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Mathias Espinosa (a la izquierda), buzo y fotógrafo de Scuba Iguana, junto a camarógrafos de la TV alemana ZDF. / Mathias Espinosa (left), a diver and photographer with Scuba Iguana, together with ZDF German TV cameramen.
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Diving in the Galapagos

MAYBE IT’S THE PICTURE THAT EVERYONE WANTS TO TAKE HOME WHEN VISITING THE ISLANDS, ALL THESE ANIMALS IN A SINGLE GLANCE. BUT ASTONISHMENT IS SO MUCH THAT VISITORS SOMETIMES FORGET ABOUT THEIR CAMERAS

Sea turtles, hammerhead sharks, whale sharks, fish of all colors, large, small, in schools, devil rays, penguins, unique marine iguanas and many other surprises await you as you dip your head in the waters off the Galapagos Archipelago in Ecuador.
Diving in the Galapagos Islands is quite an experience, and watching the face of expert divers as they leave the water after their first submersion, such as Mathias Espinosa of Scuba Iguana, is a joy that fills his heart with satisfaction. He tells us that the most classic expressions are “what a great surprise!”, “There is so much life in the Galapagos under the water!”, “I have seen more underwater life in a single dive than in 5 years of diving in Europe!” or “There are very few places in the world with such an amount of marine life!”
Espinosa gets kicks out of diving in the waters off the Enchanted Islands of Ecuador. He cut his diving teeth back in the 1980s. Today, he has over 10,000 dives under his belt. The fact of the matter is that waters off the Galapagos Islands cannot be visited without a guide certified by the Galapagos National Park, an institution that regulates this activity on the islands, as well as the ground tours around the archipelago. He is one of the expert guides and shares with us some of the surprises recounted by divers.
According to Mathias, 12 days is an ideal time to unravel the Galapagos on the ground and under the water, including a combination of visits the other islands for a closer look at the natural life on the surface, daily tours to various dive sites and a weeklong ride on a boat to go to the northern islands.
The best time to dive depends on what you want to see. Between December and May, during the so-called "hot season", the sea is quieter and warmer, so you can see reef fish in their breeding season; sea lions are giving birth through December, and at the beginning of the year you enjoy the playful sea lion cubs interacting constantly with the divers.
In the winter season -guides have their own say about that- and according to Mathias, more sharks are apparently seen, especially in the north. Over time, scientists have come to discover the existence of the largest shark species, between July and November, on Darwin Island. This is the whale shark, and as if that were not good enough, hammerhead sharks come in the mix, together with other shark species and marine life.
Wolf Island is another location north of the Galapagos where a large congregation of female sharks swims. If you’re lucky enough, you can spot 700 whale sharks in groups of three. If you are looking to see one of the most recognized species on the Galapagos, you must dive in Cape Douglas on Fernandina Island (to the west): the Galapagos marine iguana, the only one in the world that dips to eat seaweed. The males are larger and can make a nosedive down to 18 meters. This can’t be seen anywhere else in the globe, and according to Mathias, it is an experience without equal.
In Punta Vicente Roca are, cold waters go down to as many as 14 degrees Celsius. This is the spot of choice for the sunfish, a very large marine species that goes in there for the cleaning station. Like the sea turtle, many fish tasked with cleaning activities abound in the Galapagos. Good cases in point are butterflyfish, which greatly enhances the diving experience.
On the Darwin Islands -Pinta and Wolf- you can enjoy bottlenose dolphins which apparently are very faithful to their premises. While whales are not made while diving, killer whales can be sighted.
On the Galapagos Islands, there are species that you cannot find elsewhere else on the face of the earth. The most seasoned divers or entire families who travel to enjoy this activity, see eye to eye on this. And make no mistakes about it; the Galapagos Islands are beyond comparison in terms of biodiversity, something you can enjoy all year round. It doesn’t matter whether you stay at a hotel or go on a sailing tour among the islands. Everything is a matter of preference. Gordon Rocks is the hardest place to dive down the rock wall. The simplest, perhaps, is on the Floreana and Bartolomé Islands, where diving courses for beginners are commonplace. Let’s just make it simple: diving in Galapagos is a magical experience.