Baltra Galapagos

The newly engaged super star couple Brangelina have arrived in Ecuador to visit and tour the Galapagos Islands.  The islands, located approximately 525 west of Ecuador, are a World Heritage site and home to some of the most unique animals like the Marine iguana and the Galapagos penguin. The couple arrived at the Baltra airport in the Galapagos which was built by the U.S. military during World War II.  The airport also serves as a naval base for Ecuador.  Jolie and Pitt are traveling with...Read Full Story

Fourteen people who survived a shipwreck near Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands and the bodies of two people killed in the accident arrived Tuesday at the port of Manta, while the search continues for three missing crew members, the media reported. Last Wednesday, the fishing boat Tuna I sank near the Galapagos Islands due to weather conditions, according to crew members, and Ecuadorian officials are continuing their efforts to determine the exact cause or causes of the accident, Ecuavisa...Read Full Story

Land Iguana at the Baltra Airport The story of the Baltra Land Iguanas is one that illustrates the effect both good and bad humans have had on the Galapagos wildlife population over the years. Up until the early part of the 20th century Baltra was considered “Iguana Headquarters”.  There were hundreds of land iguanas living on the island of Baltra.  Located near the center of the Galapagos Islands just north of Santa Cruz Island, Baltra is a small and relatively flat island with little...Read Full Story

Group of Navy Men stationed in Baltra John H Peck is #7 Part II of our series on the World War II base at Baltra with assistance  from John H Peck  In the late 1930’s and early 1940’s as tensions grew around the world, interest in a military base on Baltra Island grew. The Marshall Documents shows that negotiations between the US and Ecuador for the construction of a military base in the Galapagos were well in place during 1939. United States interests made a base in the Galapagos Islands a...Read Full Story

They are an archipelago of volcanic islands scattered around the equator in the Pacific Ocean. Part of continental Ecuador lying 972 km (525 nmi) west of it, Galapagos Islands are geologically young and home for various number of endemic species.  Observations on these species lead to the rise of theories like the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. The exact location is found in the eastern Pacific Ocean, 973 km (525 nmi; 605 mi) off the west coast of South...Read Full Story

Ecuador was to complete on Tuesday the destruction of 11 U.S. bombs of World War II vintage that were found in 2010 by fishermen in the Galapagos Islands, the defense minister said. The Defense Ministry delegate for the destruction of the Galapagos bombs, Xavier Drouet, told Efe that on Monday they “successfully” blew up the first six bombs, and on Tuesday would explode the other five. Drouet said the Americans had a military base on Baltra Island in the Galapagos, and these armaments were...Read Full Story

The boat ‘Misamiras’ sank after suffering an outbreak of fire at 14:30 yesterday, when he was in the channel Itabaca sector on the island of Baltra, Galapagos province. Staff of the Port Authority of Seymour and the boat Coast Guard Auxiliary Espanola Island unsuccessfully tried to the boat registration TN-01-00941. Staff was in the area moved to the canal and proceeded to the fire that was allegedly caused by an explosion, said the captain of the boat. The rescue was under the command of...Read Full Story

The authorities of the Galapagos National Park of Ecuador and the operators of the airport in Baltra are seek to find protect the land iguanas living on the island of Baltra. Victor Carrion from the national park stated today, since July a total of (5) iguanas have been found dead in the airport area, (3) were killed when hit by aircraft, (1) by motor vehicle and the other by activity near the airport.  The airport operators have told the park that they will begin an inspection of the runway...Read Full Story

Tuesday begins lobster season in the Galapagos Marine Reserve.  During the next 120 days fisherman are able to catch and sell lobster with quotas of  22 tons of red tail lobster and 6 tons of green tail lobsters.  This time each year the Galapagos National Park allows the capture of lobster in within the Galapagos Marine Reserve.  It is also the time of year when many local restaurants and Galapagos Cruises will feature lobster on their menu. Fisherman are resticted to lobsters between 6 and...Read Full Story

The Galapagos Islands consist of a collection of islands that are located in the east side of the Pacific Ocean. The islands are owned by Ecuador, and are located at about six hundred mi to the west of Ecuador. The Galapagos Islands have thirteen islands that are main, but there are a number of tiny islands that have people living on them. The combined area of all these islands makes up nineteen thousand sq mi. The Galapagos Islands are a major attraction with travelers all over the world...Read Full Story