The last day of the year brought a lot surprises while we were enjoying the different activities in the western realm of the Galápagos Islands. Isabela Island offered a unique experience with ancient creatures. Our first adventure began on Urbina Bay, which has a small, black sand beach. On the beach our explorers spotted a female sea turtle that was heading back to the ocean after spending all night nesting.

The dense vegetation, which is dry for more than six months, was blooming; this indicated that some rainfall already hit the western dry fields of Isabela. Giant creatures that gave the name to the Galapagos Islands were hidden under Darwin’s cottons as well as muyuyo trees that were flowering. Galápagos tortoises were also exploring new grounds and we were able to see a couple of juvenile giant tortoises that were foraging on the new vegetation found inland. Urbina Bay is a volcanic uplifted area, with boulder and big corals heads exposed along the shoreline.

This unique experience continued into the dense vegetation, where land iguanas were found. After a long walk, and delighted with Darwin finches, mockingbirds and warblers, we reached the coastline of Urbina that once was underwater. Children as well as adults stayed on the beach, swimming and playing in the small waves.

The afternoon couldn't be better, to enjoy the magical wildlife of Galápagos we had several alternatives. A close encounter with penguins, cormorants and other shorebirds were the objective for the explorers who went kayaking on the challenging water of Tagus Cove. Others wanted to enjoy the underwater realm and went snorkeling along the coastline, where they found several species of fish such as harlequin wrasses, bravo clinid, balloonfish, Peruvian grunts, dusky chubs and damsel fish. Sea turtles and Galápagos penguins were also seen in the snorkeling area.

Late in the afternoon many of our explorers opted to go for a power walk while others went for a Zodiac ride. The end of the day closed with the sun setting behind Fernandina Island. To end the last day of the year 2013, our guests as well as staff members and crew celebrated the traditional Ecuadorian New Year’s Eve with effigies and talented youths that charmed us with their performance in the piano bar. Happy New Year 2014, folks…