Bartolomé & Santiago Islands
In the early hours of the day we arrived at Bartolomé Island, where we encountered the evidence of powerful volcanic activity; this volcanic action built the islands a few millions of years ago. Due to the slow and steady rain, wind and waves, we can witness how the process of erosion is slowly changing the islands; the erosion is so slow that we can not judge those subtle changes. One of the most magnificent artworks of erosion is the well known pinnacle rock of Bartolomé Island. The warm orange and red colors of the lava rocks come from the large amount of iron found in the lavas on this island.
In order to admire the beauty of Bartolomé we climbed 372 wooden steps all the way up to the summit where we found the company of lava lizards hunting small insects. Reptiles are the rulers of the islands, the best adapted, the most numerous – here is where we feel as if dinosaurs have not disappeared, but shrunk! We had a cooling and rewarding snorkel around the pinnacle rock, where penguins joined us along with large schools of fishes of different kinds. After this wonderful morning we went back on board and started heading to Santiago Island.
After a smooth navigation we arrived at Santiago, where we had a walk along the coast of Puerto Egas. Along the way we found many interesting things: fur seals, Sally Lightfoot crabs, coastal birds of different species, and a Galápagos marine iguana feeding on algae. For a while we stared at the iguana holding steady on the rocks, while waves broke right where its algae was. It is quite impressive to observe how different species of animals struggle to survive in this environment.
We left Puerto Egas feeling amazed by the wild beauty of its coastline and its inhabitants.
In the early hours of the day we arrived at Bartolomé Island, where we encountered the evidence of powerful volcanic activity; this volcanic action built the islands a few millions of years ago. Due to the slow and steady rain, wind and waves, we can witness how the process of erosion is slowly changing the islands; the erosion is so slow that we can not judge those subtle changes. One of the most magnificent artworks of erosion is the well known pinnacle rock of Bartolomé Island. The warm orange and red colors of the lava rocks come from the large amount of iron found in the lavas on this island.
In order to admire the beauty of Bartolomé we climbed 372 wooden steps all the way up to the summit where we found the company of lava lizards hunting small insects. Reptiles are the rulers of the islands, the best adapted, the most numerous – here is where we feel as if dinosaurs have not disappeared, but shrunk! We had a cooling and rewarding snorkel around the pinnacle rock, where penguins joined us along with large schools of fishes of different kinds. After this wonderful morning we went back on board and started heading to Santiago Island.
After a smooth navigation we arrived at Santiago, where we had a walk along the coast of Puerto Egas. Along the way we found many interesting things: fur seals, Sally Lightfoot crabs, coastal birds of different species, and a Galápagos marine iguana feeding on algae. For a while we stared at the iguana holding steady on the rocks, while waves broke right where its algae was. It is quite impressive to observe how different species of animals struggle to survive in this environment.
We left Puerto Egas feeling amazed by the wild beauty of its coastline and its inhabitants.
