Isabela & Fernandina Islands
Today, more than any other day of the week, I felt the need to wake up with the first ray of light from the sun. As soon as I did, I rushed to the outside decks to enjoy the landscape that combined not only the shield shape volcanoes in the distance, but the sights of many sea lions and sea birds passing by the ship and heading to their daily foraging activities. I have to admit that the excitement of encountering large marine mammals at any point of our navigation helped in my decision to start out early, too.
The gentle morning breeze on my face fully awakened me for what the day had prepared for us. Despite the fact that we did not see any whales or dolphins during our pre-breakfast navigation, I wasn’t feeling let down. In fact, it made me even more avid to find any possible activity in the distance.
Right after breakfast the fun came when we crossed the equator line, and just a few minutes after that, we had the chance to witness one of the most dramatic volcanic formations of the area, Ecuador volcano. All what remains from this volcano is in fact, the northern half of its caldera. The rest of it had collapsed into the sea long ago, revealing its spectacular inside. Our navigation skirted the western flank of the volcano, directing us to our anchorage site, Punta Vicente Roca.
We lowered the “pangas” and started the ride that took us along the shoreline of the cliff side. We encountered the two endemic flightless seabirds that Galápagos has in this rather small area: the flightless cormorants and the Galápagos penguins. And then, finally, the encounter that made my day, a pod of killer whales in the distance! Faster than you could pronounce “paranguacutirimicuaro” (our Spanish version of a tongue twister), we headed to the place where the action was happening. Surprisingly, the whales did not go away, but rather surfaced right in front of our Zodiacs, delighting us with their perfect shapes and movements. I don’t even remember now how long we stayed riding along side with these beautiful animals, but for as long as it lasted, it was magical!
For the afternoon, we continued our navigation to the most pristine island that we have within the archipelago: Fernandina Island. This is an island where the number of marine iguanas is so abundant that they could easily be mistaken for the black lava fields on the horizon. We even had to be extra-careful when walking on the path, as the iguanas look like nothing else but a rock! As we came on board, Mother Nature decided to grant us with a gorgeous sunset as the moon rose at the eastern sky.
Today, more than any other day of the week, I felt the need to wake up with the first ray of light from the sun. As soon as I did, I rushed to the outside decks to enjoy the landscape that combined not only the shield shape volcanoes in the distance, but the sights of many sea lions and sea birds passing by the ship and heading to their daily foraging activities. I have to admit that the excitement of encountering large marine mammals at any point of our navigation helped in my decision to start out early, too.
The gentle morning breeze on my face fully awakened me for what the day had prepared for us. Despite the fact that we did not see any whales or dolphins during our pre-breakfast navigation, I wasn’t feeling let down. In fact, it made me even more avid to find any possible activity in the distance.
Right after breakfast the fun came when we crossed the equator line, and just a few minutes after that, we had the chance to witness one of the most dramatic volcanic formations of the area, Ecuador volcano. All what remains from this volcano is in fact, the northern half of its caldera. The rest of it had collapsed into the sea long ago, revealing its spectacular inside. Our navigation skirted the western flank of the volcano, directing us to our anchorage site, Punta Vicente Roca.
We lowered the “pangas” and started the ride that took us along the shoreline of the cliff side. We encountered the two endemic flightless seabirds that Galápagos has in this rather small area: the flightless cormorants and the Galápagos penguins. And then, finally, the encounter that made my day, a pod of killer whales in the distance! Faster than you could pronounce “paranguacutirimicuaro” (our Spanish version of a tongue twister), we headed to the place where the action was happening. Surprisingly, the whales did not go away, but rather surfaced right in front of our Zodiacs, delighting us with their perfect shapes and movements. I don’t even remember now how long we stayed riding along side with these beautiful animals, but for as long as it lasted, it was magical!
For the afternoon, we continued our navigation to the most pristine island that we have within the archipelago: Fernandina Island. This is an island where the number of marine iguanas is so abundant that they could easily be mistaken for the black lava fields on the horizon. We even had to be extra-careful when walking on the path, as the iguanas look like nothing else but a rock! As we came on board, Mother Nature decided to grant us with a gorgeous sunset as the moon rose at the eastern sky.
