Expedition Cruising On The Silver Origin In Galapagos

Expedition Cruising On The Silver Origin In Galapagos

We had so much fun expedition cruising on the Silver Origin with Silversea Cruises in Galapagos. Each day brought new spots and much variety in sights and activities.

Our first expedition cruise was with Silversea Cruises when we cruised onboard Silver Endeavour in Antarctica for 3 weeks. On that trip we got a good introduction to what expedition cruising was all about. So we were prepared for a very busy itinerary when we started our Galapagos cruise. We enjoyed hikes, zodiac tours, kayaking and snorkelling.

The Silver Origin cruise ship provided a great base to explore the Galápagos Islands for a week. But it was a very busy agenda!  We barely managed to book time for a massage to use up our shipboard credits.  

A Typical Excursion Day In The Galapagos

The days started early most days on our cruise around the Galapagos Islands. We often had breakfast before 7am so we were prepared for the first excursion by 7:30 a.m.

Each day there were generally 3 different excursion opportunities, often in different spots and usually with more than one option.  The ship was moved overnight and was anchored when we awoke for the first excursion. The second excursion was generally late morning in the same general location. Over lunch, the ship was moved to a new location.  A third excursion was offered in the afternoon.

The excursion opportunities varied by location. We had the chance to do hiking, zodiac tours, kayaking and snorkelling. We often chose snorkelling if offered. As scuba divers, we never missed a chance to get into the water. We chose kayaking twice to travel along the shore at a slower pace.  Zodiac tours let us explore a little further along the shore. In some locations, hiking options were available.

Everyone was put into one of two groups. There were times designated for many of the activities for each group. Kayaking required sign-up. And a few special excursions also required sign-up so they could plan for the participants. 

For all excursions we boarded a zodiac from the rear Marina deck. Most of the time, the zodiac boarding from the Silver Origin was not extremely challenging. Staff ensured safety going on and off the zodiac.

Around 7pm, the expedition team led a review of the activities of the day. And we got a preview of activities planned for the next day. We were dismissed to dinner when the briefing was over.

Expedition cruising on the Silver Origin was perfectly designed to ensure we got the best out of each adventure.

Well Outfitted For Adventures

The Marina area on the ship was well outfitted with gear for all adventures. We were assigned a low profile personal floatation device (PFD) that we kept in our room and was needed every time we left the ship. A different PFD was assigned for kayaking.

Everyone was outfitted with a wetsuit, fins and snorkel. The mesh bag with our gear hung in the Marina when not in use. A slightly different set of gear was provided for kayaking. But it was not the full dry suit we used when we kayaked in Antarctica. We actually brought our full thin skins which we wore under the shorty wetsuits provided. This provided a little extra warmth, much needed sun protection and kept us safe in case we got too close to water hazards.

Silversea provided a small water resistant backpack and water bottle for each cruiser. We were advised to bring water shoes for wet landings. Not the big heavy high boots we bought for our trip to Antarctica. We packed lighter weight waterproof hiking shoes for hiking adventures. Light hiking clothes, bathing suits and nice cruising clothes were on our packing list.

We were well outfitted for expedition cruising on the Silver Origin.

Expedition Team And Activity Briefings

There were 10 expedition team members under the team leader Bernardo. A significant portion of the crew and all of the certified naturalist guides on the expedition team needed to be Ecuadorian citizens. And it was highly favoured that most of the team came from the Galápagos Islands. 

As we found on our expedition cruise to Antarctica, the expedition team brought a broad set of skills and experience. We had specialists for wildlife, geology and local history. Depending on who led specific outings, we often got different perspectives on our zodiac or hiking tours.

When we cruised in Antarctica, the captain and expedition leader had lots of discretion to plan the outings for each day. It was very different in the Galapagos. A detailed itinerary was approved and very little variation was allowed in the places we stopped on specific days. 

At different times, we were given specific expedition briefings for different adventures. There were general rules discussed that applied to all excursions. We needed to stay with the guides and walk on designated paths, no wildlife feeding was allowed and in fact, no food was to be brought off the ship. Rules around noise, flash photography and distance from the wildlife ensured that we disturbed the wildlife as little as possible. We were reminded about the penalties for taking souvenirs!

The expedition teams prepared us for expedition cruising on the Silver Origin.

Snorkeling Was Our Favourite Water Activity

If we wanted to snorkel, we had to do the snorkel briefing and sign a liability form. To snorkel it was required that you be able to swim. So we were a bit surprised when we saw quite a few people floundering around with life vests on. 

