This morning we found ourselves surrounded by small islands and rocks that gave an interesting touch to a bizarre landscape that included Sombrero Chino, a small volcano located next to Santiago Island.
The morning outing took place along the coastline of Santiago, with its spectacular black lava field (the result of the last eruption in 1897). From Zodiacs we observed Galapagos penguins perched on rocks, drying and preening their feathers. We also saw lava herons, Galapagos hawks, marine iguanas as well as sea lions. Later in the morning we went to a small white sand beach, where some of us hung out with sea lions while others went snorkeling along the channel that separates the two Islands. The underwater world was fascinating and teeming with different kinds of fish, rays, white-tipped reef sharks and penguins.
After so much activity on this small island we came back to the National Geographic Islander. Before weighing anchor and heading to our next destination, we spotted a Bryde’s whale only a few yards away from the stern of the ship!
During the afternoon navigation we passed by a small volcano islet that has a crater lake. This brackish lake holds a small population of greater flamingoes. From the sky deck, our guests spotted many of these pink birds nesting close to the lake. Later in the afternoon we landed on the southeastern side of Santiago Island on a visitor site known as Sullivan Bay. This bizarre place is fascinating to geologists due to the fact that we can walk over recent pahoehoe lava flow formations that are covered with interesting textures and tree molds. At the end of the day, Mother Nature rewarded us with a beautiful sunset while the moon rose on the opposite horizon.
