Goodbye to the Galapagos!
June 18, 2026
Hi Moondance families!!
We cannot believe that these two weeks have already come to a close! This group was truly so special, and we are so grateful for the time spent with them.
The past couple of days have been jam-packed with cultural immersion, beach visits, snorkeling, ice cream, delicious food, and bittersweet final moments. Day 11, June 15th, we started our morning with a visit to a local farm in the highlands. The girls first held baby/young chicks – they all gave them cute names too! We walked around the farmland, attempted to catch falling papayas from trees, caught grown chickens and fed them the papaya, hung out with ducks and goats, learned about composting, and finally picked fresh lemons off of trees! Although it was a bit buggy and humid, everyone worked hard and earned a well-deserved chicken and rice lunch. We said thank you to the farm owner and made our way back down from the highlands. We headed straight to get fitted for our snorkel gear and headed out to the national park to go snorkeling with the sea lions. Many girls said this was their favorite part of their trip, and we saw tons of sea lions, fish, sea turtles, etc! Then we had about two hours back at the hotel to rest and shower before we headed out to pizza dinner!! We ended the night with a local ice cream stop (a trend) and soaked up every last minute of one of our final moonups.
Day twelve was our last full day of activities, and we made sure it was packed full of adventure! We started out the day with an easy boat ride to an island where we visited a very popular beach. Here we finally got to see the famous and iconic seabirds on a quick hike! The girls loved taking selfies with the birds and learning more about their importance from our guide. We returned to the boat to do some snorkeling around the island and saw multiple sea lions and stingrays! We ate a delicious sushi lunch at our favorite restaurant and then headed to our last snorkeling session of the trip. Back at the hotel, the girls wrote letters to their future selves, did their trip evaluations, and got dressed and ready for our last activity: an Ecuadorian cooking class! We met the lovely family who welcomed us into her home where we made fruit salad, chicken and rice, and ceviche! We wrapped up the night with a heart-felt moonup and reflected on the trip as a whole!
Thank you so much for sharing these wonderful, smart, hilarious girls with us these past two weeks and we wish them a fantastic school year!
Gray and Bella
Harley
Truly such a hilarious and mature young woman. She gets along with the group, but is also willing to go to the beat of her own drum. Everyone loves to be around her and she continuously asks questions, gets to know the other girls, and years for a fun adventure! We will miss her so much!
Bellamy
A girl with such spunk, kindness, and curiosity. She truly blossomed on this trip and there isn’t a single person who doesn’t love her. Everyone loved hearing about her stories from back home, and we hope she now has some more great stories to share with those back in Savannah! So proud of how she learned to command her space!
Kate
She is loved by those she is surrounded by and has even grown to be more of a hugger! Kate is silly, yet can take things seriously when they need to be taken seriously. We see how intuitive and thoughtful she is, even with small decisions that may seem insignificant. She is a natural leader and will thrive this coming junior year!
Sloane
Sloane is incredibly sweet and kind and such a great listener. She’s a great friend and overall comforting person to be around. We always appreciated her thoughtfulness and ability to open up during moon-up. She can always make the group laugh, and we really appreciated her listening skills when it came to activities!!
Natalie
Natalie never complained and maintained a positive attitude throughout the entire trip. She has the brightest smile and good energy is guaranteed whenever she is around the group. Natalie also participated in every activity, putting forth her best effort even if she was not a pro right away! A very confident and wise young girl, we are so excited to see where life takes her!
Miriam
Miriam is such a thoughtful and insightful girl, and is wonderfully mature for her age. Her independence makes her a stand-out student and we loved her ability to try new things! She did every activity with grace and enthusiasm, and she will be greatly missed by everyone. And she has great taste in music!!!
Ann
An incredibly sweet and kind soul who never had a bad thing to say. She consistently maintained a positive attitude and never complained. Ann has such a contagious laugh, one that everyone loves to hear and be a part of. One night during moon-up she had a laugh attack that lasted for the entirety of it, and it put a smile on everyone’s face. We will miss Ann so much!
Cameron
Cameron instantly set the tone for the trip with her hilarious jokes and sense of humor. Her extroverted personality was contagious and made other girls feel welcomed in the group. She brought a light to every activity and knew how to make an uncomfortable situation fun. She will be missed so much by all the girls!!
