By George.Curtis2 - 3 Apr 2015
http://www.whitehawk.info/travellog_apr09.shtmlThis information has been contributed by and is intended for use by competent amateur yachtsmen as general guidance solely to supplement research of their cruising plans.It has not been checked or verified by the OCC. The Information may be inaccurate or out of date and is NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION.
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Galapagos Islands – 00°45.00'S, 90°08.00'W
Entry requirements
The following information was sent to me from
Galapagos Yacht Agency in early March 2008 as many yachts gathered in Panama before he Pacific crossing, as I tried to sort out the various options having heard alarming rumours.
BRING YOUR CREDIT CARD!
The mail in full reads:
There are two options for visiting the Galapagos Islands with your own boat.
On arrival the park allow you 20 days in one port of Galapagos.This can be the port of Santa Cruz, San Cristobel, Isabella or Floreana. You may visit only one port with this permit.From the port you can then use local cruise boats to tour the islands. For this there you have to pay the park entrance fee of $100 per head and also the fees for navy and immigration.
If you wish to navigate the island in your own boat then you have to obtain a special permit called an autograph permit. This allows you 15 days to travel in the national park areas, the cost of this is $200 per day per head for the days in national park areas, plus the $100 park entrance fee, navy fees and also GOS fees for obtaining the autograph permit. The main change recently is that is not possible to navigate between the inhabited ports without the autograph permit.
If you do not wish to obtain the autograph permit then I recommend coming straight to Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, here you can find many agencies offering day tours, weeks cruises and diving tours. There are also small supermarkets for re-supplies and specialists in
yacht supplies.
Please let me know how you wish to proceed. If you wish to obtain the autograph I will send you a break down of the GOS fees and the documents that are
required.
I hope this helps clear some confusion and look forward to your response
Galapagos Ocean Services Yacht Agency,
Tel:593 5 252 6060
(The Following Information current in 2005, reproduced from Flying Fish 2996/1)
Permits can now be obtained through Galapagos agents with at least a month’s notice, and are a good idea if you want to visit more than one island.
Check www.noonsite.com for up-to-date information on available agents.
Cruisers without permits were allowed 20 days, and if they checked into Santa Cruz they were also allowed to visit Isla Isabella. Those who checked into San Cristobal were restricted to that island.
Total port check-in charges, including zarpes for travelling between three islands and international check-out amounted to $355 for a stay of one month.
Transit requirements (departing one port, entering another)
Other comments
The anchorage at San Cristobal is reported to be good – though several catamarans had big problems trying to keep sea lions out of the cockpit! The anchorage at Isla Isabella is excellent, though local knowledge helps to find the best low water route to the beach (which dinghies have to be carried up). Cruisers stand by on VHF Ch77. Santa Cruz anchorage can be rough, and a stern anchor is needed to hold the boat into the swell which can be considerable. The water taxi service (50 cents a trip) is excellent and stands by on VHF Ch14, which is also used for general calling.
Excursions vary in price between $15 and $80. The most expensive are booked through travel agents. Local operators seem to charge less – $25–30 for a highlands trip on Santa Cruz and a Sierra Negra volcano trip on Isla Isabella. Boat trips are generally a bit more expensive, though the Cabo Rosa trip on Isla Isabella only costs $20 if you have a party of ten.
Eating ashore is good value, the main meal of the day costing $5 or less.
Fuel is also cheap at $1.10 a gallon on Isla Isabella and $1.30 on Santa Cruz if you collect it yourself – up to $1.90 a gallon delivered to the boat.
Desalinated water costs $1.50 for 5 gallons, delivered to the dock in containers.
The Saturday fruit market just out of town on Santa Cruz is excellent and good value. Limited fresh supplies can also be obtained on Isla Isabella.
Small, limited supermarkets are available in each village, as are local bakeries.
Laundry services are available on all the islands, and good value if you go direct rather than through an agent or hotel.
The local currency is effectively the US dollar and small denominations are useful.
There is an ATM machine in Santa Cruz but it only accepts MasterCard or Cirrus – NOT Visa.
