The month of Jay - Part 4: Isla de la Plata

Sitting 25 miles off the coast of Ecuador, Isla de la Plata is known as "The poor man's Galapagos" because it has a lot of the wildlife that can be found in the Galapagos, but is a lot less expensive to visit. We caught a small boat in the coastal town of Puerto Lopez and spent a day walking around the island and then did a little snorkeling before heading back. We didn't get to see as many animals as we would have in the Galapagos, but for $35 you can't expect too much.

Plata in Spanish means silver. It also is used as a slang for any type of money. Therefore, Isla de la Plata means Silver Island or The Island of Money. There are several stories why the island is called that. Some say that Francis Drake buried treasure there and that's why they call it Isla de la Plata, but I believe the other story...that all the bird droppings on the island give its cliffs the appearance of silver from afar.

The biggest attraction of the island is its Blue Footed Boobies. These birds are endemic to the Galapagos and a few other Pacific islands. Humpback Whales also mate near the islands, but the peak season is in July and August, so we didn't get to see them.

This short trip to the coast was the final event in the Month of Jay. It was a fantastic way to end my time in Ecuador.

I really can't describe how cool it was to see all the different types of birds up close, so I'll let the pictures do the talking.

A pair of Boobies

You can see here how close you can get to the birds

A Nazca Boobie and its chick

This is not a Sea Lion

The fish we snorkeled with