Today our expedition started by visiting one of the most iconic of the Galapagos Islands: Santiago. The first expedition of the year was going to bring plenty of different surprises that mother nature had for us in this living paradise.
After a comfortable navigation, we woke up early this morning at Buccaneer Cove, and the first adventure of the day was going to explore the Galapagos Marine Reserve. As soon as we came into the water, a marvelous underwater world was revealed to our eyes. Reef fishes of different colors were found on the rocky reef, and as an attractive complement to this, Galapagos sea lions did a show by swimming to us in order to give a welcome to their home. Farther into the area, the presence of a white-tipped reef shark got us awe-inspired and made us feel like we were inside a natural aquarium. At the end of deep water snorkeling, we entered a cave that was hiding a baby Galapagos sea lion that entertained us for several minutes.
Once back onboard the National Geographic Endeavour, we were taking a different approach to exploration with our next activity: kayaking. By exploring the coast line of Buccaneer Cove, we sensed a magic natural world where the main highlight was the different kinds of sea birds found along the cliffside. Blue footed boobies resting on rocks, brown noddies nesting on the cliffs, and brown pelicans plunging from the trees were part of the kayaking experience that astonished us during the activity. Once the afternoon arrived, we pulled anchor in order to start navigating to our next destination.
In the afternoon, exploration brought us to one of the most emblematic places of the Galapagos Islands: Puerto Egas. After a comfortable wet landing on a black sand beach, we entered a world that is home to several Galapagos species. Since the beginning, Galapagos sea lions made for a perfect welcome committee. Farther inland, a landscape decorated by giant tuff cones made us feel like we were in a different world. The highlight of the visit was witnessed once we reached the farthest point: Galapagos fur seals. On our way back, we experienced the presence of marine iguanas, and shore birds that played the perfect symphony of nature. The Galapagos Islands paradise is going to be part of our memories for a lifetime.
