Isabela & Fernandina Island
We started this day with an early activity at six thirty that implied looking for marine life as we traveled the western side of the archipelago. We did not see whales or dolphins, but we saw many interesting birds considered pelagic, which is a term use to describe those animals with the ability to spend most of their lives in the open ocean, either flying or floating.
After breakfast we celebrated the crossing of the Equator line; the presence of King Neptune, his lovely nymph and his pirates gave a comical touch to the morning, as some of the young guests on board were submitted to the ritual of equatorial baptism. We all then got ready for a Zodiac ride along Ecuador volcano; this is one of the most impressive landscapes in the Galápagos, and besides, one can see fur sea lions, penguins, blue-footed boobies and even the Pacific sunfish here. The later is an animal that during his life is able to increase his weight approximately sixty million times!
During the late morning we jumped in the water for refreshing snorkeling; dozens of marine turtles and colored fish were found just a few feet away from us!
The afternoon was entirely dedicated to visit Fernandina Island, which is considered the youngest of them all and one of the most pristine islands in the world. This is due to the fact that there have not been introduced animals ever in this area and the flora and fauna of the island has remained literally intact. It was obvious that the main attraction among the guests was the flightless cormorant; this is the one only bird that has lost the ability to fly here in Galápagos. It was wonderful to observe the rather small wings that nowadays are only use for balance as the bird walks on the irregular lava flows on the shores. Besides the cormorants we were able to observe other birds, a whale in the distance and some of the largest colonies of marine iguanas. On our way back, we were lucky to observe a beautiful sunset, reflecting its precious colors over the majestic National Geographic Polaris.
We started this day with an early activity at six thirty that implied looking for marine life as we traveled the western side of the archipelago. We did not see whales or dolphins, but we saw many interesting birds considered pelagic, which is a term use to describe those animals with the ability to spend most of their lives in the open ocean, either flying or floating.
After breakfast we celebrated the crossing of the Equator line; the presence of King Neptune, his lovely nymph and his pirates gave a comical touch to the morning, as some of the young guests on board were submitted to the ritual of equatorial baptism. We all then got ready for a Zodiac ride along Ecuador volcano; this is one of the most impressive landscapes in the Galápagos, and besides, one can see fur sea lions, penguins, blue-footed boobies and even the Pacific sunfish here. The later is an animal that during his life is able to increase his weight approximately sixty million times!
During the late morning we jumped in the water for refreshing snorkeling; dozens of marine turtles and colored fish were found just a few feet away from us!
The afternoon was entirely dedicated to visit Fernandina Island, which is considered the youngest of them all and one of the most pristine islands in the world. This is due to the fact that there have not been introduced animals ever in this area and the flora and fauna of the island has remained literally intact. It was obvious that the main attraction among the guests was the flightless cormorant; this is the one only bird that has lost the ability to fly here in Galápagos. It was wonderful to observe the rather small wings that nowadays are only use for balance as the bird walks on the irregular lava flows on the shores. Besides the cormorants we were able to observe other birds, a whale in the distance and some of the largest colonies of marine iguanas. On our way back, we were lucky to observe a beautiful sunset, reflecting its precious colors over the majestic National Geographic Polaris.
