Much advice sought for upcoming Galapagos trip

[dna77054]

I am heading to the Galapagos and Quito for 4-5 weeks this summer, mid Jun – late July. I currently have back-to-back adventure cruises, followed by a week-long dive liveaboard. I arrive in Baltra 3 days before the first boat. The backend after the dive trip is wide open for a week to 12 days split between Galapagos and mainland Ecuador however I like. Though I would probably stay the Quito area while on the mainland. I do not want to lug dive equipment all over the country. I wound appreciate any input of the following:

FIRST, DIVING QUESTIONS (non-diving questions to follow):

1 Any need for a fixed macro lens, either above or below water?

2 Do they use, provide, or allow reef hooks?

3 (maybe not the right forum but what the hell) I use bare wetsuits for the fit, I already have a hooded vest but need a thicker suit. Any opinions on 7mm revel, vs 7mm velocity, vs 7mm reactive vs 5mm reactive, vs 8/7 semi-dry? Is the 5ml reactive warmer than the cheaper 7mm revel and velocity? I welcome all insight regarding exposure protection.

I recently tried on a 7mm revel and it felt tighter than my same size 3 ml velocity. Is this common with thicker suits? Should I go up a size?


4 Given that this is not easy diving, should I reserve a larger tank? Do you use your gas much faster there? Which is usually the limiting factor, your gas, your NDL, or proscribed dive time?


NOW THE NON-DIVING QUESTIONS:

5 Do the local airlines actually weigh or give you grief with regards to your carry-on bag or personal item on the flight to/from Galapagos? My carry-on is rather heavy with the expensive, fragile, and must not lose items.

6 Should I NOT do Mindo cloud forest on the front end to avoid issues with biocontamination when I arrive in Galapagos?

7 Is laundry service (outside of hotels) easy to find in Puerto Ayora and San Cristobal? As of now I am limiting my hotels to those with laundry service. The more I can do laundry, the less I have to pack.

8 On my current adventure cruises, the only 2 islands I am missing are Isla Espanola and Isla Floerana. I could maybe hit them with daytrips or an additional 4 day adventure cruise ($1700, with a couple of repeat locations) on the back end of the trip. In your opinion, are those islands worth it, or mostly more of the same? Anything especially unique there?

9 How much of a zoom lens is recommended topside?

10 Should I bring hiking boots?

11 Pants, shorts, or a mostly even mix? does it oscillate between too hot and too cold on land?

12 easy to find/buy sunscreen/mosquito repellent in the Galapagos? Are mosquitos even an issue?

13 Any recommendations for tours, activities, must-do/see around the Quito area?

Any additional advice or insight is welcomed. I have 3 months to get this right.

Thanks,
Mike

 

[Still Kicking]

I am heading to the Galapagos and Quito for 4-5 weeks this summer, mid Jun – late July. I currently have back-to-back adventure cruises, followed by a week-long dive liveaboard. I arrive in Baltra 3 days before the first boat. The backend after the dive trip is wide open for a week to 12 days split between Galapagos and mainland Ecuador however I like. Though I would probably stay the Quito area while on the mainland. I do not want to lug dive equipment all over the country. I wound appreciate any input of the following:

FIRST, DIVING QUESTIONS (non-diving questions to follow):

1 Any need for a fixed macro lens, either above or below water?

2 Do they use, provide, or allow reef hooks?

3 (maybe not the right forum but what the hell) I use bare wetsuits for the fit, I already have a hooded vest but need a thicker suit. Any opinions on 7mm revel, vs 7mm velocity, vs 7mm reactive vs 5mm reactive, vs 8/7 semi-dry? Is the 5ml reactive warmer than the cheaper 7mm revel and velocity? I welcome all insight regarding exposure protection.

I recently tried on a 7mm revel and it felt tighter than my same size 3 ml velocity. Is this common with thicker suits? Should I go up a size?


4 Given that this is not easy diving, should I reserve a larger tank? Do you use your gas much faster there? Which is usually the limiting factor, your gas, your NDL, or proscribed dive time?


NOW THE NON-DIVING QUESTIONS:

5 Do the local airlines actually weigh or give you grief with regards to your carry-on bag or personal item on the flight to/from Galapagos? My carry-on is rather heavy with the expensive, fragile, and must not lose items.

6 Should I NOT do Mindo cloud forest on the front end to avoid issues with biocontamination when I arrive in Galapagos?

7 Is laundry service (outside of hotels) easy to find in Puerto Ayora and San Cristobal? As of now I am limiting my hotels to those with laundry service. The more I can do laundry, the less I have to pack.

8 On my current adventure cruises, the only 2 islands I am missing are Isla Espanola and Isla Floerana. I could maybe hit them with daytrips or an additional 4 day adventure cruise ($1700, with a couple of repeat locations) on the back end of the trip. In your opinion, are those islands worth it, or mostly more of the same? Anything especially unique there?

