HUMBOLDT EXPLORER, GALAPAGOS: General Info
Located about 600 miles West of Ecuador, this strange & compelling archipelago, the Galapagos Islands, first received global fame after evolutionary theorist Charles Darwin wrote about the Galapagos more than a century ago. The Galapagos continue to be a magnet for divers so powerful that the Humboldt Explorer Fleet had to install a sHumboldt nd vessel on this tour just to keep pace with all the demand. This protected national park is one of the largest marine wildlife sanctuaries on Earth; & one that few folks ever are privileged to visit. Nobody leaves the Galapagos Islands without a renewed reverence for life, & the consummate miracle of species differentiation.
The Galapagos Islands are 19 main islands & many tinier ones that are scattered across more than 4,500 square miles of the Pacific Ocean. Because the Galapagos Islands are so remote, for millions of years they remained free from outside influence; & the native species differentiated in bizarre & beautiful ways. Some creatures from the Galapagos Islands are found nowhere else on Earth -- the most celebrated, of course, being the huge tortoises & the marine iguana. Every day of your stay in the Galapagos Islands you'll be in the good company of a highly-trained naturalist & wildlife guide who'll let you in on some of the islands' best secrets. No Humboldt -tours in the world could hold a candle to this one. (Well, maybe one on Mars.)
This is also one of few places in the world where, because it is so close to the Equator, a weird confluence of ocean currents sweeps some islands with chilly seas on one side, & warm tropical seas on the other, only a few miles apart! That's one challenge & fascination found in Galapagos diving. What's more fascinating, cold & warm water species that normally might live in ocean sectors a thousand miles apart, here thrive side by side. The amazing diversity of species in the Galapagos Islands, both on land & water, will leave you breathless & spellbound every day of your week in this sacred island group. Of course, no hunting or fishing by tourists are allowed in these sacred islands. Galapagos diving is strictly a "look & don't touch" deal.
In the water around the Galapagos islands, you'll be entertained by species such as schooling hammerheads, penguins, sea lions, sharks of several intriguing varieties, eagle rays & manta rays, great sea turtles & the occasional whale or whale shark. Galapagos diving = major critters, pure & simple. Some of these Galapagos mantas can be bigger than 12 feet across, which is enough to jump-start even a ho-hum heart! On your land treks you'll get to see the famous giant tortoises, iguanas, & properly G-rated birds such as boobies & flamingos.
Any Galapagos diving vacationer who isn't dazzled every day by the sheer splendor of life, & the dance of bio-diversity on these Galapagos Islands, probably would fall asleep during a Beatles reunion concert, or maybe order a mega-garlic dish on a dinner date with Elle McPherson, or install harvest gold shag carpeting in a Ferrari Testa Rossa. To dive the Galapagos islands from one of the Humboldt Explorer live-aboards is a once-in-a-lifetime treat reserved for only a special few adventure divers in the world. Are you ready for the challenge & the rewards of Galapagos diving? The Galapagos Islands are beckoning; you may be just right for this outstanding live-aboard adventure. After Galapagos diving, you may have to fight being seduced by the jaded Guru: Bendar Dundat. It doesn't get much better than Galapagos diving, the dive & U/W photo pros agree. This Galapagos Humboldt Explorer dive tour is one of our best expeditions anywhere in the world. The client comments upon returning have been vividly positive about this Galapagos diving, year after year.
WEATHER & WATER TEMPS for the GALAPAGOS ISLANDS:
PLEASE NOTE: Diving in the Galapagos islands requires at least a 5mm, preferably a 7 mm wetsuit with a full hood & full booties. This is not super-athletic diving but it IS a bit more strenuous than garden-variety Caribbean vacation dives. Therefore we recommend that you have at least an advanced scuba diving certificate, or equivalent experience in terms of deep dives, current & surge. All daily dive sites are selected by the vessel's captain & may vary due to weather conditions & logistics. Dive site decisions will be based first upon safety considerations, & next upon species sightings & visibility factors, as well as currents & weather.
GALAPAGOS DIVING on GALAPAGOS HUMBOLDT EXPLORER:
PSYCH-UP PRIMER to STIR the IMAGINATION & SPARK the DREAM:
Your underwater adventures aboard the Galapagos Humboldt Explorer I -- the newest & most luxuriously appointed Galapagos diving yacht in the islands, will encompass everything from sharks to nudibranchs, penguins, blue-footed boobies & more. These renowned islands are best known for amazing shark diving around Wolf & Darwin Islands, & your trip will include an opportunity for at least twelve dives in this area. These small & remote islands are best reached by liveaboard vessels for divers. Your diving experience here will always include Galapagos sharks, silky sharks & lots of schooling hammerheads being cleaned by king angelfish. Seeing marine turtles, schools of tuna, eagle rays, sea lions, & penguins is very common & seeing a whale shark is very possible from June through November. Occasionally, divers can experience a tiger shark, black & blue marlin & even killer whales.
