Punta Cormorant, Champion & Post Office
It’s Monday in the Galapágos Islands and our plan is to disembark early in the morning. The conditions are inviting us all to what is sure to be a great expedition on these historic islands.
Punta Cormorant wet landing is the first stop. The green sandy beach is where we disembark and close to it, there is a brackish water lagoon. It does not take too long for us to get there and we are gratefully surprised by a small flock of pink flamingos looking for something to eat. What great shots to begin with! The green of the island and the singing of Darwin finches make this a pleasant excursion. We take a few minutes in our photo session to discuss these fascinating birds and learn more about the area’s natural history before carrying on with the following attractions in the different areas of the visitor site.
We cross the vegetation, using binoculars to identify Darwin finches and other birds in the walking area. Soon we approach a white sandy beach paradise known as a common nesting site of the green sea turtles that swim in the ocean off the Galapágos in endless numbers.
It is here where, after talking briefly about the nesting behavior of the tortoises, we see gliding sting rays looking for mollusks in shallow water and the water is clear enough to get a good photograph of them. It is almost eight in the morning and breakfast is waiting for us on the National Geographic Endeavour. The adventure on this island is just starting.
After breakfast we anchor in Champion, a little satellite islet located on the northern coast of Floreana. Here the plan is to go snorkeling first, and soon after we get in the water with the greatest snorkeling conditions we could ever expect. The sea lions act as a welcome committee, playing and performing inspiring acrobatics underwater to the great enjoyment of our guests. What a way to surprise each of the explorers participating in this outing.
Next, we take a Zodiac ride to look for the endemic Floreana mockingbird. A small population is found here and they seem to be happy hopping from opuntia to opuntia, and once again we achieve what we came here for.
Multiple activities have been organized for the afternoon. There are two rounds of kayaks and Zodiac rides along La loberia. To close a great day, we disembark in Post Office Bay to see the area once occupied by whalers 200 years ago, including a very useful mail system for mariners and locals on the island of Floreana.
After today’s fantastic experience, we have time to swim a bit before we go back to the boat, where we can recharge ourselves for another great adventure tomorrow here in the Galapágos Islands.
