January 21 & 22, 2001

Last night we said our good-byes to the crew and our soul-mates who had shared in the great adventure. Climbing to the top deck at sunrise I said goodbye to the tall ships that had been part of the scene. In the distance we spotted the Corinthian, the much larger ship we had expected to sail-on before being reassigned to the Eric.

Leaving our yacht we were soon at Baltra where some of our new found friends were waiting to say farewell.

Baltra airport was originally constructed by the U. S. military during World War II as a base to protect the Panama Canal from enemy attack. During this period most of the indigenous fauna of the island was exterminated. Land iguanas have only recently been successfully re-introduced . Baltra is currently an Ecuadorian naval base and is not within the boundaries of Galapagos National Park.

After a routine flight back to Quito we had a free day which gave us a chance to roam the streets of the city.

Index — Ecuador & the Galapagos

Adventure Begins