Southern Isabela Island
This morning found us anchored at the base of the impressive Alcedo Volcano under a partially covered blue sky. We made a wet landing at Urbina Bay on a black volcanic sand beach riddled with turtle tracks up to the nesting area in the dunes. Urbina Bay is famous for an event that took place there in 1954; a stretch of coastline of approximately three square miles was uplifted by almost twelve feet! It is amazing to be walking inland and discovering the remnants of tube worms, shells, and various types of coral so far from the shoreline as it exists today. Several guests opted to take a long walk that passes along an area where massive coral heads can be admired. Some others opted for a shorter version. In both case we were fortunate to observe the Galápagos land iguana nesting territories. We observed at a very close range several of the largest and most colourful land iguanas in the archipelago.
During lunchtime the National Geographic Islander repositioned to the southernmost part of Isabela Island to Punta Moreno. This site is found between two large volcanoes, Sierra Negra and Cerro Azul. These beautiful shield volcanoes dominate the scene in this remote location. The huge dark lava flows observed around Punta Moreno look so strikingly recent that we could not avoid thinking that we were back in time observing how our planet was formed. Our afternoon excursions included a couple of choices; one of them was a long hike along the recent lava flows interspersed with lagoons containing brackish waters teaming with wildlife. The second option was a Zodiac cruise that took us along the rocky shoreline where we spotted many Galápagos sea lions, Sally Lightfoot crabs, marine iguanas and, best of all, many of the always beloved Galapagos penguins. While riding the waves back to the ship, we could not avoid to dream about the new adventures and sightings that this extraordinary day has left in our minds and hearts. We can hardly wait to see what tomorrow will bring to our expedition around this enchanted archipelago.
This morning found us anchored at the base of the impressive Alcedo Volcano under a partially covered blue sky. We made a wet landing at Urbina Bay on a black volcanic sand beach riddled with turtle tracks up to the nesting area in the dunes. Urbina Bay is famous for an event that took place there in 1954; a stretch of coastline of approximately three square miles was uplifted by almost twelve feet! It is amazing to be walking inland and discovering the remnants of tube worms, shells, and various types of coral so far from the shoreline as it exists today. Several guests opted to take a long walk that passes along an area where massive coral heads can be admired. Some others opted for a shorter version. In both case we were fortunate to observe the Galápagos land iguana nesting territories. We observed at a very close range several of the largest and most colourful land iguanas in the archipelago.
During lunchtime the National Geographic Islander repositioned to the southernmost part of Isabela Island to Punta Moreno. This site is found between two large volcanoes, Sierra Negra and Cerro Azul. These beautiful shield volcanoes dominate the scene in this remote location. The huge dark lava flows observed around Punta Moreno look so strikingly recent that we could not avoid thinking that we were back in time observing how our planet was formed. Our afternoon excursions included a couple of choices; one of them was a long hike along the recent lava flows interspersed with lagoons containing brackish waters teaming with wildlife. The second option was a Zodiac cruise that took us along the rocky shoreline where we spotted many Galápagos sea lions, Sally Lightfoot crabs, marine iguanas and, best of all, many of the always beloved Galapagos penguins. While riding the waves back to the ship, we could not avoid to dream about the new adventures and sightings that this extraordinary day has left in our minds and hearts. We can hardly wait to see what tomorrow will bring to our expedition around this enchanted archipelago.
