San Cristobal Island
As we approached the beach at Punta Pitt this morning, we already knew it was going to be an incredible hike; the green, incredibly soft and sandy little beach transported us to an enchanted kingdom which was completely surreal. San Cristobal is one of the oldest islands of the Galápagos group, and Punta Pitt is a very old tuff formation that has been eroded through time. As we walked throughout the rocky canyon we were amazed at how these islands keep us wondering up until the very last walk of the week… We found once again an incredible diversity of beings; species survived here facing the incredible hard conditions of life, giving this place an incredible beauty and perfection that is hard to understand.
A small colony of red-footed boobies surprised us at the end of the trail, even though they were young and their feet were not yet red. It was extremely interesting to compare their behavior with their closest relatives, the blue-footed boobies. Later we found one solitary adult with red feet that became one of the most photographed boobies of the whole week! After the walk we enjoyed the beach while others went snorkeling and many went for a glass-bottom boat ride.
Our final activity was snorkeling in the waters around Leon Dormido or “Kicker Rock,” where white-tipped reef sharks were seen, along with many other creatures like sea turtles, sea Lions and many different species of reef fish. It was a treat to swim around this spectacular lava formation that is San Cristobal Island’s most famous landmark.
Our time this week is ending in the enchanted archipelago… this lovely day is fading in time, and will never come back. What a day! What an incredible week!
