A day in Quito to get oriented, then out to a lodge in the cloud forest, built deep enough into the wilderness that it is hard to believe anyone got construction equipment in. Days on the birds and the hiking trails, nobody else in sight.
New Year's fell here, along with an earthquake that shattered glass and shook the lodge in the night. Disorienting at the time, and a fairly direct reminder of how remote the place was.
Then south to the Galápagos, flown to the islands and aboard a ship for the week. Under a hundred passengers, small enough that guests and crew were on first-name terms by the end of it. Birds and species that exist nowhere else, and swimming close enough to sea lions to trade a look. Land-based itineraries exist for anyone who wants a slower version. This one ran entirely by boat.
