Bartolomé & Rabida
What an inspiring day for a naturalist.
The many activities we had this morning began at Bartolomé Island with an early dry landing at a set of well-known wooden steps. This island’s landscape is a reminder of how this archipelago emerged in the middle of nowhere!
The hardy wildlife found on this island offers a clear picture of great adaptation over thousands of generations. Primitive plants had to adapt to this unique environments to succeed. It is particularly remarkable here since it looks nothing could survive on this island. But there are living plants among the grey terrain that are fully flowered right now.
It was already hot after last night’s intense rain, and at 6:00a.m. the place had no breeze, but we were happy to hike the 365 steps all the way up to see the great lookout. By 8:15a.m. we had returned to the ship for a quick breakfast, and by 10:15 we settled in for a long day on the beach. The water was 81°F, and the visibility almost 99%, I could see the ocean floor from the ship! What a great snorkeling outing.
After lunch some of us rested on the outside decks, and we saw few bottlenose dolphins fishing. And by the time we arrived to Rábida we snorkeled again and explored the coast in search of more fun.
Around 5:00p.m. we disembarked for a short walk along the beach and for the very first time on this island I saw the male and female vermillion flycatcher!
After six years I finally saw them!
