After a long navigation from Rabida Island, we finally arrived at the west of Galapagos. What a feeling it was to wake up and observe magnificent landscapes of volcanos and unique creatures along the calm sea, appearing with the first beams of sunlight to give us an official welcome to the youngest part of the archipelago. We were accompanied for a short while by sea birds, as well as some dolphins who jumped, displaying fantastic acrobatics.
After breakfast we dropped anchor at Punta Espinosa, Fernandina Island. This is the youngest island, which looks barren with its shield volcano, showing us how hostile this environment is. We disembarked on the small pier, and immediately we observed several species that have managed to colonize this barren area. Marine iguanas in particular seem to do really well here. Along the trail we observed hundreds of them as petrified rocks basking in the sun, as if adoring it. As soon their bodies warmed up some of them started their way into the ocean to feed on algae, their main diet and the reason they are unique in the world. We observed Galapagos hawks flying and landing on the top of mangrove trees, while in the shallows, flightless cormorants, penguins, and sea turtles captivated our attention for their tameness and uniqueness. It was as if we were observing an unchanged place that remained inalterable for millions of years.
After our first outing, we started navigating north, crossing the Bolivar Channel to finally arrive to Punta Vicente Roca on Isabela Island. The landscape was gigantic, with a magnificent view of Ecuador Volcano and its vertical cliffs and abrupt coastline. We started early in the afternoon by snorkeling with green sea turtles, Galapagos penguins, flightless cormorants, and sea lions, which is a unique experience like nowhere else on this planet. We returned later to explore the coastline by Zodiac, and we found a great number of sea birds in a feeding frenzy like blue-footed boobies and brown noddy terns, while on the rocks various Nazca boobies and fur sea lions captivated the attention of our guests. Back on board we celebrated crossing of the equator line with a drink in hand and a beautiful sunset, remembering the unique creatures that made this day unforgettable.
