Walking with Giant Tortoises in the Galapagos Highlands

The highlands of Santa Cruz Island lie about an hour from Baltra airport in the Galapagos, reached via Quito. Wild giant tortoises graze and wallow in the misty highland pastures, some of them over a century old and heavier than a grown man. They move in unhurried silence, and the only sound is grass tearing as a tortoise older than your grandparents feeds. Tortoises are here year round, with the highlands greenest and most active from December through May. (Image: AI generated illustration.)