Caper
From the start, we could see how much of a leader Caper is! She is a fantastic question asker and truly engaged in all parts of the trip. Caper is a risk taker and a sea lion whisperer. Not only would she sometimes be the first to try something new, she also loved to interact with the animals (especially sea lions) we saw on the trip. We loved her curiosity and enthusiasm and will miss it so much.
Lucy Robinson
Lucy had an incredible ability to make others feel comfortable and safe within a group setting and it’s clear she made life-long friends on this trip. She was always able to overcome any fear and put her best foot forward which is not always the easiest for girls her age! She acts with maturity, and we were so lucky to have her on this trip!
Lucy rose
Lucy always had the group laughing no matter what. Whether it was her funny baby noises, jokes, or silly dance moves, she could always lift the mood. She is an extremely considerate friend and truly wants to get to know people. Two weeks was not enough – we will miss her!
Collins
Collins is an amazingly kind and considerate girl who we loved seeing come out of her shell. She was always eager to participate in activities or just hang out at the beach. We can really tell that Collins was a great fit for this trip and found a quiet sort of confidence throughout the two weeks. We could not be prouder of the effort she put into this trip!!
Fun in the Sun!
June 14, 2026
6/10: Fly to Santa Cruz and Visit the Highlands
Today, we flew over the beautifully blue Pacific Ocean to Baltra Island in the Galapagos! We were welcomed with warm air, a little different than what we experienced in the higher altitudes in Ecuador. A small boat taxi carried us from Baltra on Santa Cruz Island, where our guide, Danny, was meeting us. All of the girls were squealing with excitement over the bright blue water. Harley was already taking some sweet photos with her camera. We stopped for lunch at a tortoise reserve in the highlands, an area towards the center of the island. After we ate, we got the opportunity to throw on some boots, walk in the mud, and see some giant tortoises up close! Sloane was very brave and did not hesitate whenever we came close to them. Although it was starting to get pretty hot and muggy out, the girls kept positive attitudes and were not afraid to play in the mud! As soon as we got to our hostel in Puerto Ayora, the group walked around the town, shopped, and ate dinner at a fantastic Asian Fusion restaurant. Additionally, a local art gallery caught the eyes of a lot of the group, decorated in mosaic and painted in a bright blue. We finished our first night in the Galapagos with a moon-up on the roof looking over the town and into the ocean.
6/11: Boat to Island Isabela, Snorkeling, and Surfing!
An early wake-up this morning to head over to Island Isabela! Island hopping means riding on ferries, in which Lucy Rose, Kate, Ann, and Caper all showed great bravery. They rode on the upper level of the boat and took on some water sprays as we rode! Today was the first day we could get in the ocean – something the girls were yearning for! After the ferry, we had a surfing lesson. So many girls worked hard to try and attempt to get up on the boards – shoutout to Sloane, Caper, Miriam, and Collins for focusing hard and taking on some big, continuous waves. After our morning in the ocean, we had lunch at a local spot in the town. We started our meal with pumpkin soup and popcorn (yes, popcorn!). Although none of us had tried it before, this was a big hit, and some of the girls will be taking this oddly delicious treat idea back home. In the afternoon, we rode the van to a snorkeling spot. It was a very lucky day today – we swam with sea lions, saw a stingray, a nurse shark, blue fluorescent fish, and other neat sea creatures. This was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. We ate dinner right on the beach and ended the night with some chocolate-covered bananas in a market on the way home. Tomorrow is a big day, so we need rest before our hike!
6/12: Hike Sierra Negra and Play Soccer with Local Team
We started off day 8 of the trip with an incredible hike to the top of the Sierra Negra volcano! It was a short two miles to the top, where the girls were able to look into the crater of the volcano to see the volcanic rock left behind after its last eruption. Despite being quite hot, the girls did a great job at getting to the top and even told some riddles to pass the time! After a delicious lunch, the group had some free time to hang out on the beach. It was clear nobody loved the water as much as Natalie, as she spent hours swimming in the waves and got a group of girls to play “over, under” with her. We wrapped the day up by heading to a soccer field to play against a local soccer team, as well as another Moondance group! The girls had so much fun and made a great team! Bellamy showed off her competitive side by giving the game her all and scoring a goal. Lucy Robinson, Cameron, and Ann played duck, duck, goose with some of the local kids and even befriended one who tagged along with us for dinner!