Several cruisers had spare parts delivered to Santa Cruz via Fedex (relatively quickly), and some spares such as fuel filters were also available there.
Galapagos Ocean Services Yacht Agency
Tel:593 5 252 6060
Yachtgala Yacht Services
Tel:+ 593-5-2527403, Cell +593-99264355, Fax:+
593-5-2527403, VHF Channel 66
http://www.naugala.com, nautigal@interactive.net.ec
Headquarters in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz with offices in
three islands (Santa Cruz, San Cristobal, Isabela) this company offers a range
of services to visiting yachts including Cruising permits, clearance in &
out, Customs clearance, provisioning, fuel, laundry, land & diving tours,
hotel reservation, technical support, spare parts and telephone, internet and
fax services, Fedex. Contact: Johnny Romero.
Galapagos Marine Services Tel:+593 (0)850 44-825 info@galapagosyachtclub.com
Contact: John Gallagher.
Safety and security
Galapagos Islands Contributed by Pete Royston April 2008 GALAPAGOS STAY IS LIMITED to 20 DAYS ONLY IN ONE OF FOUR SELECTED PORTS.
Tourist Info web site has an incorrect translation from the Spanish. In Spanish it is ONE PORT, in the English version it states, ANY PORT;not the same, especially when you have been told that the rules have just changed permitting more flexibility.
1) Information Submitted by Latest Information (2006) from Tanya Leech – Thursdays Child of Lee, Reports at the end of this CIS form from Harald Sammer – Taniwani 2005 and Andrew Rayner – Nereus 2003 Some information included in the from pre 2000 reports Fran Flutter – Prodigal of PenrynIan, Maggie Staples – Teokita, John and Julie Davies – Enduro and G raham Morfey – Flight of Time shown as (pre 2000 Information)
2Date 2006
3) Harbour or Area Covered Include Lat & Long Galapagos Islands, Wreck Bay & Academy Bay, Academy Bay, Isla Santa Cruz 00 ° 45’S, 90 ° 8’W.All comments in this sheet refer to Academy Bay unless otherwise stated
4) Suitability and Attraction for Yachts Puerto Ayora (the town at Academy Bay) has infinitely better fresh food shopping than that at Wreck Bay, San Cristobal, which is a huge advantage if you 're next leg is to the Marquesas and you appreciate fresh fruit and vegetables. If you need any other sort of emergency repairs/chandlery/hardware etc, you will also be far better off going to Academy Bay. You 're much better placed too, to organise a tour on a local boat as there are many more tours starting from Academy Bay than start from Wreck Bay. But the Academy Bay anchorage is not nearly as comfortable as that at Wreck Bay and the village at Wreck Bay is much prettier than Puerto Ayora, so really it depends on your priorities!
5) Marinas, Berthing or Anchorage Anchor in the bay to the east of the local trip boats. The number of trip boats varies through the week and seemed to reach a crescendo on Wednesdays and Thursdays, when you could almost have walked across the harbour from boat to boat! Many trip boats arrive after dark too. Stern anchor essential. Not easy to get the anchor dug in.
6) Entry Ports Wreck Bay or Academy Bay
7) Formal Requirements for Yachts Entering/Departing:
a) from/to same country No inter-island clearance will be given unless a cruising permit is held.
b) from/to abroad Mention has been made in the past of the need for a fumigation certificate, but we were neither asked for certificate, nor indeed fumigated in any way. The total cost of checking in a 12.83 ton boat with two people on board as US$118.80 in August 2006. See 2005 and 2003 reports at the end of this form for information on check in options and agent services.
c) visa requirements None required for UK citizens. Year 2000 report said “None”
8) Location/Existence of:
a) harbour master (pre 2000 Information)The Port Captain’s office is near the dinghy landing on the seaward side of the main street and marked by flags.
b) customs/immigration (pre 2000 Information) Immigration is in the police station a little way further on. You will need a Fumigation certificate. This can be obtained from the Zodiac repair shop located on the street which runs away from the sea. No actual fumigation is involved.
c) health authorities Port Captain
d) police Handle Immigration – just along the shore road from the Port Captain. More flags.
