Agape at the islands' mess

ONE of the collective nouns for iguanas is a mess.  

I realise why when I see messy tangles of iguanas sprawled along the beach on Santiago Island.

The collective noun for lizards is a lounge. It's a description I come to appreciate during my four-day cruise from Baltra to Santa Cruz, Santiago, Genovesa, North Seymour and San Cristobal islands.

There are few places in the world where collective nouns come in as handy as they do in the Galapagos Islands, which are famous for inspiring Charles Darwin with ideas that led to the formulation of the theory of evolution.

Read the full article from Sunday Herald Sun 21.10.2012 - Agape at the islands' mess

Welcome & teams

Welcome

Congratulations on making the decision to challenge yourself and be part of the 2013 Saint Ignatius College,  World Challenge team.

Soon we will begin to meet and get the planning underway and start to work with the staff from WC. However we have a few things to consider.

At the moment we have over 75 students taking part and will be dividing into 4  teams. Teams will then be allocated  SICG staff and  WC leaders.

Creation of teams

The team that you plan your expedition with and then travel with is very important. You will have the choice of who you travel with next year, however there are some basic guidelines that I would like you to consider.

1. An even mix of genders.
2. An even mix of ages.
3. There are a range of possible treks, team up with people with a similar trekking goal.
4. The school leaders and World Challenge leaders are part of the team.


Here is the information about the treks, please review this and discuss with your friends which trek you would like to complete and use this information to help guide your decisions.

After looking through the Trekking Options below please fill out your preferences here


Ecuador Galapagos- Trekking Options

Wild creatures of the Galapagos Islands

Wild creatures of the Galapagos Islands

OF COURSE, by day five I knew that I was somewhere special. But even so, I was unprepared for the amazing experience that rocketed my Galapagos trip from special to incredible.

It was after lunch and we'd hit the water for our final snorkel session. Almost immediately, I spotted him -  a small sea lion cub darting and spinning through the water, only a dozen or so metres from our party. I swam closer. He was playing with a small sea cucumber -  a slug-like creature that resembled a bone to this pup. He was diving and swimming, up and down, with the cucumber in his mouth, much like a dog would race around a garden with a floppy toy....

Read More: Wild Creatures of the Galapagos Islands

ad

Sharks and boobies in the Galapagos Islands

Sharks and boobies in the Galapagos Islands

I AM one of about a dozen snorkellers drifting like a feather in the clear waters around Bartolome Island in the Galapagos group.

Suddenly, someone yells out: "Shark! Over here."

I can't believe I'm swimming over for a closer look. It goes against every part of my being, against everything I've ever learnt regarding sharks - certainly in Australian waters, where such an alert would clear the beach in minutes.

However, I swim over with the others to check out a couple of white-tipped sharks that appear to be asleep on the sand metres below us. Having mentally ticked those off my wildlife checklist, I'm out of here and back to the safety of our ship.

Read More: Sharks & boobies in the Galapagos Islands

Ecuador's bold idea now as endangered as Eden's wildlife

A plan to preserve the most biodiverse region on earth from oil exploitation is foundering as enthusiasm cools.

In their first hour in Yasuni's Amazonian forest, many people will see more creatures than they have in their lives, including some that have yet to be documented by science. To paddle up the Ayango creek, which leads from the traffic and pollution of the Napo River into the most biodiverse region on earth, is to encounter a wall of noise, bursts of colour and unimaginable combinations of life.

A tiger heron flaps lazily past our canoe, electric blue Morpho butterflies jolt the eye, spiders the size of a man's hand sit on branches and kingfishers flash past. On a mud bank, a lizard suns itself, while high up in the tree canopy, flying monkeys dart amid the grunting of hoatzin ''stinky turkeys'' - prehistoric survivors with claws that grow into wings that could have inspired the flying creatures of Avatar...........

Read more here: Ecuador's bold idea now as endangered as Eden's wildlife