When arriving to a new country we put up our yellow ‘Q’ or quarantine flag until we are officially checked in
Arriving in a new country, the first order of business is to get checked in with the appropriate officials. If we were just arriving in mainland Ecuador, this would only involve customs and immigration. Because nearly the entire archipelago of the Galapagos is a national park, there’s an extra set of requirements to attend to.
The diver came by and checked to make sure Madrone’s bottom was clean. Since Mike scrubbed it thoroughly the day before, we passed the inspection
In an attempt to protect the local ecosystem from invasive species, the government requires all private boats to arrive with a hull clean of any barnacles. Bringing in pork or beef in the fridge or freezer is forbidden. Extra signs reminding boaters not to throw trash overboard must be posted. And a placard forbidding the discharge of black water overboard needs to be posted, although why that placard is required to be located near the engine room remains unclear.
The water taxi full of officials before the descended on Madrone. We didn’t get any photos of them on the boat because Mike was busy signing official paperwork (so much that he got a hand cramp) and Angie was busy showing the inspectors all of the lockers, drawers, bilge, engine room, etc.
To enforce these rules, multiple officials with multiple checklists arrived at the boat by water taxi the morning after our arrival. A total of nine officials visited us – two national parks inspectors, two employees of the local port captain, one each from the customs and immigration offices, a representative of the Ministry of Health, a municipal police officer, and a diver who checked the hull for cleanliness. Completing the entourage was the local agent we hired to coordinate all of the officialdom, Bolivar Pesantes, and his son. People were spread out all around the boat – the cockpit was full, officials flooded into the cabin down below, and the overflow sat on the forward and aft decks.
Marco the fumigator- ready to rid Madrone of any bugs
The entire process took about an hour and involved signing many forms, of which some we received a copy. Everyone was uniformly polite and professional, and in some cases even friendly.
Marco and Mike hurrying off the boat and into the water taxi after the fumigation was completed and the boat was closed up
The final step to make Madrone legal in the Galapagos was fumigation. The local fumigator Marco arrived with what looked suspiciously like a homemade flamethrower. He donned a gas mask, lit his flamethrower/fogger, and clouded up the entire cabin with insecticide before emerging from the cabin coughing and gasping for air. If we had any insects on board, we surely don’t now!
4 house later when we could return to the boat and air it out we took down the Q flag and put up the Ecuadorian flag. We are legal!
