It was a fun morning as we crossed the equator onboard National Geographic Islander. As soon as we arrived to Punta Vicente Roca, we lowered our Zodiacs and the adventure started. We found a large number of blue-footed boobies resting on small ledges of tuff cone. We spotted several young hammerhead sharks in the water; they even swam close to our Zodiacs! We returned to the ship to get ready for snorkeling. Pacific green sea turtles and Galapagos penguins surrounded us, and it was amazing! We spent the afternoon at Fernandina Island, where we saw hundreds of Galapagos marine iguanas, Galapagos sea lions, colorful Sally Lightfoot crabs and the predator of the archipelago, the Galapagos hawk. It was a fantastic day in paradise!
5/27/2025
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National Geographic Islander II
San Cristobal Island
For the last full day of our expedition, we began with a beautiful early morning hike at Punta Pitt, in the northeast section of the island. This place is unique for its interesting landscape, and for being one of the three main places where red-footed boobies nest in the Galapagos. We had to walk uphill for several minutes, but we were well rewarded: we spotted blue-footed and red-footed boobies nesting, as well as some red-footed booby chicks. It was a great morning walk and everyone enjoyed. After a delicious breakfast on board, we returned to the beach for the last snorkeling of the trip; we saw sea turtles, sea lions, a lot of fish, and we even spotted an octopus hunting. As we were navigating to our site for the afternoon, we were so lucky to encounter pilot whales and dolphins. In the afternoon we visited one of the most beautiful beaches in the Galapagos, Cerro Brujo. Here white sand mixes with the black lava field to create a special contrast, where some guests enjoyed a last chance to swim in the Galapagos waters and enjoy the wildlife around.
