Monday was another magical day in the Galapagos Islands. We woke up anchored in the island of Floreana and started early to make the most of this mysterious island with a pre-breakfast walk in Punta Cormorant. Here we had the opportunity to spot wild American flamingoes and learn from our naturalist about these odd-looking birds. Being out early in the morning gave us perfect light to photograph the unique land birds and plants of the area as well as sea lions and blue-footed boobies that were just waking up.
Back on the ship we enjoyed a delicious buffet breakfast, and then we got ready for a Zodiac ride around Champion Islet. We spotted the very rare Floreana mockingbird, less than 500 individuals remain of this species remain, which actually inspired Darwin with the theory of a common ancestor. Brown noddy terns, swallow-tailed gulls, frigatebirds, red-billed tropic birds and sea lions were also around.
Next on the schedule was snorkeling and outings in the glass-bottom boat, both activities that allowed us to enjoy the marine wildlife. Many species of fish and sea lions swam gracefully around us, and even several sea turtles showed up.
We went back aboard for lunch and time to rest before we continued with the afternoon activities. Our certified National Geographic photographer Christian held a workshop on photography of course, and then our naturalist Anahí gave a lecture on Darwin, as Floreana was one of the islands that he visited. By midafternoon, kayaking and paddleboarding started near the Baroness lookout, while some guests visited the Post Office Barrel. The latter is an historical site of the islands where we continue the old whalers’ tradition of hand-delivering the mail of previous visitors! Everybody had the chance to enjoy both of these sites before coming back on board – a beautiful way to end another day in this unique archipelago.