9) Control of Foreign Yachts Yachts Strictly controlled - you are not allowed to move from your port of entry, unless you go down the expensive cruising permit route. For several years, yachts have been allowed to stay up to 20 days in their port of entry. But despite arriving late in the season when there were only 3 other yachts in Wreck Bay, and despite having all the correct paperwork from Panama, and despite going to check within a few hours of our early morning arrival, the new Port Captain in Wreck Bay only offered us (and the others) a 5 day stay.
We explained our genuine need to obtain a spare engine part and he told us to talk to the FedEx agent about how long this would take and return the next morning to do our paperwork then. We still had our Zarpe, so we decided to take a big risk, getting up early the next morning and sailing to Academy Bay, where we were quite appily offered a stay of up to 20 days - a ridiculous situation. We do not recommend this course of action. If at all possible, contact cruisers just in front of you and confirm that the current officials in your chosen port are working by the "20 day rule". Clearly the officials do change and with them, their policies.
10) Attitude of Officials to Visiting Yachtsmen In Academy Bay, they were helpful and charming and we had no problems in direct contrast to Wreck Bay.
11) Repair/Hauling Facilities Outboard repairs on Av Baltra, just past the Municipal market (you 'll see a wire fenced off area full of outboards!) (pre 2000 Information) Rudimentary boatyard in Academy Bay with greater ability than might be immediately obvious. There are twenty-plus sophisticated tourist cruising boats based in Academy Bay so somebody must repair them! In 1998 John Davies had an engine room fan repaired within 24 hours.
12) Sailing Directions or Charts (pre 2000 Information) BA 1375. American charts available in Balboa.
13) Cruising Guide and where Obtainable. Include Phone and/or E-Mail Pacific Crossing Guide – Mike Pocock, Imray
14) Port Radio Services (pre 2000 Information) VHF Ch 26 is in constant use by the tourist boats and is monitored continuously by the Port Captain. Repeaters on every island give excellent cover. The working language is Spanish.
15) Weather Forecasts
16) Yacht Club(S) None
17) Other Facilities:
a) drinking water Water is expensive in the Galapagos, especially if you have it delivered to your boat. Naugala (Johnny Romero on VHF 14) charges US$80 for a 125 gallon tankful ie 64cents per gallon (US) and Naviera Marnizan charge 50cents per gallon. But if you 're prepared to do a little of the work yourself, then you can reduce the cost to 40 cents per gallon, plus the cost of a couple of water taxi rides, if your dinghy is as small as ours is! Go to Aqua Galapagos in Tomas de Berlanga street (one street back from Av Charles Darwin) and buy as many 5 gallon drums as you need. They will take you and your drums down to the dock in their truck for free and you can then take them out to your own boat and fill your tanks. The drums must be returned to Aqua Galapagos, who are open from 0800 to 1230 and 1500 to 1800 during the week and 0800 to 1230 on Saturdays. We subsequently managed to buy water at only 12cents a gallon from a truck on the quay. They were delivering to commercial users but if you 're lucky, you 'll find one sometime when you 're at the quay (keep a few jerry cans in the dinghy in case!) (pre 2000 Information) Very suspect in Wreck Bay.
b) fuel Again we saved money by doing some of the work ourselves. Diesel delivered to the boat is typically US$2 per gallon, but at the petrol station its only US$1.02 per gallon. Take your own jerry cans in a taxi to the petrol station which is US$2 for the return trip. Previous reports state that propane is available at the petrol station - it isn 't any longer, but see below.
c) gas (propane)/gaz Available from Mecanica Gallcardo at US$12 for 15lbs. Take a taxi there with your empty bottle and the taxi driver will find the place, but its a walkable distance back empty handed. Your bottle should be ready the next day.
d) chandlers More available than we might have expected, though whether they 'll have that one vital item you need is another matter! Lots of hardware shops.
