We are at the beginning of an expedition in the Galápagos Islands. We started early for a pre-breakfast kayaking trip along the coast of Gardner Bay. Española Island is the oldest island in the Galapagos. Here you no longer see volcanic activity. Instead, you find smooth, rounded boulders, which are signs of age and erosion on rocks.
In the morning we landed at Gardner Bay to explore the shore. The surrounding shallow waters have an amazing turquoise color. Some of us explored the white coral beach where with sea lion lounged. We also had the opportunity to go snorkeling to explore the undersea world. The marine life of the Galapagos is rich in the number of organisms and diversity of species. Today´s highlight was snorkeling with sea lions and yellow-tailed razors!
In the afternoon we repositioned the ship and anchored off Punta Suarez. This place is located on the northwestern side of Española Island. This island is flat and rocky and dotted with low vegetation. These bushes are good shelters for inland breeders like the blue-footed boobies and waved albatrosses.
Here at Punta Suarez we disembarked for a long walk in order to explore the colonies of seabirds. As we landed we were surrounded by a group of sea lions. Marine iguanas are iconic animals on this island, and we many groups of them all over the rocky shore.
Once we left the shore we reached the Nazca booby colony. These birds were found by the hundreds. Some were busy defending their nesting sites or feeding their young, while others were engaged in courtship.
It was a beautiful walk! All of us had a great time watching the seabirds among their colonies. This place seems to be a great connection point for thousands of birds. The landscape and the wildlife make Española one of the best wildlife paradises on earth!
