Floreana Island
Today was another amazing day at our wonderful destination: the Galápagos Islands. Our activities began early this morning in order to visit the legendary Post Office Barrel at six o’clock. As we arrived on the beach, something very particular got our attention: a dead baby Galápagos shark that was placed on the beach by the sea. Once at the barrel we started with a wonderful Galápagos tradition in order to exchange our postcards with those left behind by tourists. Back onboard the National Geographic Endeavour, a very delicious breakfast was waiting for us; just the perfect meal, for a perfect day.
As the morning passed by, it was soon time for deep water snorkeling at Champion Islet. As soon as we got into the water, we were surrounded by thousands of reef fish that were swimming all over the place. It was so amazing that we felt as if we were swimming inside a giant fish tank. The most impressive animal we saw was an enormous marbled ray laying at the bottom of the ocean. It was fantastic! After a very good snorkeling moment, we got ready for a wonderful Zodiac ride around Champion Islet; our goal, the Charles mockingbird. During the cruise, many different seabirds surprised us. There were Galápagos shearwaters, common brown noddies, and red billed tropicbirds flying all over the islet; and finally, we got to see what we were looking for, the amazing Charles mockingbird.
The expedition continued in the afternoon with a visit to one of the most fantastic places in the Galápagos: Punta Cormorant. Once on land, we were amazed by the green sand beach found at the first side of the point. As we continued a little farther inland, an amazing salt water lagoon with some flamingos inside just made a wonderful panoramic view of the area. During our way to the second beach, we saw a lot of Darwin finches, and frigate birds flying around us. By the moment we arrived, dozens of baby diamond stingrays that were laying close to shore, surprised us for a very astonishing moment; and right in between them, two white tip reef sharks were enjoying of a good salema buffet.
Once back onboard the National Geographic Endeavour, we enjoyed a charming sunset from the stern of the ship. Today was a perfect expedition in the living paradise of the Galápagos Islands.
