Bartholomew and Santa Cruz Islands, 3/15/2025, National Geographic Islander II
Aboard the
National Geographic Islander II
Galápagos
With a very relaxing morning at Bartholomew, our day began. We enjoyed our first snorkeling session of the week. We had a lovely time with penguins and whitetip reef sharks.
In the afternoon we had the chance to head over to Dragon Hill on Santa Cruz Island where we found several land iguanas and a few blue-footed boobies on the way.
Bernardo, known by his friends and family as Bernie, was born In the Andean city of Quito, located in the highlands of Ecuador. His grandfather, however, moved to the Galapagos Islands in the mid-70s, and worked as one of the first Naturalist Guides,...
Today our guests explored Santa Cruz Island. After a delicious breakfast we landed in Puerto Ayora, which is the home port for most of the tour boat operations in the Galapagos. This town is also where the Galapagos National Park headquarters and Charles Darwin Research Station are located. Today our guests hiked into giant tortoise territory and learned about the iconic giant tortoise restoration project.
Our expedition onboard National Geographic Islander II took us to the captivating South Plaza and Santa Fe Islands where we were treated to an extraordinary day of wildlife encounters, breathtaking landscapes, and a deeper understanding of the islands’ unique ecosystems.
San Cristobal is the easternmost island of the Galapagos and one of the oldest. It has a wealth of human, geological, and genetic history, with a unique contrast among its habitats. Today we visited its most iconic sites, including Punta Pitt’s golden beach, which is made from volcanic material and is a resting site for sea lions. Its mountain is comprised of compact ash, known as tuff cones. This destination has a healthy colony of red-footed boobies, which are the least known in the archipelago, and we were surprised by the dance of blue-footed boobies and the beautiful great frigatebirds nesting near the trail. We also visited the western central coast of the island at Cerro Brujo, with one of the most beautiful beaches in the archipelago, with soft, fine white sand. Our day culminated with a beautiful sunset at Kicker Rock.