e) bank Whilst its previously been reported that the ATM at Banco Pacifico only accepts Mastercard, the sign above the ATM now displays the VISA symbol as well, so presumably a VISA card is now accepted. Be aware though that the amount you can withdraw in any one transaction is low, though it doesn 't tell you on the machine what the maximum is! I managed to withdraw US$700 in three transactions of 300 + 300 + 100 one after the other, but I 'm don 't know how many times you can do this! Furthermore, when we came to pay for a 3 day tour, they would only accept cash, not credit cards, so a few trips to the ATM may be required
f) shops/market Good fruit and veg market early on a Saturday and good fruit and veg shops around the Municipal market on Av Baltra, well back from the waterfront. Good place to stock up before the passage to the Marquesas. We were pleasantly surprised by prices in the supermarket on the quay. Whilst they may well be double those of mainland Ecuador, prices are on a par with UK/USA prices for most things. Stock up as much as you can in Panama, but you can top up here on store cupboard items without breaking the bank. (pre 2000 Information) Supermarket next to the dinghy dock surprisingly well stocked depending on when the supply ship last called. Eggs good. Many small corner shops selling food items. Excellent fruit and vegetable market every Saturday morning at 0730 up the hill towards the fuel station. Be there early. There are also several reasonable butchers‘ shops adjacent to the market.
g) restaurants/hotels (pre 2000 Information) A reasonable choice at reasonable prices. World class hamburgers from the open-air café opposite the Banco Pacifico.
h) post office/telephones including mobile facilities Naugala are agents for FedEx and TNT. We had parts shipped in via TNT and the shipping cost, (which we paid to the supplier in the UK) was no higher than we had paid to have parts sent to Panama. However, BEWARE! Ecuadorian customs make a hefty charge based on the value of the goods brought in. To put it in perspective, we were shipping in a water pump and parts worth £280 (exc VAT). The carriage charge for TNT was £60 and we were charged US$219 (£120) by Customs (ouch!) DHL office through a tiny gate on Av Charles Darwin just beyond Hotel Silberstein/Angermeyer on the opposite side of the road. No English spoken. (pre 2000 Information) Post Office beside the dinghy dock has General Delivery which is OK (same at Wreck Bay). Long delays on outgoing mail. In 1998 it was not possible to post anything for a week because they had run out of stamps! There is a telephone and fax centre up the hill towards the fuel station open weekdays and Saturday. You give the phone number you want to the girl behind the counter and sit with the rest of the population until called to a phone booth. Pay afterwards. Faxes can be sent and received but incoming faxes are merely stuck around the desk so are both easily lost and read by anyone.
i) internet cafes There are lots, generally charging about $1 per half hour. We used sistem@s.com in Islas Plazas street, just off Av Charles Darwin, where I bought a 6 hour card for $5 which seemed like a good deal.
j) best mailing address (pre 2000 Information) General Delivery at either PO. Reliable.
k) showers Very basic cold water showers in the public toilets just to the right of Restaurante El Descanso del Guia, close to the dinghy dock.
l) laundry There are at least three laundries near the waterfront charging around US$1 per kg for wash and dry. We were tempted just to hand wash, until we calculated the cost of the water (see above) and figured that it was cheaper to have a service wash ashore. We didn 't find any self service facility.
m) transport/air services (pre 2000 Information) Flights to Quito, Ecuador.
n) medical facilities/hospital (pre 2000 Information) Near harbour. Basic but with several resident doctors. All services free – you only pay for the medicine. A friend who was injured riding a horse on Isla Santa Cruz was well looked after by the hospital service.
18) Recommendations or Warnings Do walk to Tortuga Bay - its about a 45 minute walk from Puerto Ayora (see tourist map or Lonely Planet and there are a few signs directing you). Pristine soft white sand beach with crashing surf. Walk to the far end of the beach and turn inland to an inner "lagoon" which is perfectly calm for swimming and has a smaller beach with some shade in the trees.
No facilities available at all, so take plenty of water at the very least. You don 't need to have paid the park fee, but you do have to check in and out at the little hut at the start of the path, just with your time of arrival and departure and your passport number, so take passports too.
