Isabela Island
This morning we disembarked at Urbina Bay among huge waves that made our safe landing a second birth. It was a hot day, but we did not care because wildlife was waiting for us, including land iguanas and Darwin finches. The walk was very interesting because of the coastal uplift that occurred in 1954; marine invertebrates encrusted on the lava rocks, tube worm cases and coral heads were to be found everywhere. Volcano Alcedo has a healthy population of giant tortoises, an estimated 8,000 of them, and one of our groups managed to see one of these creatures along the trail. We also saw yellow warblers, mockingbirds and the endemic Galápagos flycatchers. Most of the coast was barren and beaten by the waves, while the walk inland was full of palo santo and poisonous manzanillo trees.
Upon returning to the beach some of our guests headed straight for the water and enjoyed a quick swim among sea turtles, the rest embarked in the still choppy waters of Urbina Bay.
In the afternoon we had various options: kayaking, snorkeling, a hike to see Darwin’s mysterious lake and a Zodiac ride along the coast of Tagus Cove. There were crabs, penguins and cormorants and many seabirds resting along the cliffs. The water was cold as ice and the snorkelers were glad to feel their limbs again when they returned with a smile in their faces. They found playful sea lions and saw penguins. We finished the day with champagne on the house served on our whale watching deck and a beautiful sunset in the background.
