San Cristobal Island, 1/24/2023, National Geographic Islander II
Aboard the
National Geographic Islander II
Galápagos
San Cristobal has its own giant tortoise population, as well as endemic lava lizards and snakes. These are examples of adaptive radiation in the archipelago.
We have had a successful week full of great memories. The unique and friendly animals found in this group of islands are not found anywhere else on our planet.
Walter was born in a very small town on the mainland of Ecuador. His first trip to the Galápagos was when he was 12 years old, visiting friends and aunt, who had moved to the islands. From the first moment he saw the Islands, he fell in love with the...
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Today we visited the island of San Cristobal. We started our day with a hike at Punta Pitt, where we walked uphill along a beautiful landscape made from tuff. Here we observed the last of the three species of boobies that can be found in the Galapagos, the red-footed booby. In the afternoon, after a delicious lunch, we visited Cerro Brujo, one of the most beautiful beaches in the archipelago. This beach was a great place to relax on the last full day of our trip. We were able to spend more time walking among sea lions and a few sea birds that were feeding along the shore. We ended our day navigating around Kicker Rock, a tuff cone in the middle of the ocean a few miles off the coast of San Cristobal. It was a great way to say farewell.
In the southeast corner of the Galapagos, we find a wonderful little island with an extraordinary, beautiful, white sandy beach where many species of animals hang out and live. A sea lion colony rests and reproduces on Gardner Bay Beach. Kayaking, snorkeling, and strolling along the shore were great fun. We visited Punta Suarez in the afternoon, another magical site which brought us closer and deeper into the essence of the Galapagos, with its unique and fearless wildlife. Many excursion offerings allowed our guests to experience and deeply understand these important and fragile ecosystems.
Today we visited Floreana, this is one of the first islands in the Galapagos to experience human settlement due to its fresh water supply. It played a crucial role in the archipelago’s history as a stopping point for whalers, pirates, and explorers who put into place the popular Post Office Barrel. It still works today as a tradition to send letters all over the world by hand delivering them, and our guests got to be part of it. After enjoying a wonderful morning, we sailed to Punta Cormorant where we hiked and spotted sea turtles mating, lizards, blue-footed boobies, birds, sea lions and many others. We ended the great day with a mesmerizing sunset! What a wonderful time we had exploring Floreana.
