This morning we had the opportunity to explore one of the smallest islands on our itinerary. This place has one of the most spectacular landscapes in Galápagos and one of the largest sea lion colonies as well. This is also one of the best places to observe land and marine iguanas living in situ. Giant prickly pear cactus and Galapagos carpet weed (Sesuvium edmonstonei) are surrounded by blue crystal waters and contrasted by a clear blue sky made this morning so peaceful and beautiful. South Plaza Island was closed for a few weeks for a rat eradication program; hopefully soon we will declare it free of introduced species and can continue restoring Galápagos for generation to come.

Some of our young explorers were able to explore the entire island; while some others preferred to walk just the easy part, which is along one of the most impressive cliff formations in the archipelago. Everyone had the chance to see a large group of Galápagos shearwaters, frigatebirds soaring, and blue-footed boobies plunge diving. It was very impressive to observe and wonder at how high and fast they dove in order to catch a fish on their way up to the surface.

After a relaxing two-hour navigation, we arrived at a different location to continue with our adventure, and this time we went out for snorkeling and kayaking. Our water lovers had an amazing time with turtles, rays, white-tip reef sharks, sea lions, and as always a lot of fish from different regions. Our adventurous kayakers saw a dramatic landscape formation with soaring birds and turtles popping their heads out of the water to breath, plus playful Galápagos sea lion pups.

Our final activity of the day took place on Santa Fé Island; this island is home to an endemic terrestrial iguana, which lives here and nowhere else in this oceanic archipelago. Two groups decided to go out in a fast-paced hike to the highest point on the island, which is about 1000 feet above sea level. From this point you can see the whole island covered with giant prickly pear cacti, meanwhile other guests preferred to take a shorter trail with the same interesting and beautiful sites. As we were returning to the ship, we had a very impressive sighting inside the bay:  a couple of hundred white spotted eagle rays and lots of white-tip reef sharks.

It was a day with good memories and unforgettable moments in paradise.