Dragon Hill & Chinese Hat
The National Geographic Endeavour had arrived this time on the northwest side of Santa Cruz Island. Welcomed by a beautiful day, nice breeze, and a great landscape, we headed on our exploration this time to Dragon Hill, a National Park restored area, where we have a land iguana nesting area.
The expedition started after breakfast with a dry landing on lava rocks; soon we were surrounded by a giant Opuntia forest and incense trees, succulents by the beach area and interesting tide pools holding small fish of all kinds. Some of us had the opportunity to find an octopus feeding on a Hercules crab in one of the pools. Further inland we had some more endemic plants to the island and one very numerous was the Galápagos Cotton with yellow flowers. Iguanas soon appeared. Ground burrows were everywhere, and territorial activity from some late females making their nests were the nature performances in this habitat.
Our walk was amazing but somehow warm – perfect to be followed by some water activities, and we certainly did. Right after coming back on board and having time to change, we left towards an exploration around the deep waters of Guy Fawkes Islets, where some sharks were spotted. We also saw schools of salemas and creol fish but also many marine invertebrates like nudibranchs. Some of our explorers also took the option to swim at a small but inviting beach.
We navigated again and soon arrived at Chinese Hat ( satellite islet of Santiago). The afternoon expedition started with some kayak activity. A great snorkeling area, the place is known for the variety of marine life it holds. As we transported ourselves into the marine world it was just breathtaking. Some white tip reef sharks were found, and we also saw penguins in the water, some king angel fish, and many parrot fish. The sea had shared its wonders with us.
At the beach, some swimming and relaxation time was going on with us being accompanied by a small colony of Galápagos sea lions. We ended up our day with a Zodiac ride along both coasts of Santiago and Chinese Hat; penguins were spotted on the lava shores, with some herons and Sally light foot crabs as well.
What a day we had! More adventurous expeditions every day, each of them different and full of knowledge surrounded by the marvelous pristine nature.
