National Geographic Endeavour II anchored in front of Gardner Bay on the northern coast of Española Island. Our first day of exploration began with snorkeling from Zodiacs along the coast of Gardner Islet; in this place, our guests snorkeled with Galapagos sea lions and observed different species of fish, as well as colorful marine invertebrates.
This morning, guests were also offered options to snorkel off the beach or walk along the coast. In this site, we observed several Galapagos sea lions sleeping while some nursed their pups.
After exploring Gardner Bay, we navigated towards the western realm of Española Island to Punta Suarez.
This afternoon, we headed ashore with our guests for a hike on Punta Suarez. In this location, we looked for Nazca boobies, colorful Galapagos marine iguanas, and the always curious and playful Galapagos sea lions.
During our hike this afternoon, we reached the cliffs. We spent some time watching Galapagos shearwaters, frigatebirds, and swallow-tailed gulls gracefully flying above us.
At the end of the afternoon, we returned to the landing spot and boarded the ship. Far in the distance, rain fell over the sea.
Photo caption and credit: A colorful Galapagos marine iguana warms up under the sun with a sea lion in the background. Photo by Gilda Gonzalez