Use of Agents: If you are happy to accept going to the Galapagos, parking your boat up in one of the main harbours, either on the island of Santa Cruz or San Cristobal, and the boat staying there for the duration of your stay, then we can see absolutely no advantage whatsoever in using an agent. If however, you want to try to get permission to spend some time at Santa Cruz and some time at San Cristobal, or maybe Isabella, then it may be worth using an agent and we met one or two boats who had done this. But you need to start a long time in advance of arriving at the islands and one of the biggest difficulties is in assessing when you are likely to arrive at the Galapagos and therefore which dates you would like your permit to run from and to.
Furthermore, you still won 't be able to "cruise" the islands in the normal sense of the word. To do that, you have to take a guide on board with you and this is expensive. But if you can afford a guide for a few days, then you probably aren 't too worried about a bit more expense for using an agent!
19) Other Information – please include here general impressions, opinions, comments or any other matter which might be of use to those visiting. (Pre 2000 Information) The Parks authority is at the Darwin Institute. It is necessary to get a pass ($100 per person) if planning to visit park areas. Do go to the Charles Darwin Centre in Academy Bay to see the giant tortoises. If you wish to go on a boat tour of the other islands (many cruisers do this) there is officially a charge of US$80 per head for a permit to do so. It may be that some operators are co-operative on this. Take a bus to Santa Rose and hire horses from Gilberto. Ride 5-6 kms to top to see feral giant tortoises. Take dinghy to various locations in Academy Bay to see sea lions, sharks, etc. The Darwin Institute is free and that is the place to see the giant tortoises. By far the best way to see the other islands is by local boat. Yachts arranged exchange “caretaking” services so enabling crew to go off .
We did a six day tour on the Tropic Sun which was fantastic. The tour guide was excellent (make sure he speaks English and is high grade
Avoid tours with large groups. Our ship had a large capacity but only a dozen passengers. Take your own alcohol on board as it is expensive. There is a range of tours and prices available. Go to several agents as some only act for one shipping company. GALAPOGOS UPDATE May 2005 Harald Sammer S/Y TANIWANI Before sailing to the Galapagos Islands, we have read most cruising guides that cover the area, as well as checked many a website. The picture we got from this was contradictory and confusing. We had to find out and explore for our selves and we thought it might help others following in our wake if we summarize our findings here. It seems that cruising boats en-route to the South Pacific have about five options:
(1) Skip the Islands altogether
(2) Go for a short stop in one harbor
(3) Go for the 20 days maximum without cruising permi
(4) Go for the maximum 20 days with cruising permit
(5) Like (4) but include a National Park permit
. (1) Because of all the restrictions, some guide books suggest to skip the islands all together. Skipping the islands would save you about $200, as harbor and immigration fees are quite high.
(2) We would recommend not to miss out on these islands as they are a convenient stop over and even a short stop, particularly in Wreck Bay, San Christobal, is always worth while, if only for the nice sea-lions that will visit your boat. The ports that can be approached from outside the islands are: Puerto Ayora, also called Academy Bay, on the island of Santa Cruz, and Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, also called Wreck Bay, on the island of San Christobal. Standard supplies are all available in both places and repair facilities for engines as well as spares seem even better than in Panama, as the many tour boats need to be kept going.
