1878 photo taken by his son Leonard

Today would have been Charles Darwin’s 212th birthday. Perhaps no scientist has changed how we think about the natural world more than Darwin with the publication of his 1859 seminal work: On the Origins of Species.

While Darwin is remembered for his theory of natural selection, Darwin began his famous voyage aboard the HMS Beagle, primarily interested in geology. He explored the dense rainforests of Brazil before continuing further south to explore the vast lands of Patagonia. Along the way, he collected fossils of long extinct species found side by side with more recent seashells found miles away from the coast. In 1835, Darwin happened to be in Chile during a large earthquake, where he observed portions of the sea bed exposed and pushed up out of the water including large beds of mussels. Higher in the Andes, Darwin encountered fossils of sea shells and surmised that the mountain chain must have been pushed upward from the sea floor over time.

When the HMS Beagle reached Galapagos, Darwin’s began to note the subtle variations in Mockingbirds and Giant Tortoises from island to island. It wasn’t until Darwin’s return to England that he started looking over all the bird specimens he had collected. Initially thinking there were separate species, he gradually realized most were all variations of finches. Darwin started forming some initial theories to explain how and why the variations all differed from island to island. Darwin consulted with a number of scientists, but it wasn’t until Darwin read a paper by Alfred Russel Wallace who had been working on a similar theory in Borneo, that the idea for natural selection coalesced.

Retrace Darwin’s steps in Patagonia

As we celebrate Darwin’s birthday, we delight in the fact that it is possible to largely retrace Darwin’s explorations in both Patagonia and Galapagos.

In Patagonia, you can explore much of the same territory visited by Darwin on our Wild South adventure which combines the spectacular scenery of Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park with an expedition cruise through the straits of Magellan and Beagle Channel.

Giant Galápagos tortoise

In Galapagos, retrace the voyage of the HMS Beagle around the uninhabited islands where Darwin began collecting species that would ultimately lead to his groundbreaking theories on evolution, natural selection and selective adaptation. From our 9-day Galapagos Adventure, our 10-day eponymous Origins of Species, to our 16-day Ultimate Galapagos, you can retrace Darwin’s steps and see the islands much the same way Darwin first did. Of course, you’ll travel in far greater comfort aboard the 141’ luxury yacht INTEGRITY.