San Cristobal
San Cristobal is the first island you see when arriving from the mainland because it’s the closest to it. It was also the first landing for the famous naturalist Charles Darwin on his five-year voyage around South America. His first sightings and collections from the Galápagos Islands started here, not too far from where we are, at a place known as Punta Pitt.
The day’s activities started with a Zodiac ride along the coast of this location to encounter the special wildlife here, like red footed boobies, frigates and the always charming sea lions. A few blue footed boobies were also around, busy hunting fish in their special dive bombing way. After this we headed into the island for a wet landing on a small brown beach to get ready for a hike onto a narrow trail up to an elevation with a wonderful view and interesting geology.
Along the path were many lava lizards running across, males doing push-ups to impress the females and them running as if trying to get away, but not too far. The vegetation of the area is not abundant but is quite interesting because it is so well adapted to living under harsh conditions. For the moment the area was green due to some rain, but in the other seasons they lose their leaves and turn grey, given the island a totally different aspect.
After this power hike and sightings of some red footed boobies on their nests with some eggs, we all headed back to the beach. Almost everybody got in to enjoy this very inviting water with a pleasant temperature and to be in the company of some sea lions lying on the beach and others even coming to inspect us for curiosity.
The young aspiring naturalists had the opportunity to learn how to drive a Zodiac. That was a lot of fun and the calm water really helped with the mission.
Following the program we had to navigate to a different location called the Kicker Rock where the most incredible snorkeling session awaited. Good water temperatures and the beautiful landscape combined to make this last snorkel an unforgettable experience for everyone.
After coming back on board to change we concluded an excellent day and expedition by circumnavigating the spot. We enjoyed the majesty of it and an incredible sunset that can only be compared to Paradise Lost.
