Today we explored the center of the western realm of Isabela Island, beginning with Urbina Bay in the morning, and continuing to Tagus Cove in the afternoon. Our first area was seafloor that was uplifted many years ago due to volcanic activity, and this area offers a great opportunity to observe Galapagos land iguanas in their natural environment. Some of our guests went for a long hike to an area that still has large heads of white coral, remnants of the time when this area was beneath the sea. Others went on a shorter walk and observed several land iguanas and many small land birds, such as Galapagos doves, Galapagos mockingbirds and finches. We also had a close view of a Galapagos hawk, the top predator on the archipelago—this was a juvenile and one of its parents flying together, allowing us to see two different stages of the hawk’s life cycle. It was a wonderful sunny morning, so after our walks we returned to the landing beach and swam from the shore, to refresh and enjoy the warm waters of this bay.
At the end of the morning, we returned aboard and headed north to Tagus Cove, and during the navigation, we had a typical Ecuadorian lunch. This afternoon we went snorkeling, kayaking, and also went for a walk to the top of a tuff cone. The view is spectacular from this high vantage point, and we could admire the beauty of Darwin Lake and the cove where our ship was anchored. Some of our guests also went on a Zodiac ride along the cliffs, where we saw blue-footed boobies, Galapagos flightless cormorants, penguins, and several marine iguanas sunbathing and resting on the rocks along the coast.
