Travels in the Galapagos Islands (Part 4) – Floreana

Located far  to the south of Santa Cruz, Floreana island is one of the older islands in the Galapagos Archipelago, and as such, it is a good illustration of  how a volcanic island ages. Unlike the younger western islands, Floreana's volcanoes are in the advanced stages of erosion.  This erosion provides rich soil to the highlands, giving Floreana a much more diverse landscape than its immature counterparts have.

Bahia Post Office Barrel

Floreana has a history of buccaneers, whalers and colonists. In the 18th century, British whalers established the Post Office Barrel to send letters to and from England.  This tradition continues today.  Visitors may drop off unstamped letters and pick up others to carry to destinations around the world.  It took less than two weeks for our postcard to arrive back in the United States.

Today, Floreana has a population of about 170 permanent residents, but in the 1930's, when the island was nearly deserted, it was a place of murder and intrigue. A German dentist, his mistress, a young family and a so-called baroness with three men came to live on the island.  When the baroness and her entourage arrived, they began terrorizing the other inhabitants while planning to build a luxury hotel.  In the course of time, the baroness, two of her lovers and the dentist turned up missing or dead. The deaths created much speculation, but to this day, no one has solved the mystery.

Our adventures to Floreana began with an overnight crossing from Santa Cruz after an early dinner.  Our guide warned us that we would be crossing unprotected waters and that the seas could get a little rough.  That was why we ate in the calm of Puerto Ayora Harbor before the Sulliday got underway.  The first hour or so was fine, but then the boat began to roll across the high swells.  It wasn’t severe, but it was constant.  One by one, we lost our smiles and left to lie down for the duration of the voyage. 

In the morning, everything was back to normal, and after a large breakfast, we headed for a wet landing on the green (olivine crystal) beach of Floreana.  We visited the Bahia post office barrel where we all left postcards and picked up a few to take back.  Then we headed inland to walk through ancient lava tunnels. 

That afternoon we were back on the boat for a snorkeling adventure in the Devil’s Crown.  The Devil’s Crown is an almost completely submerged extinct volcano that erosion has transformed into a semi-circle of jagged peaks jetting out of the water. The crown creates a haven for seabirds such as boobies, pelicans and frigates.

The highlight for us was snorkeling in the center of the crater. While underwater, a torpedo-like sea lion buzzed past me.  It nearly scared me to death until I realized what it was.  Then we floated above a graceful school of golden rays.  We saw colorful angelfish, puffer fish, parrotfish, grunts, eels, rays and a host of other species I couldn’t begin to list. The water is a bit cold and rough with a strong current, but it also provides an easy ride through the crown if you don’t fight it.