Southernmost island of the Galapagos.
Flora, fauna and human history.
We started early for a pre-breakfast outing visiting a place called Punta Cormorant. Here we saw sea lions, diving and dancing blue footed boobies, some flamingoes in a brackish lagoon, turtle tracks on the sand, some sting rays in the shallows, and more. I just cannot imagine a better place than this for wildlife.
After breakfast we headed out to a nearby islet where you can only do Zodiac rides and snorkeling. The Zodiac ride was enjoyable as we had a mission to find our third species of mockingbird of the trip. We succeeded, and also found other animals like sea lions and birds as usual.
When I thought my day was done, I entered the water with many guests following me to encounter the other amazing side of the Galapagos: its rich waters and all elements in it. Large schools of fish in all forms and colors, sea lions entertaining us as if they were trained to, rays and even sharks came by to say “hello, we are the good ones!”
In the afternoon after a siesta we reached another location on the same island. This one had a lot of history behind it, specifically from whaling times that saw Galapagos as a good opportunity for business. This adventure did last for a couple of centuries leaving a lot of devastation to giant tortoise populations on some of the islands and of course to whales. One of the things still visible from that time is a place with a wooden barrel that they were using for communication with home. You can take your letters, postcards or just a message written on a simple piece of paper to be taken home by the visitors of Floreana. Hand delivered is the traditional way. No stamps needed – so cool!
To finish this day full of surprises we are out kayaking and zodiac riding around rocky outcrops and little islets for fantastic wildlife.
Grand finale!