There are also many unique things to view on land. North Seymour has the largest colony of frigate birds & blue-footed boobies anywhere in the world - if that isn't enough to take in, there are also marine & land iguanas & colonies of sea lions. A visit to Bartolome Island will give you an opportunity to snorkel with Galapagos Penguins, the only penguins found north of the equator - they are small & very tolerant of humans. & of course, a trip to the Galapagos would not be complete without taking time to watch their most famous inhabitants - the giant tortoise!
All diving is done from large, stable pangas (tenders) in order to facilitate dive planning & site selection. Days aboard the Galapagos Humboldt Explorer I generally involve an early morning dive followed by breakfast, 2 dives before lunch, one in the early afternoon & a possible night dive.
GALAPAGOS HUMBOLDT-EXPLORER / VESSEL SPECS:
The Galapagos Islands are 19 main islands & many tinier ones that are scattered across more than 4,500 square miles of the Pacific Ocean. Because the Galapagos Islands are so remote, for millions of years they remained free from outside influence; & the native species differentiated in bizarre & beautiful ways. Some creatures from the Galapagos Islands are found nowhere else on Earth -- the most celebrated, of course, being the huge tortoises & the marine iguana. Every day of your stay in the Galapagos Islands you'll be in the good company of a highly-trained naturalist & wildlife guide who'll let you in on some of the islands' best secrets. No Humboldt -tours in the world could hold a candle to this one. (Well, maybe one on Mars.)
This is also one of few places in the world where, because it is so close to the Equator, a weird confluence of ocean currents sweeps some islands with chilly seas on one side, & warm tropical seas on the other, only a few miles apart! That's one challenge & fascination found in Galapagos diving. What's more fascinating, cold & warm water species that normally might live in ocean sectors a thousand miles apart, here thrive side by side. The amazing diversity of species in the Galapagos Islands, both on land & water, will leave you breathless & spellbound every day of your week in this sacred island group. Of course, no hunting or fishing by tourists are allowed in these sacred islands. Galapagos diving is strictly a "look & don't touch" deal.
In the water around the Galapagos islands, you'll be entertained by species such as schooling hammerheads, penguins, sea lions, sharks of several intriguing varieties, eagle rays & manta rays, great sea turtles & the occasional whale or whale shark. Galapagos diving = major critters, pure & simple. Some of these Galapagos mantas can be bigger than 12 feet across, which is enough to jump-start even a ho-hum heart! On your land treks you'll get to see the famous giant tortoises, iguanas, & properly G-rated birds such as boobies & flamingos.
Any Galapagos diving vacationer who isn't dazzled every day by the sheer splendor of life, & the dance of bio-diversity on these Galapagos Islands, probably would fall asleep during a Beatles reunion concert, or maybe order a mega-garlic dish on a dinner date with Elle McPherson, or install harvest gold shag carpeting in a Ferrari Testa Rossa. To dive the Galapagos islands from one of the Humboldt Explorer live-aboards is a once-in-a-lifetime treat reserved for only a special few adventure divers in the world. Are you ready for the challenge & the rewards of Galapagos diving? The Galapagos Islands are beckoning; you may be just right for this outstanding live-aboard adventure. After Galapagos diving, you may have to fight being seduced by the jaded Guru: Bendar Dundat. It doesn't get much better than Galapagos diving, the dive & U/W photo pros agree. This Galapagos Humboldt Explorer dive tour is one of our best expeditions anywhere in the world. The client comments upon returning have been vividly positive about this Galapagos diving, year after year.
WEATHER & WATER TEMPS for the GALAPAGOS ISLANDS:
- The least attractive weather in this island chain is from July through October, when you get a lot of misty rainy conditions. But this is also when the whale shark sightings increase quite a bit. While land excursions are dampened, the diving is not hurt too much.
- November through June bring the least rainy weather for Galapagos diving most years, unless a special El Nino comes in & wreaks havoc. El Nino is now on the wane we are told for the next year, so this is not a big problem right now. These months are the driest months, & the warmest. The diving this time of year is delightful, chock full of big critter action -- one of the best schooling pelagic destinations in the greater Pacific. Plus you get the added joy of several land hikes for exciting photo opps.
- In this November-June time frame, water temps vary from about 63 degrees F. in the southern isles to about 68 degrees in the northern isles. Pretty nice conditions for a Galapagos live-aboard adventure.
- Critter sightings tend to be the same most months of the year, so Galapagos diving does not change a great deal from one season to another, unless a super strong El Nino makes the water very warm, as happened last fall & winter, & then the bigger pelagics tend to head to deeper, cooler water.
