We started our day with a Zodiac ride between Chinese Hat and Santiago Island. During the ride we spotted striated herons, Great Blue herons, white tip reef sharks and a couple of Galapagos Penguins fishing around the coastline. Marine iguanas were just getting ready to get in the ocean and feed on green algae.
Some penguins eventually came out of the water and offered us a great opportunity to photograph them. The Galapagos Penguin is the third smallest penguin on the planet and the only one found on the northern hemisphere. After the ride, some of us went on a small hike along the coastline of Chinese Hat, while others went snorkeling or just relaxed on a small white sandy beach. While snorkeling we spotted a large variety of fish, colorful marine invertebrates and were lucky enough to spot a couple of Galapagos penguins in the water. We were excited to spot the unique marine iguanas feeding underwater and grazing the algae off the rocks, a couple of white tip reef sharks were spotted and a large variety of fish were swimming in schools.
During the afternoon, we had a dry landing on a barren lava field. It was a large open space where primary succession takes over and the fight for survival is the only way to make it for all of the pioneer species.
This was just like traveling back in time, to explore the Galapagos how the islands were before they had a complex, well established ecosystem.
The unique lava shapes, mineral-colored rocks and beautiful scenery were the perfect combination for a lovely afternoon on the island where Darwin spent nine days when he visited in 1835. This was an amazing, breath-taking place, a huge barren lava field with all shapes and colors for us to enjoy.
After learning about the geology of the islands, we witnessed a beautiful sunset followed by an amazing barbeque on the Sky deck.