6/13: Surfing on Isabela and Boating back to Santa Cruz
The next morning, we woke up and ate a traditional breakfast found in the Galapagos called bolón de verde, which is mashed plantains with cheese formed into a ball. All the girls were very brave and tried it! Afterwards, the group headed back to the beach for one last surf lesson! Miriam and Collins were unwilling to give up and kept on trying to catch a wave despite the tide coming in! The girls loved swimming in the ocean and taking lots of pictures of the beautiful view. After lunch, everyone headed to the pier to catch a speedboat back to Santa Cruz. The girls were very grateful for a calmer ocean and an easy boat ride! We wrapped up the day with a delicious dinner and ice cream and walked to the pier to look for some sharks! The girls enjoyed some shopping along the beach and then headed back to the hotel to get a good night’s sleep!
Lucy Rose- Thank you so much for allowing me to go on this trip! I will never forget the activities and friends I got to make on this trip🧑🍳👋💗 I love y’all and can’t wait to see you guys soon😘
Harley- Thank you mom and dad for sending me on this amazing trip! It has been so fun and I’m so grateful that I got the opportunity to experience this😊 Love and miss yall! See you shortly💗
Kate- hey mom and dad!!! Thank you soooo much for sending me on this amazing experience I couldn’t be more grateful. I got to meet some of my new best friends and get to try so many new things. I cannot wait to see you all when I get home and tell you all about it. Pleaseeee tell Audrey to come to the airport when you come pick me up pleaseeeee!!! I love yall so much. Text Audrey and tell her I miss her 😉😜❤️🍟🫨🤓🧐🤨
Ann- gracias familia 😎 this trip has been such an amazing experience and thank y’all for everything y’all did to get me here! I have so many stories I can’t wait to tell y’all all about. The things I have gotten to do I will forever appreciate and am so grateful for. Thank y’all so so much and I will see y’all soon 🐈💗😊
Miriam – what’s up fam!!! I miss y’all so much! This trip has been AMAZING, thank you so much for letting me go!! I’ve gotten to see and do so much that I never would have seen otherwise, I’m so grateful to y’all. I can’t wait to tell you all about it, see you soon!!!!!Xoxo 😘❤️
Caper- Hi mom and dad! I have been having such a fun time with everybody and am so grateful for this experience. I appreciate you guys so much and can’t wait to tell you more about all I’ve done. The UV is very high here just thought I should let you know👍I hope Millie is also having a great time. See you soon and again thank you so much love you!
Collins- Hi!! I’m so so glad I went on this trip, it has been amazing!! Thank you so much for sending me and letting me experience this! This is such a cool place, I think y’all would really like it here and I reallyyy want to come back one day. Ecuador has been my favorite, but the Galapagos are so pretty. You see animals everywhere here. Yesterday I saw a sea turtle, so many sea lions, three reef sharks, and a bunch of iguanas (one climbed on me while I was tanning 🤣). I can’t wait to see y’all and I hope I can go on another Moondance next year!
Cameron- Hi mom and dad! I’m so thankful that y’all gave me the opportunity to go on this amazing trip! I’m so excited to see y’all, Lawson, Harrison, and Maddie. I’m gonna cry on the last day when I have to leave these girls because I love them so much! I’m also gonna miss the sea turtles here they’re so cute and the clear water. (Btw please bring me Starbucks in the airport because I’m dying) .
Lucy Robinson: HII!! I’m having the best time of my life! I’m so so grateful that y’all gave me the opportunity to go on this incredible, life-changing trip! I’ve learned so much about others, the world we live in, and especially myself. I’ve enjoyed every single second of this trip from horse-back riding in Ecuador to snorkeling next to sea lions. I’m so so happy to see y’all but quite sad to leave this amazing group of girls that I was blessed to spend 2 weeks with. I love y’all more than anything and I’m forever thankful that y’all gave me this life-altering experience!! See y’all soo soon!!!❤️
Bellamy- Hey! Thank you so so so very much for sending me on this trip! It has been one of the best experiences of my life and I can’t wait to tell yall about it. We have done so many things that I would never have gotten the chance to do! I love yall so much and can’t wait to see yall!❤️❤️
Sloane – Hi!! I just want to say thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to come on this trip!! I have been having so much fun with all of these amazing people. I am so sad to leave this amazing group but I am so exited to get to see you soon! Love you!! 😘
Natalie – Hi! Thank you so much for letting me come on this trip. I have had so much fun and we have done so many cool activities. I am so excited to see you soon! I miss you!
