These two islands are close to each other, but so different in appearance.
On Chinese Hat we go by Zodiac to look for wildlife and landscape. One of the animals to look for here are the Galapagos penguins and today we saw a few of them on the rocks and also in the water.
Some Galapagos sea lions were also spotted here. One big male was seen in the water patrolling its territory making sure no males entered. Of course Sally light foot crabs and Marine iguanas live here too and we had the opportunity to watch them in their habitat.
To maximize our experience even more, we snorkeled along the shore of nearby Santiago to find an incredible amount of underwater life, like sea stars, fish of all sorts, sharks, and more.
In the afternoon we sailed for a few miles along the coast of Santiago to arrive at a place called Sullivan Bay. Here we did a dry landing in order to begin a hike on pahoe-hoe lava which was formed no more than two centuries ago. Due to this recent occurrence, the area is still barren with very little flora or fauna found. There are two plants which are predominant, considered pioneers, one called Mollugo and the other a type of cactus named Lava Cactus.
The patterns on the lava are just outstanding as they cooled slowly, taking on several interesting shapes. Some look like animals!
We return onboard with the sun quickly sinking below the horizon, ending another day of expedition in the Galapagos.
