a spectacular landmark in the Galapagos Islands and an amazing snorkel and diving spot. These two volcanic rocks tower 140 meters tall above the sea and are located off the coast of
Isla San Cristobal. We took this picture before we arrived at the rocks to go snorkeling. While all other tourists on the boat went diving BoB, Lars and I snorkeled around the rocks and were amazed by the colorful marine life with its schools of reef fish and bullet fish, starfish, eagle rays, barracudas, green sea turtles and white tip reef sharks. And if you are lucky, you even get to see hammerhead sharks.
Canon EOS 500D; 18mm; f/11; 1/125s; ISO-100
The best spot for taking a break after snorkeling at Kicker Rock: a beautiful sheltered bay. After having lunch on our boat we explored the secluded beach that is only accessible by boat. As soon as we entered the crystal clear water we were surrounded by a school of bullet fish. We could have spent hours there but it was time to head back to the marina.
Canon EOS 500D; 24mm; f/6.3; 1/40s; ISO-100
Look at this lovely giant! The Galapagos tortoises are the giants of the tortoise world. It is an incredible experience to see them creeping past you; their size seems unreal. We visited the farm Rancho Primicias on
Isla Santa Cruz where tortoises live freely in their natural habitat. We absolutely enjoyed walking around the farm and looking for them.
Canon EOS 500D; 135mm; f/5.6; 1/200s; ISO-160
The blue-footed boobies are possibly the most popular animals on the Galapagos Islands. It is such a pleasure to watch these clumsy looking birds with their shiny blue feet. Especially male boobies look funny when they perform a courtship dance to attract mates by lifting their feet up and down. Just before we took this picture, this booby had entertained us with a great performance. You find blue-footed boobies along the islands coasts where they breed and rear young.
Canon EOS 500D; 18mm; f/11; 1/125s; ISO-100
On our first day on
Isla Isabela we were welcomed by this beautiful evening light at the beach. We had the whole beach almost to ourselves and were looking forward to some great days on this amazing island.
Canon EOS 500D; 24mm; f/13; 1/160s; ISO-100
Little BoB is enjoying the same beach during a sunny day. The sun on Galapagos is extremely strong and even a golf ball needs an umbrella at the beach. As you can see, the islands are heaven for nature lovers and sun worshippers alike.
Canon EOS 500D; 18mm; f/5.6; 1/30s; ISO-200
The Galapagos Islands are volcanic islands and offer stunning scenery like here on
Isla Isabela. During a day trip to two volcanoes that formed the island we walked on volcanic ash and were impressed by the different shades of the ash. From the top of the volcanoes we enjoyed a fantastic view of the whole island. We could see the line where civilization stopped and the protected area began and were very happy to see that just a tiny little part of the island is populated.
Canon EOS 500D; 106mm; f/5.6; 1/200s; ISO-125
The beautiful shapes of cooled lava.
Canon EOS 500D; 18mm; f/3.5; 1/60s; ISO-400
On
Isla Santa Cruz you have the opportunity to visit giant lava tunnels. The size of the tunnels is just impressive and to imagine that lava ran through them is almost unbelievable. This lava tunnel has a length of 1 kilometer and if you don’t mind to crawl, you can explore the entire tunnel.
Canon EOS 500D; 18mm; f/8; 1/60; ISO-100
The lava rocks off the shore of
Isla Isabela are populated by sea lions and blue-footed boobies. We passed this rock on our snorkel trip to Kicker Rock.
Canon EOS 500D; 135mm; f/5.6; 1/1600s; ISO-640
The Brown Pelican that lives on the Galapagos Islands is the smallest of pelicans although we thought they were pretty large. We met our first pelican when we started our trip in Mexico and since then we have loved taking pictures of them.
Canon EOS 500D; 135mm; f/5.6; 1/250s; ISO-125
The Galapagos Islands do not only impress with unique wildlife also the sunsets are breathtaking. BoB, Lars and I spent our last night on
Isla Isabela on a local beach and were so happy to watch a sunset on such a unique place on earth.
As you can see, the Galapagos Islands are indeed a very unique place on earth. And it is not only the fact that the archipelago is home to very special species, it is also the incredible landscape, the relaxing atmosphere, and the possibility to get close to the animals and to observe them in their natural habitat, that makes this place on earth unique. Trust me; you don’t need to be a nature lover to be amazed by its beauty.
Not convinced yet? Watch our Galapagos video!
Would you like to visit Galapagos? Is it on your bucket list yet? Or have you been already ? What did you like best? Share your experiences and thoughts in the comments below!
Thanks for reading and safe travels,
Liane