Diesel is significantly cheaper than in Panama. At the gas station a U.S. Gallon of diesel costs $1.05, brought to the boat we paid $1.30 in Christobal and $1.80 in Puerto Ayora, where all prices seem a little bit higher. Short trips into the island as well as boat excursions or dive trips are available in both Puerto Ayora or Christobal, with a bigger choice in Puerto Ayora. Fees are as follows: International arrival $0.014 per ton or a minimum of $10 Zarpe $0.014 per ton or a minimum of $10 Frequency use $15 Channel Access $0,41 per ton Anchorage $2.21 per ton Contamination fee $15 International arrival Navy $3 per ton Immigration $15 per boat for entry and again for exit (for our 18t boat we paid roughly $150 when clearing into Christobal) I think even for a short stay you would pay those fees. (3) You can easily at no extra cost get a permit to stay up to 20 days, which is usually more than you need. Just ask the harbor master, and immigration usually gives you a full month anyway. Like with a short stay you can go onto tour boats and explore the island. One day tours are typically around $70 per person and include breakfast and lunch on board. As said before, more choices, especially for day trips are available in Puerto Ayora (Academy Bay). Trips of several days, with accommodation on the tour boat seem to cost around $120 to $400 depending on the vessel. The safer place to leave your boat alone at anchor would definitely be Wreck Bay, San Christobal, with excellent holding and lots of space. In Puerto Ayora there is always a swell running so that all boats lay to bow and stern anchors. Especially towards shore, where you would usually drop your stern anchor the bottom is sharp lava rock with a few patches of mud, so use chain as many ropes have been cut by those rocks. Normally you have to stay at the place you chose for clearing in until you leave. Once you clear out you can usually get permission to stop for a few days in a secondary port, typically Vilamil on Isablella island, which is on the way towards the Marquesas. The only other port that could be visited with such an arrangement would be Puerto Velasco Ibarra on the island of Floreana. But there is nothing in the village and the anchorage is exposed and rolly. Only if you can get both harbor masters agree, you may get special permission to go from Christobal to Puerto Ayora or vice versa. An agent may be able to arrange that for you. (4) With a cruising permit you can move freely between the four ports, so that you have more flexibility with you itinerary. To get a cruising permit you have to apply for it before you arrive in the islands. From what we understand there is no limitation on those, you just need to get the process going no later than two weeks prior to your arrival. This is best done by getting an agent and faxing him, copies of ships papers and passports.
The price for a cruising permit is again dependant on tonnage and the agent will add some percentage on top of it. We paid the agent $150 for the permit for our 18t boat. A 55 ton boat was charged $300. We also found out that every time you move from one port to another, you need to clear in and out and that all costs you every time, between $20 in the small ports and around $50 in the main ports. (5) Once you have a cruising permit, you can apply for a permit to visit the national park areas with your own boat. You will need to hire a licensed guide and take him with you, and you will also file a detailed itinerary beforehand. Other than that and the high price, there is really no other limitation. Again it is best to let your agent do the arrangements as it involves some paper pushing and you need to write a letter to the chief of the park essentially saying that you are a nice guy and that you will certainly respect all park rules. The fee for the park is very high: $200 per person per day. To this you need to add the fee for hiring your guide which would be between $150 and $200 per day. We hired our guy through our agent and were very pleased. While this sounds very expensive, it seems within reason when compared to the cost of going on a tour boat for several days. Only with your own boat or by going for a few days onto a tour boat, will you be able to reach some of the nicest, but more remote places. And then you have your guide exclusively for yourself and you can do your visits to the best places when it is not crowded.