- All year round we recommend you bring no less than a quarter inch wetsuit (5mm) or a light drysuit, with a full hood & thick booties & gloves. Many folks like the 7mm suits, because 5 mm suits are probably too cool most of the year, for most clients, especially women, we have learned over the years of serving Galapagos live-aboard clients.
PLEASE NOTE: Diving in the Galapagos islands requires at least a 5mm, preferably a 7 mm wetsuit with a full hood & full booties. This is not super-athletic diving but it IS a bit more strenuous than garden-variety Caribbean vacation dives. Therefore we recommend that you have at least an advanced scuba diving certificate, or equivalent experience in terms of deep dives, current & surge. All daily dive sites are selected by the vessel's captain & may vary due to weather conditions & logistics. Dive site decisions will be based first upon safety considerations, & next upon species sightings & visibility factors, as well as currents & weather.
GALAPAGOS DIVING on GALAPAGOS HUMBOLDT EXPLORER:
PSYCH-UP PRIMER to STIR the IMAGINATION & SPARK the DREAM:
Your underwater adventures aboard the Galapagos Humboldt Explorer I -- the newest & most luxuriously appointed Galapagos diving yacht in the islands, will encompass everything from sharks to nudibranchs, penguins, blue-footed boobies & more. These renowned islands are best known for amazing shark diving around Wolf & Darwin Islands, & your trip will include an opportunity for at least twelve dives in this area. These small & remote islands are best reached by liveaboard vessels for divers. Your diving experience here will always include Galapagos sharks, silky sharks & lots of schooling hammerheads being cleaned by king angelfish. Seeing marine turtles, schools of tuna, eagle rays, sea lions, & penguins is very common & seeing a whale shark is very possible from June through November. Occasionally, divers can experience a tiger shark, black & blue marlin & even killer whales.
There are also many unique things to view on land. North Seymour has the largest colony of frigate birds & blue-footed boobies anywhere in the world - if that isn't enough to take in, there are also marine & land iguanas & colonies of sea lions. A visit to Bartolome Island will give you an opportunity to snorkel with Galapagos Penguins, the only penguins found north of the equator - they are small & very tolerant of humans. & of course, a trip to the Galapagos would not be complete without taking time to watch their most famous inhabitants - the giant tortoise!
- Itinerary: 8 day/7 night
- Departing: San Cristobal / Baltra on Monday
- Accommodates: 16 passengers in 9 air-conditioned staterooms
- Water temperatures: Vary greatly, range from 65 degrees F to 85 degrees F, depending on currents, season & location
- Visibility: The average is around 40 feet, but can range from 10 to 80 feet depending on season & currents
- All scuba diving done from the pangas
All diving is done from large, stable pangas (tenders) in order to facilitate dive planning & site selection. Days aboard the Galapagos Humboldt Explorer I generally involve an early morning dive followed by breakfast, 2 dives before lunch, one in the early afternoon & a possible night dive.
GALAPAGOS HUMBOLDT-EXPLORER / VESSEL SPECS:
- Vessel: Power Catamaran Galapagos Humboldt Explorer I
- Registry: Pto Baquerizo Moreno Galapagos Islands, Boatmaker: 2006
- Construction: Naval Steel & Fiber Glass
- Length overall: Over 97 ft
- Beam: 31 ft
- Draft: 7.0 ft maximum, Displacement: 258 tons
- Maximum Speed: 14 knots
- Maximum Range: 2500 nautical miles
- Engines: 2 CAT 3406/480 Bhp
- Generators: 2x Perkins 100 KW
- Fuel Capacity: 6,000 gallons
- Freshwater Supply: 2 reverse-osmosis water makers, 2000 gallon per day total, 5,000 gallon storage
- Air Systems: 2 electrically-driven Bauer breathing air compressors; Nitrox membrane system
- Electricity: 220 V & 110 V AC power (110 V AC 3 prong grounded outlets in all cabins & heads)
- On the Bridge: 48-mile radar with proximity alarms, Autopilot, Global Positioning System (GPS)
- with location alarm, Digital Depth sounder with alarm, Digital bottom recorder, computerized chart system with GPS link,
- Satellite phone with data link, Cellular phone, SSB Radiotelephone & VHF radios, Engine & bilge alarms, Internal telephone system.
- Accommodations: 16 passengers in 9 staterooms, all w/private ensuite bathrooms & showers.
- Up to 10 staff in crews' quarters below decks.
- Safety Equipment: Life rafts (2), life rings/strobes, life vests/strobes, emergency position locator, flares, oxygen & first aid equipment
- Other Equipment: Full service all electric galley & refrigeration, Scotsman Ice Flakers (2), Stereo audio system, recharging station for strobes, etc.
- Extensive array of professional audio/visual editing, dubbing & special effects systems.
- Tenders: Rigid hull inflatables (2), used for passenger transport & diver pickup
- Accessories: Photo Equipment, Diving Equipment
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