This is our first full day into our expedition in the Enchanted Islands, and we were keen to start with an early walk in Bartolome. This island is considered one of the most striking in the archipelago. With an area of just 1.5 square miles, it holds around 200 small craters and cones, as well as other magnificent examples of volcanic features. A wooden boardwalk and a long staircase lead us to the summit of Bartolome, which at 330 feet over sea level offers one of the most renowned landscapes of the Galapagos Islands. We returned back on board for a well-deserved breakfast, and then we had to prepare for the second half of the morning. We went ashore fully equipped to enjoy the crystal-clear waters of a pleasant little bay guarded by the “Pinnacle Rock,” a tall, pointed rock that used to be part of the rim of a crater. Off went most of our fearless snorkelers to enjoy sightings of several fish species of the area, as well as many sea stars and sea urchins. Bartolome is home to a small colony of the endemic Galapagos penguins, and just as we expected, we were able to spot a few of them either from the coast or while snorkeling.
In the afternoon, our ship had to change anchorage and we navigated southwest towards the island of Rabida. As soon as we sighted it we could already see how different it was from Bartolome. The beach was strikingly red, and the entire island was covered in vegetation, indicating an older or more “mature” substrate. To make the most of the beautiful afternoon light we began with the water activities before a walk on the beach. So, some of our guests decided to explore this beautiful coastline by kayak, a rather serene way to enjoy this natural environment.
Not far away, we let our snorkelers jump in the ocean by the coast. We had great conditions this afternoon: temperature 76 degrees Fahrenheit and clear waters. The fish world of the Galapagos is rather fascinating. Some of our resident species come from warm water regions and tend to be colorful, like the king angel fish, pink cardinal fish, and parrotfishes; others are a rather dull silvery or grey, having arrived from cooler regions probably drifting with the Humboldt Current. A few Galapagos sea lions showed up and swam with us to everyone’s delight and joy, and a couple of white-tipped reef sharks were spotted briefly by our fearless snorkelers. We returned back on board the National Geographic Islander to change and prepare for a short stroll along the beach of Rabida Island. We walked on red sand, mainly composed of iron oxide, we observed sea lions resting on the beach, we were followed by Galapagos mockingbirds, we encountered numbers of lava lizards. At the far end of the beach we stopped to watch the sun set behind the slopes of Isabela Island in the distance, while some brown pelicans and a cluster of marine iguanas rested on the nearby rocks, totally oblivious to our presence. In such happy scenario and circumstances, we couldn’t help thinking of what a magnificent place we found ourselves in, so far away, in such little islands in the vast Pacific Ocean.