And finally you don 't have to worry all the time whether your boat is still safe. There are some other fees that have been collected from some boats and not from others. When it was collected it was in Puerto Ayora: General Park entrance fee of $100 per person or $50 per child. At the latest when you book a tour through an official tourist bureau this is collected. It is automatically collected from people entering by air. Fumigation: All boats are in theory required to have a valid fumigation certificate, either from the previous port or from a local fumigation service. Sometimes the harbor master will request it, not always though. If you take option (5) the park authorities will ask for it. We paid $70 for the ' fumigation ' which in reality was two guys coming to your boat who spread some hi-tech cockroach poison from injection like dispenser with a needle tip. They smear some of paste that looks like chocolate cream in some corners of your cupboards. That 's it. And off course, you get the required certificate. By the way, unlike pointed out in some cruising guides, crew changes are absolutely no problem. For anything above option (3) we would strongly recommend an agent. We have used Johnny Romero, who also acts as Transocean Club Port Officer and has the FedEx outpost. If you need anything shipped in very fast, this is the best service. He is a young hard working guy and his company Naugala currently employs 4 people. Most of their business is handling the logistics for the big private super yachts, who cruise the islands for a month or so. He had just cleared out a big one when we arrived and was awaiting Paul Allen 's Octopussy. Never the less he seems to work equally reliable and dependable for us small yachties. We have been very happy with his service and therefore we give his contact details here: Johhny Romero NAUGALA Yacht Agency nautigal@interactive.net.ec phone: (593-5) 527403 mobile: (593-9) 9264355 VHF Ch 66 www.naugala.com Update 2003: Andrew Rayner NEREUS: The passage from Panama to the Galapagos Islands starts with a generally favourable wind, and currents are useful all the way. After leaving the Gulf of Panama there are choices. The books advise looping to port, a visit to Coco Island will involve a loop to starboard, but we benefited from following the Rhumb line. 55 hours motoring out of the 5 days at sea for the 900 miles was better than average, as this is a notoriously windless area. Diesel is obtainable in the Galapagos at $1.30 or less a US gallon to top up again. The choice of Galapagos check-in port lies between Wreck Bay and Academy Bay, the latter being cheaper as no fumigation certificate is required. We had to have a team aboard and pay $45 for this in Puerto Ayora. Diesel and water were also cheaper in Wreck Bay. Two other ports are permitted, on Floreana I and Villamil on Isobella I. The cost of legal cruising among the islands is prohibitive if you want to take your own boat elsewhere. A further possibility is to make landfall on Genovesa I, otherwise Tower I (all islands have at least two different names), which is 70 miles north of Puerto Ayora and is full of birds, sealions and iguanas, all tame. While this is not permitted, a brief stop in the magnificent caldera to make repairs should not incur too much wrath. Go to the north-east corner to find bottom. This island is uninhabited, and is visited only by occasional tour boats. Arrival in the Galapagos involves payment of half a dozen different fees, for us about $200 for the boat and $100 for each person to visit the National Park areas. Tours by local boat can be started from Ayora or Wreck Bay, and are in principal worthwhile as you are taken to amazing “visitor sites” with local guides who are usually good. Three to seven days is normal, at a cost of around $70-100 a day if bought locally. However, be very careful, as the information from agencies can be wildly misleading. Moonrise, run by Jenny at the far end of town near the only bank, may be better than the average, but do not touch Galasam, near the dock, or Fredy’s, just along the road. Galasam put one of my crew on one of its own boats which was so unsafe and uncomfortable that he took his complaints to the Ministry of Tourism in Quito; and we were cancelled on another of their boats at the very last minute, citing mechanical breakdown, only to see the boat sail off on schedule with others on board who may have been enticed to pay more. Fredy tried to get us to pay 50% over the odds. Only a few of the 80 operating boats are what they are cracked up to be, check as carefully as you can before parting with your money. There are also a couple of genuine luxury boats at about $300 a day. Also take to heart that Visa bank cards do not work in the only ATM machine (2006 Information is that Visa cards are now acceptable). If you require dollars get a Mastercard or a Cirrus card. It costs 30% to get cash over the counter. Some agencies and shops try to charge an extra 12% or so for using a credit card.
The town of Ayora is part simple Ecuador, charming people and reasonable prices, and part rip-off territory for passing tourists. It is best to shop and eat away from the front drag. There is an early Saturday market for fresh produce at the back of the town, and the stores stock quite a good selection, though nothing like Panama. Internet cafes abound. The dock is not particularly dinghy friendly, but water taxis will take you to and fro for 30c a trip. For boat services of all sorts contact Ricardo and Yvonne on channel 09, they are excellent agents and will efficiently arrange repairs, laundry, fuel and water and advise on almost anything. Channel 72 is used as the calling channel, 16 being used by another agent. The Puerto Ayora anchorage is crowded and rolly but seems good holding, a stern anchor is needed. Wreck Bay is a better anchorage but a smaller town with few facilities. Villamil is a little anchorage tucked in behind a reef, boats anchored in a tight cluster. Go as far in as you can to find the calm water, but watch the rocks all around. The jetty is very bad for dinghies, the only safe thing is to carry them right up the beach, once you have negotiated the rocks in the bay. Sadly you need to lock everything up. We had trainers stolen, bike tyres let down and oars “borrowed”, all within our first day – rather sad as this is the only settlement on the largest Galapagos island, with a population of but a few hundred. The approach to Villamil incidentally needs some care, but it is worthwhile for the unspoilt scenery, volcano visit on horses, miles of beach and teeming wildlife. It is a good place to wait for wind and get one’s last onshore meals before departing for the 3,000 miles to the Marquesas.
