Bartholomew and Santiago Islands
What a day! The first full day since boarding the Islander yesterday, and it already seems as if we’ve been here for eons. Even before breakfast, our explorations and experiences started stacking up memories. Up, up, into the barren volcanic starkness of Bartholomew to view the breath-taking panorama from the top…and breathless from the more than 372 steps, as well. But the clear morning and flawless sky exposed the surrounding islands and coastlines with no doubt about where we were: the middle of the East Pacific Ocean on newly formed volcanic islands.
After breakfast, a visit to the other side of the narrow isthmus of Bartholomew exposed sharks in the shallows (waiting for marine turtle hatchings for sure), and brown pelican nests with chicks awaiting their opportunity for a meal too. Snorkelers around Pinnacle Rock ran into, almost literally, a flock of over 20 Galápagos penguins that cruised by, yet in a blink of the eye disappeared, obviously with a destination in mind beyond our ken.
The afternoon in Puerto Egas, James Bay had us once again in the water looking for action, and did we ever get it! Octopus were on patrol checking out crevasses, scooting out of reach of the aggressive damselfish defending their algae fields, and green Pacific marine turtles grazed nonchalantly beneath us. Sea lions appeared for a quick look at us near the beach, before we exited, breathless with wonder.
Of course a walk along the shorelines later in the soft afternoon light brought even more wonders to our attention, such as marine iguanas snorting salt, fur seals and Galápagos sea lions lazing and lolling in the swells of the sea, American oystercatchers hiding their outrageously red bills, curlews, black-bellied plovers and sandpipers vied with Galápagos mockingbirds, Darwin’s finches and Galápagos hawks on the trail. So tempting was it to stay and watch, the sunset caught us in her rosy light, and twilight saw us home.
What a day! The first full day since boarding the Islander yesterday, and it already seems as if we’ve been here for eons. Even before breakfast, our explorations and experiences started stacking up memories. Up, up, into the barren volcanic starkness of Bartholomew to view the breath-taking panorama from the top…and breathless from the more than 372 steps, as well. But the clear morning and flawless sky exposed the surrounding islands and coastlines with no doubt about where we were: the middle of the East Pacific Ocean on newly formed volcanic islands.
After breakfast, a visit to the other side of the narrow isthmus of Bartholomew exposed sharks in the shallows (waiting for marine turtle hatchings for sure), and brown pelican nests with chicks awaiting their opportunity for a meal too. Snorkelers around Pinnacle Rock ran into, almost literally, a flock of over 20 Galápagos penguins that cruised by, yet in a blink of the eye disappeared, obviously with a destination in mind beyond our ken.
The afternoon in Puerto Egas, James Bay had us once again in the water looking for action, and did we ever get it! Octopus were on patrol checking out crevasses, scooting out of reach of the aggressive damselfish defending their algae fields, and green Pacific marine turtles grazed nonchalantly beneath us. Sea lions appeared for a quick look at us near the beach, before we exited, breathless with wonder.
Of course a walk along the shorelines later in the soft afternoon light brought even more wonders to our attention, such as marine iguanas snorting salt, fur seals and Galápagos sea lions lazing and lolling in the swells of the sea, American oystercatchers hiding their outrageously red bills, curlews, black-bellied plovers and sandpipers vied with Galápagos mockingbirds, Darwin’s finches and Galápagos hawks on the trail. So tempting was it to stay and watch, the sunset caught us in her rosy light, and twilight saw us home.
