Cerro Dragon and El Eden Island
Today we had a spectacular journey to the northern side of Santa Cruz Island. Cerro Dragon was the first visitor site of our exploration, and after a comfortable dry landing we were ready to get into an adventure in order to find the dragons of the Galápagos: land iguanas. Nature spoke soon after we arrived, as big marine iguanas were found inside tidal pools. Once we reached the sandy area, ghost crabs decorated the beautiful white sand beach, making a perfect contrast for a colorful view.
Farther into the trail, nature had more to show. A brackish water lagoon was the perfect bird sanctuary as black neck stilts and more shore birds were feeding by the rocks. As soon as we came into the incense tree forest, we were surrounded by a magic combination of Galápagos cotton flowers and painted locusts that started jumping as we passed. The magnificence of the island was displayed as we reached the heart of Cerro Dragon. Now it was time to continue looking for the main attraction of the morning: Galápagos land iguanas. A few individuals were found inside the vegetation as they were regulating their body temperatures.
Once at the summit of Cerro Dragon, a magical image of the islands was displayed on a marvelous landscape that we enjoyed for a few minutes before coming back on board National Geographic Endeavour.
The next adventure of the morning was to enjoy one of the most spectacular activities of the day: deep water snorkeling. The Galápagos Marine Reserve was revealed to our senses as we went into the water. A fantastic symphony of colors was found all over the rocks, and enormous amounts of fishes were surrounding us at all times.
In the afternoon the exploration continued to El Eden Island. The best way to sense all the wonders of nature was in a comfortable Zodiac ride along the coast line. When we reached the mangrove area, a spectacular variety of animals were found when we got closer to the trees. Baby black tipped reef sharks, spotted eagle rays, and striated herons were part of the symphony that nature played for us. At the end of this fantastic journey, we appreciated magnificent scenery that was shown in a charming sunset as we circumnavigated Daphne Mayor for an amazing bird spectacle.
Today we had a fantastic exploration in the Galápagos Islands, and it is going to be part of our memories for a lifetime.