Further Update 2003: Although it would appear that local regulations ‘change’ on an individual basis according to the whim of the Port Captain, essentially the rules for sailing boats visiting Galapagos are the same as in 2002. Coming from Panama you may enter either San Cristobal [ Wreck Bay ],Santa Cruz [Academy Bay, Puerto Ayora ] or Isabela [Villamil ] ; the Port Captain will grant 21 days stay. A cruising permit may be applied for in advance from the Ecuador authorities in Guayaquil or Quito or in the Galapagos by e-mail: notes on this are given in The Pacific Crossing Guide edited by Michael Pocock and at the end of this document. We know of no one who has planned their Galapagos visit in this way. [If obtained, you would be able to visit each of the ports mentioned above in your own boat.] During the allotted 21 days your boat must stay in your chosen port of entry; having said that if you are prepared to pay 200 U.S.dollars per day per crew member plus the cost of a ‘guide’ it is possible to cruise in your own boat, but this is obviously cost prohibitive and is a facility only used by the ‘super yachts’. In the event we chose to enter at Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, which is the home of the Darwin Research Station and the centre for holiday activities; cruise trips etc. The Ecuador authorities obviously prefer you to ‘park’ your boat and use local cruise boats with guides to visit the archipelago. We took a 4 day cruise on the ‘Ambassador’ and thoroughly enjoyed the hospitality of the crew and guides who provided a fascinating insight into these grand islands. Coming from mainland Ecuador, if you have no cruising permit, you will only be allowed to stay for 72 hours. So, if visiting ‘say’ Salinas , it would be worth a visit to Guayaquil to see if a cruising permit might be obtained. PROCEDURE FOR OBTAINING A CRUISING PERMIT Contributed by John Arregger, 2003 In order to obtain a cruising permit to allow the yacht to visit more than one port it is necessary to apply MORE THAN FIFTEEN DAYS IN ADVANCE to Senor Bolivar Pesantes Palma, Gerente de Naugala, by email to naugala@ecuaenlace.com giving the following information: REQUISITOS PARA QUE LOS VELEROS PUEDAN INGRESSAR A LAS ISLAS GALAPOGOS. Nombre: Name of vessel Bandera: Republica de Inglaterra (or other flag if applicable) Matricula: Official registration number Eslora: Length of vessel in metres (metros in Spanish) Manga: Width of vessel in metres Puntal: Draught in metres TRB: Registered tonnage (Ton in Spanish) Color: Blanco=white, Negro=black, Azul=blue etc Propulsion: mecanica y vela Capitan: full name of captain Tripulantes full names of other crew members Lugar de Ingreso: Port of entry into Galapogos eg Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, Canton San Cristobal. This is Wreck Bay, the main administration centre of the Galapogos Islands where Senior Bolivar Pesantes is located. Fecha de Arribo: date of arrival, eg 02 de Marzo de 2003 Fecha de Zarpe: date of clearance from last port Tiempo de permanencia: length of stay requested eg 30 dias Caracter de la expedicion: Turistica (Centros poblados) Senor Bolivar Pesantes Palma is the agent who corresponds with Quito, the capital, on your behalf to arrange this permission. His telephone and fax number are tel (0)5 520 846 and fax (0)5 520 958 but email is best. He speaks very little English so a Spanish speaker would be most desirable for a telephone call. You should expect to pay U.S. $50 for this service. Through his company, Naugala, he can arrange fuel and water delivered to the boat, but be sure to filter the fuel!
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