9 How much of a zoom lens is recommended topside?

10 Should I bring hiking boots?

11 Pants, shorts, or a mostly even mix? does it oscillate between too hot and too cold on land?

12 easy to find/buy sunscreen/mosquito repellent in the Galapagos? Are mosquitos even an issue?

13 Any recommendations for tours, activities, must-do/see around the Quito area?

Any additional advice or insight is welcomed. I have 3 months to get this right.

Thanks,
Mike

Only questions i can answer:

Reef hooks ... not needed. You wedge yourself in the rocks and watch the show or youdrift with the current.

7mm for sure but no experience with brands. Yes they do feel more restrictive. Looser will defeat the purpose and you'll be colder.

No mosquitos IME. Temperature was great ...warm with a nice breeze.

Larger tank depends on your sac rate. Most time is at 60-80' but you shouldn't be swimming too hard unless your're following a whale shark. Al80 with nitrox was plenty for me.

Spend as much time as you can at Wolf and Darwin

 

[davehicks]

I used a 5mm wetsuit on my two dive trips there. And a hooded vest. This gives you flexibility.

Get some kevlar dive gloves. If you end up having significant currents, which is not unusual, you may need to pull down on anchor lines or go hand to hand over lava rocks. Gloves are very necessary in Galapagos.

Bring a long lens, like 70-200 or 150-600 for top side. You will miss it if you don't have it.

While you might not need a macro lens underwater, you will want something that you can shoot CFWA with. There are lots of small sea horses, bat fish, and other small to mid sized creatures that you will want to capture.

 

[Johnoly]

13 Any recommendations for tours, activities, must-do/see around the Quito area?

If you have a full day,,,I highly{literally} recommend Mindo Ziplines. Mindo Canopy Ziplines Ecuador
It's 10 total ziplines that go back for forth between the mountains. There are paths and it's some short walking between launch platforms but you will never forget just zooming thru the clouds and trees on some very long zipline runs. We hired a driver that was set up by the hotel desk to take us up and back about an hour. If you think the scubadiving is good,,,the ziplines are a very close 2nd. Bring bug spray, you are in the forest up there. Don't forget to post up a report of your trip highlights here on SB.

 

[dna77054]

testing

 

[dna77054]

If you have a full day,,,I highly{literally} recommend Mindo Ziplines. Mindo Canopy Ziplines Ecuador
It's 10 total ziplines that go back for forth between the mountains. There are paths and it's some short walking between launch platforms but you will never forget just zooming thru the clouds and trees on some very long zipline runs. We hired a driver that was set up by the hotel desk to take us up and back about an hour. If you think the scubadiving is good,,,the ziplines are a very close 2nd. Bring bug spray, you are in the forest up there. Don't forget to post up a report of your trip highlights here on SB.

Thanks, I plan to hit that on the back end of the trip. I was reading the fine print in some travel insurance policies, and "ziplining" was excluded in some. I need to pick carefully. Can I assume tours companies are very easy to find in Quito to set something up for the next day?

 

[dna77054]

I used a 5mm wetsuit on my two dive trips there. And a hooded vest. This gives you flexibility.

Get some kevlar dive gloves. If you end up having significant currents, which is not unusual, you may need to pull down on anchor lines or go hand to hand over lava rocks. Gloves are very necessary in Galapagos.

Bring a long lens, like 70-200 or 150-600 for top side. You will miss it if you don't have it.

While you might not need a macro lens underwater, you will want something that you can shoot CFWA with. There are lots of small sea horses, bat fish, and other small to mid sized creatures that you will want to capture.

When did you go and what were the lowest temps you experienced with a 5mm and hooded vest?
Any brand you would recommend for kevlar dive gloves, I would like some touch and dexterity to operate my camera.

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

Ref eating in Quito: Nuema and Urko were both good meals, Urko more relaxed. I’d skip Zazu. Last time i went i also stayed at the Wyndham by the airport inbetween landing back in Quito and flying out the next day. I was happy i did. Also worth stopping by the Nudo street art gallery and perhaps picking up a print on your way back. They are a collection of street artists who are heavily involved in political expression etc. you can’t buy their stuff outside ecuador as the mail is notoriously terrible. So they don’t ship abroad. Makes a 10/10 gift for anyone who is into that sort of stuff or just for your wall, memories and a good anecdote. Also worth stopping for a drink at the Casa Gangotena bar for a cocktail if that’s your thing. Heavy old school colonial feels.

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

I would also recommend sourcing your kevlar gloves early. They can be a PITA to find for a decent price, especially if you want a pair thin enough for camera work. Even Alex Mustard wears a pretty thick pair and makes do with them as he has stuggled to find decent ‘thin’ ones.

 

[Still Kicking]

I use heavy duty work gloves for all my diving ...down to 50 degrees. But my hands don't get cold. I like the dexterity of work gloves and they are tougher than neoprene.