Shoutouts!
June 12, 2026
Lucy Rose- Hi guys! I’m having so much fun here. I’m in Galapagos rn and have already been to Ecuador❤️❤️❤️ it was a lot of sight seeing and so much fun! I can’t wait to see y’all and hope y’all had fun in Ireland!! I love you sooooo much- hi Izzy
Kate cadogan- Hey Mom and Dad I love you guys so much and I am so grateful that you let me experience this. I cannot wait to come home and tell you all about it. I love you so much!
Natalie – Hi Mom and Dad. I miss you both a lot but I am having fun. I am currently playing cards with my new friends. We have done a lot of fun activities and have been very busy. Each day has definitely gotten better and we are swimming in the ocean a lot which is fun. I hope you guys had fun on your trip!
Ann- Hola padres! I have been having a fantastic time here in Ecuador! We have done some insanely cool things and I can’t wait to tell y’all all about it. 🙂 LOVE YALL 🧌
Bellamy- Hey Mom and Dad! I miss y’all so much and I can’t wait to see y’all. I’ve had so much fun and we have done some really cool things. See y’all soon and love y’all so much.
Lucy Robinson: Hi Mom and Dad!! I miss y’all so so much! I’m having quite the time: we’ve traveled from Ecuador to the Galapagos and now we’re staying in a hotel on an island! Lancy: I MISS YOU SO MUCH; I literally cannot wait to see you, I miss our tanning days and just spending time with you!! 😔 McLean: I miss you!! I hope you’re having the best time at boys state!! And I hope football mornings are getting better! Mama: I’ve missed you so so much, I miss spending time with you, just being around you, and especially beach time together! Dad: I miss and love you so so much; I’ve missed our car rides and beach tanning sessions together! I hope y’all are doing amazing and I love y’all so much!!✌️🍟💕💕
Caper- Hi Mom and Dad 👋 I miss you guys so so much! I’m having such an amazing time and can’t wait to tell you guys everything! We just got to Galapagos we surfed and snorkeled! So excited to see y’all. Tell maple and klabs I say hi💗💗
Harley- Hi Mom and Dad! We just got to the Galapagos and today we attempted to surf and we snorkeled! I miss y’all so much😊 Also to my friends (ARDS) I miss y’all so much omg😔 don’t have too much fun without me love y’all💗 see u soooonnnn
Cameron- Hi Mom and Dad! I miss y’all so so much!😘 I’m not gonna lie I was lowk nervous when this trip started, but it has been amazing so far! I feel like I have known some of these girls all my life and they are genuinely such funny people. I’m so thankful for y’all letting me have this experience and I can’t wait to see y’all soon. I can’t wait to see all of y’all and have Starbucks😀 Love y’all!!!
Equator Explorers!
June 10, 2026
Hello from Ecuador!!!!
6/5
After the girls all landed in the airport, we kick-started the trip with a pizza dinner and some local snacks. The girls got the chance to chat a bit and get to know each other before we headed back to the hotel. The night ended with our very first Moonup! Moonup is a group gathering that happens at the end of each day, and is a time for the group to open up and give gratitude for the activities of the day. Led by the LODs, or leaders of the day, Moonup opens with a quote, followed by the nug jug (a time to give “nugs” or remembrance for something positive that occurred that day), one serious and one silly question, and is wrapped up by announcing the next leaders of the day. Our first LODs were Lucy Rose and Lucy Robinson!
6/6
Day two of the trip started out with a bus ride to Cotopaxi National Park just outside of Quito! The girls did a great job being quick and efficient so we could get to our first activity on time. Our guide for the mainland portion of the trip, Alé, met us at the hotel and gave a run down of what the girls could expect on their first full day. Alé was incredibly knowledgeable about the history of Ecuador and made the bus ride fly by! The group spent the morning horseback riding through the park with two wonderful guides, Miguel and Israel, climbing up a mountaintop that allowed a stunning view of the National Park. Bellamy was perfectly in her element, bringing her equestrian skills from home to the activity, while Lucy Robinson cracked everyone up as she galloped through the herd of horses. Ale also pointed out an Andean Condor flying high above us, and mentioned that there were only 152 left, so they are incredibly rare to see! Caper led the pack back down the mountain and proved she’s never afraid of trying new things! After the activity, the group ate a quick, but delicious lunch at a restaurant high in the Andes, then began our bus ride to Baños. The night wrapped up in a brand new city, and for dinner, the group tried a dish local to the region called arepas. Hilariously, Gray and Bella slightly misunderstood how large arepas were and ordered two for everyone when one was plenty! However, Ale had the wonderful idea to pass out the extras to people in the city center, which the girls absolutely loved.
