Isabela & Fernandina Island
Today was a day of adventures that lasted from just before sunrise to the last minute of sunlight in the western part of the archipelago. We began our day by observing one of the most spectacular landscapes in Galápagos – five huge active shield volcanoes form Isabela Island and constitute over 50% of the total landmass. Fernandina Island is another giant active shield volcano as well. Today we were able to explore both of them, and tomorrow we are going to continue exploring Isabela because is hard to leave this place once you get here.
After a quick equator-crossing celebration, we dropped anchor and lowered our Zodiacs to explore the area at water level. This particular part of the archipelago is bathed by the Crowell Current, which is deep oceanic cold water that rises in this area, making possible a great abundance of wildlife. Galápagos penguins, flightless cormorants, Galápagos sea lions, Pacific green sea turtles, the largest marine iguanas, manta rays, Nazca and blue-footed boobies are just a few examples of the wildlife we see in this great place, and tomorrow we’ll continue our adventure because one day is simply not enough to see everything.
By the afternoon we sailed toward the island of Fernandina. This island is among the most pristine in the world due to the fact that no outside animals have been introduced here. We all hope that in the future this entire archipelago will be restored to its pristine state by the Galápagos National Park with scientific advice from the Charles Darwin Research Station and the support of our guests.
Our dear guests couldn’t believe that the water temperature was ten degrees colder than yesterday in the central part of the archipelago. Galápagos is bathed by three main oceanic currents, they come from different direction and hemispheres, making it possible to have different climates from island to island. But the Galápagos animals live here all year round, and not matter what time of the year you come here, you will have the week of your lifetime.