Before the first snorkel, people were reminded to be truthful about their physical capabilities when deciding to do the different snorkel activities. There was a stern reminder on one snorkel trip because of high currents. But that sadly did not stop many people who really should not have been in the water that day.

Most of the snorkel trips were deep water snorkels. That meant getting in the water from a zodiac and then climbing back into the zodiac, Twice there were much simpler snorkel options offered from shore.

Snorkelling was our favourite excursion choice when expedition cruising on the Silver Origin.

Kayaking For A Slow View Of Scenery

Kayaking also required a special briefing to participate. To kayak we needed to be able to swim and they suggested that we should be “medium fit” (whatever that meant). We kayaked many times before so kayaking in the Galapagos was well within our capability. 

The Silver Origin had only 8 kayaks so each trip was limited to 16 people. Sign up in advance was required. If demand was too high, the expedition team ensured that everyone got at least one opportunity to kayak. We got out on kayaks twice and could have taken a third opportunity if we wanted.

On our cruise to Antarctica, we first learned the challenge of moving from a zodiac into a free floating kayak. But even with that practice, my first belly flop return to the zodiac boat was not graceful. Luckily it improved by the second kayak adventure on this trip.

Kayaking gave us chance to move at a slower pace along the shore. We chose early morning kayaking sessions when the waters were calm and everything was quiet. Kayaking was a great way we enjoyed expedition cruising on the Silver Origin.

Zodiac Tours For More Sights

Zodiac tours were split by groups. One group went out first and then about 2 hours later the next group left. They tried to alternate the groups for early and later starts.

The zodiac tours took us along the shorelines of the various islands. We got a close-up looks at the volcanic shorelines. And saw a wide variety of wildlife from the boat.

The zodiacs generally all covered the same sites on the shore in different orders. The detailed information we got during the zodiac trip often depended on the expedition team member with us. But we generally learned a lot on any zodiac trip.

We saw a wide variety of different sights from the zodiac tours when expedition cruising on the Silver Origin.

Hiking To Explore More

Hikes were offered in a few different locations. The zodiacs were used to get to the hike locations. Some landings were wet and required good water shoes. But some were dry and we travelled in our hiking shoes. 

A few of the hikes were labeled as more extreme requiring climbing to heights or travel over rough terrain.  A few of the hikes were less challenging but still we had to deal with high temperatures and humidity. Sun protection and plenty of water was required. But the volcanic scenery and close proximity to local wildlife was well worth the zodiac trip to the shore.

The hikes were scheduled a few times as the last activity of the day. The zodiac trip back as the sun set was a special treat.

We chose a few hikes but did not do all of them. We explored other volcanic islands and were not big birders. So the hiking sights often were not a big draw for us. But hiking was another fun way to enjoy expedition cruising on the Silver Origin.

Wildlife Encounters Every Day

We saw a lot of wildlife on this cruise around the Galapagos Islands. No matter which adventure we chose, we got close up views of the wildlife.

We were excited when we saw unique local wildlife. We expected the blue-footed boobies to be much bigger than we found. The flightless cormorants may not have flown but they enjoyed swimming. On previous trips we loved the playful penguins at Magdalena Island in Chile, on our visit to Bluff Cove in the Falkland Islands and on our Silversea expedition cruise in Antarctica. So when we found the Galapagos penguins we watched with interest.

On one day trip from Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island, we enjoyed a morning walk amongst the massive Galapagos tortoises. We even got a close-up visit with a few of them.

On several stops we looked for pink flamingos. Sometimes they were too far off in the distance. And on other times we got a much closer view.

On different excursions we saw the odd iguana. But when we hiked on Fernandina Island at Punta Espinoza we found vast stretches covered with iguanas.

When snorkelling we were delighted when we found large schools of fish, white-tipped sharks, sea turtles that floated in the current and one large manta ray.

When expedition cruising on the Silver Origin we were entertained by a wide variety of local wildlife.

Great Adventures Expedition Cruising On The Silver Origin

We enjoyed so many great adventures when expedition cruising on the Silver Origin on our cruise in the Galapagos. Every day we had several opportunities off the ship and as we explored the different islands in this volcanic archipelago. 

From the Galapagos we headed to Cusco in Peru for our next adventure. On a South America trip for cruising in the Galapagos we did not miss the opportunity to add another week and we explored Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley too. These two combined adventures definitely made this a trip of a lifetime!

Have you done expedition cruising on the Silver Origin with Silversea Cruises?  What was your favourite expedition activity?

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