6/7
Day three was absolutely jam-packed with a bunch of awesome activities starting off with a swing park where the girls got the opportunity to swing with a mountain view! We then moved to the sky bridge which was a glass bridge that crossed over a canyon. Many of the girls were excited to see the canyon from new heights, and they all did a wonderful job encouraging one another. Next, the group rode in a cable car that stretched across a canyon and stopped in front of a waterfall, allowing the group to get some great photos. The group wrapped up the morning with a waterfall hike on the edge of the Amazon Rainforest, which everyone agreed was the highlight of their morning. After lunch, the girls went to a local park to play some group games for a bit, then grabbed some delicious ice cream on the way back to the hotel. The last activity of the day was salsa dancing and a full barbeque at Parque Adventura. Everyone got into the groove of the salsa music and Ann and Lucy Robinson were crowned our salsa queens! Bellamy and Kate were our LODs, and led us in an incredible Moonup that really allowed the girls to open up and get to know each other on a deeper level.
6/8
Today was our last day in Baños! Although it was a drizzly, overcast day, our morning started off with an exciting challenge at Parque Adventura! We are so proud of the girls for stepping outside their comfort zones and demolishing the ziplines, rock wall, and canyon bridge. Lucy Rose went first on the zipline without hesitation. She set the precedent and motivated the whole group. Although some parts of the rock climb were a little nerve-racking for some, our guide, Chompas, made light of the situation by having the girls make funny poses for the camera. After the long ride back to Quito, we did a 30-minute pilates class led by Gray. We are so impressed by the girls’ motivation! Collins especially rocked the class, never complaining and staying positive. Our favorite meal of the trip so far was at the dinner location we chose near the Quito hostel: Nuna. We were welcomed into the colorful and quaint restaurant with a warm fire and salads waiting on the table for us. The biggest hits of the meal were chicken alfredos and caesar salads (makes sense why this was one of the favs). Our leaders of the day today were Ann and Cameron. They thought of very creative questions to ask the group which initiated fantastic conversation. Everyone has been getting much more comfortable and making each other laugh hysterically. Harley has been a big catalyst for laughter, especially during moon-ups. Our night ended with smiles and a soothing rain storm.
6/9
The rain continued into the morning, but our hostel woke us up with fruit and a cozy ham and cheese sandwich for breakfast. Before we head to The Galapagos tomorrow, we got to explore the city of Quito today! We walked into our first stop to the deliciously sweet smell of fresh chocolate. Our teacher gave us a small history lesson on Ecuador chocolate and 12 different samples of chocolate, including the fresh cacao seed and cacao butter to try. Props to Caper for trying some of the new flavors! The visit ended with hot chocolate and the best brownie in the world. We walked throughout Quito and stopped into the Iglesia de la Compania de Jesus. This is one of the oldest churches in Quito and has elegant gold accents throughout the entirety of it with a baroque art inspiration. Sloane particularly did a great job listening to our guide Alé and loved walking through the catacombs. Our last stop on our city tour was the long awaited Equator! After a brief Ecuadorian history lesson at the museum and science lesson on the physical equator, we had a couple girls get named ‘Egg Master. You can earn this title by successfully balancing an egg on a nail at the equator, so congratulations Natalie and Miriam! We have an early morning to get to The Galapagos tomorrow, but the girls simply cannot wait. To the beach we go!
Talk soon,
Bella + Gray
Safe Arrival!
June 6, 2026
Hello Ecuador + Galapagos Families!
We heard from our leaders that the group has landed safely in Ecuador! The trip is off to a great start, and we cannot wait to hear more stories from their adventure!
Please remember that our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will be posting trip updates throughout the trip! This will allow you to follow along with their experience. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ
