Isabela and Fernandina Islands
After a comfortable navigation to the western side of the archipelago, we woke up early this morning sailing along the coast of northern Isabela. A magnificent view dominated by big shield volcanoes was found across the horizon. The first attraction of the exploration was to have the company of short beaked common dolphins as we sailed into Bolivar Channel. Once we reached Ecuador Volcano area, the sea was so calm that it looked like we were navigating on crystal glass. As soon as we arrived at Punta Vicente Roca, there was no time to waste; we got everything ready in order to enjoy a fantastic Zodiac ride around the steep cliffs of an amazing volcano.
Our fascination of the place was derived from all the animals that were surrounding the area: blue-footed boobies were the masters of the show as they were plunge-diving for fish; on the rocks we had the presence of flightless birds that looked like little kids as they jumped from rock to rock, elegant Galápagos penguins were swimming from one side of the bay to the other, but the main attraction was definitely the sea turtles that were found all over the area.
After this marvelous Zodiac ride, it was time to enjoy the marvels of the underwater world by going deep-water snorkeling. The prodigies of the Galápagos marine reserve were displayed in a magic symphony of colors that reef fish showed to all of us. Pacific green sea turtles were surrounding us while enjoying all marine life in Punta Vicente Roca. As we came back onboard National Geographic Islander, we pulled anchor and started navigating to our next destination: Fernandina Island.
In the afternoon the expedition just got better, and the best way to begin it was with a spectacular hike at Punta Espinosa. Fernandina Island is one of the jewels in the crown of the archipelago, and on arrival we witnessed a magical composition of hundreds of marine iguanas camouflaged against lava rocks all over the disembarkation area. Farther along the trail, more Galápagos species were waiting for our visit: Galápagos sea lions seemed to very playful on the coastal zone, Galápagos hawks looked so mysterious perching on top of the mangrove trees, and at the end of the trail, flightless cormorants seemed to be relaxing as if waiting for the sunset. We had a big surprise at the end of the adventure as two Bryde’s whales came close to Fernandina while we were enjoying a magnificent sunset behind the volcanoes. This was like no other day in the living paradise of the Galápagos Islands.
