The twin pits
Sheer green walls.
Pi3.124 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Murray Foubister — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Andrew Katsis — CC BY 4.0
Two deep pits side by side in the highlands of Santa Cruz Island, whose Spanish name means «the twins». They are not eruption craters but collapse pits, formed when the roofs of emptied magma chambers or caves fell in, leaving sheer rock walls draped in plants. Around them grows a rare forest of Scalesia, a daisy relative that evolved here into true trees found only in the Galápagos, their branches hung with mosses and ferns. A short, easy trail circles the pits through the trees, with lookouts into their green depths. It is one of the island's best places to spot the famous Darwin's finches, including the woodpecker finch that uses cactus spines as tools, along with doves and other small birds. The air is much cooler and damper here than on the coast. It sits on the road to the Itabaca channel and the airport, so many stop on the way or on a highlands tour with the giant tortoise reserves. Bring a light jacket.
Sheer green walls.
Found only here.
Incl. the woodpecker finch.
Santa Cruz Island highlands, on the road between Puerto Ayora and the airport
Not eruption craters but collapse pits over underground voids, set in rare Scalesia forest.