Travel Galapagos Islands & Ecuador

Puerto Ayora Activities

Posted September 21st, 2008 by Bob the Sea Lion

Diving

Not surprisingly for a place whose underwater

habitat resembles a well-stocked

aquarium, scuba diving in the Galápagos is

world class. The conditions aren’t suitable

for beginners because of strong currents,

sometimes murky visibility and cold temperatures.

When the water is warm there’s not much of a current so it’s also a little

murky (January to March); there is better

visibility but colder water temperatures

from July to October.

Besides an array of tropical fish there

are plenty of whale sharks, hammerheads,

manta rays and even sea horses to be seen.

The average cost of one week on a liveaboard

is from $2500 to $3000 and includes

up to four or five dives a day plus stops at

some visitor sites on land. Most live-aboard

boats go to Wolf and Darwin, northwest

of the major islands where there’s a large

number of different species of sharks. The

best month to dive with whale sharks is July

but they’re around from May to October.

Punta Estrada and Punta Carrión off the

Puerto Ayora bay are popular dives sites as

is North Seymour island, a short boat road

from Baltra. Devil’s Crown off the northern

tip of Santa Maria is good for barracudas,

rays and sharks. One of the recommended

sites for those with few dives under their

belt is Academy Bay off the Puerto Ayora

harbor.

Companies all over the world can arrange

diving tours on boats in the Galápagos.

There are several professional dive centers

in Puerto Ayora and Puerto Baquerizo

Moreno (see p372 ). Rates vary from about

$80 to $120 for two dives per day, depending

on the destination. Even if you’re not on

a dive-dedicated boat you can usually hook

up with one for a day or so if you arrange it

in advance. The following is a list of some

of the dive shops operating here:

Galápagos Sub-Aqua (%252 6350; www.galapagos

-sub-aqua.com; Av Charles Darwin) Also has an information

office (Guayaquil %/fax 04-230 5514; Orellana 211

& Panamá, Office 402). A full-service dive center which

offers Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI)

certification courses. Day dives and tours of any length are

available. Guides are friendly and most speak English.

Galextur (%252 6277; www.hotelsilberstein.com;

Av Charles Darwin) Run out of the Silberstein Hotel. Offers

dive trips with brand new equipment and a good boat.

Scuba Galápagos (%250 5756; www.scubagalapagos

.com; Av Charles Darwin) Across from the turtle statue.

Scuba Iguana (%252 6497; www.scubaiguana.com;

Hotel Galápagos; Av Charles Darwin) Run by two of the

most experienced divers in the Galápagos. Full-certification

courses and you can arrange for guides to pick you up on

your cruise to take you diving. Trips can also be booked

online or at the Quito office (see p89 ).

Surfing

Surfers tend to be an adventurous bunch

and obstacles like inaccessibility and sea

lions usually aren’t enough to deter them.

There are several good surf breaks near

Puerto Ayora itself including La Ratonera

and Bazán near the Charles Darwin Research

Station beach. If hauling your board

a few kilometers is no problem Tortuga Bay

has several breaks.

An hour or so by boat takes you to Punta

Blanca and further north to Cerro Gallina,

Las Palmas Chica and Las Palmas Grande,

considered to be three of the best breaks in

the Galápagos. There are also several breaks

off the west side of Isla Baltra. Stop by Gravity

Surf (Av Charles Darwin) in Puerto Ayora for

more information.

Tags: Diving, Surfing