Dolphins

While on the Galapagos portion of the trip, we came across dolphins twice. The first time, they were near the shore as we were leaving Floreana Island. Several of the tour members tried to swim with them, but they were largely unsuccessful at getting close to them.

The second time was somewhat later, as we were between Floreana and Isabella. Tim, our tour guide, estimated that there were about 400 dolphins in the pod. I took a number of photos and movies, and I’ll include the best ones. This first photo shows Tim on the bow, with the pod in the distance as we approached them. As always, click on the photo for the full-sized image. I’ve uploaded these at what should be the full 6MP resolution.

Approach to dolphins

We spent about 10-15 minutes following the pod. It may have been more; it may have been less. I’ll admit that I wasn’t paying attention to my watch. Also visible in this first photo are the back of Marion’s head, Pat on the bow, and Natalie in the near foreground at the right.

Among the dolphins 1

The people visible in this shot are, from left to right, Evette, Tim, Pat, and Erika.

Among the dolphins 2

The people visible in this shot are Pat, Erika, and Rosemarie.

Among the dolphins 3

I’ve seen dolphins at sea before, when I was in the Navy, but I’d never seen so many at once. Nor had I seen them leaping – they’d been surfing the bow wave. It was wonderful. Here’s the best movie I took. If you watch closely towards the end (about the 1:10 and 1:24 marks), you can see dolphins swimming past the boat just under the surface.

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