Our first full day in the enchanted islands of Galapagos was varied, interesting and downright lovely! When we awoke we found ourselves anchored off the famous Pinnacle Rock of Bartolome. I gave what I hoped was a pleasant early wake-up call and soon the guests came sleepily into the lounge for coffee, fruit and snacks. We disembarked promptly at 6:30 a.m., landed on a small dock and then followed a boardwalk and stairs to the summit of the islet. Our naturalists explained about the volcanic origin of the archipelago, pointed out the cinder and spatter cones and small lava tubes. The view from the top was spectacular, and worth every breath of the climb!
Back on board the ship we had a hearty and well-deserved breakfast before listening to a snorkel safety briefing and then getting fitted for wetsuits, fins, masks and snorkels by the naturalists. We landed on the golden beach at Bartolome and, despite some waves and surf, had an exciting snorkel outing. Many colorful fish were seen and also penguins and white-tipped reef sharks.
Charles and I hiked to a second beach where I counted 16 freshly laid sea turtle nests, 8 nests that emerged last night. There were also 20 hawks flying above us or perched on the dunes behind the beach, hoping to find a hatchling turtle for breakfast. Later on the landing beach, naturalist Pato alerted us to the fact that one of the hawks was perched in a shrub eating a baby turtle.
Our afternoon visit was to the reddish island of Rabida, south of the large central island of Santiago. Antonio took a group of kayakers out and they had a great time paddling along the coast in calm seas. The snorkelers went with Jose and Pato and saw swimming marine iguanas, many fish and had good visibility but cooler water than they had in the morning.
A highlight of the beach walk was the huge group of nestling pelicans that were begging to be fed. Guests were also amazed to see a young bird’s beak disappear inside the adult’s pouch! We also saw something that I have rarely seen during my 30+ years working as a naturalist: two sea lion pups nursing from one female! Then, we saw another pair of pups nursing from one female! Two pairs of pups nursing from two females – very unusual behavior! Amazing really!!
As the sun set, those still lingering on the beach hurried into the Zodiacs and returned to the ship. At our evening recap, Antonio thoroughly explained the difference between seals and sea lions and Jose told us about arrival and establishment on oceanic islands and the ocean currents that bathe this archipelago and make it such a unique place on earth.
