San Cristobal, 10/15/2024, National Geographic Islander II
Aboard the
National Geographic Islander II
Galápagos
We started very early in the morning on one of the oldest islands of Galapagos with pre breakfast activities, hiking, and exploring Punta Pitt. The highlight of the day was the red-footed boobies everywhere, one of the three species of boobies which we had yet to see. The morning ended with a lovely snorkeling excursion with playful sea lions.
In the afternoon, we visited a soft, coralline, white sand beach with turquoise waters. We walked along the coast and went for a swim. We celebrated the end of our expedition among dozens of sea lions. What a fantastic experience!
Omar arrived at the Galapagos with his family when he just a year old. His father was a Naturalist in the islands and would take him exploring both on land and in the water, aboard the ships he was working on. At an early age, he learned all about th...
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Our first full day of our expedition was spent exploring Santa Cruz Island, a central island of the archipelago with plenty of human and wildlife attractions. After we landed, a bus took us to El Trapiche, a great historical site in the highlands of Santa Cruz which provided a great example of how people who came to Galapagos at the beginning of its colonization survived. We learned how coffee, cacao, and sugar cane products, including sugar cane alcohol, is produced. We even had the chance to taste all of these delicious products. We took the bus again and drove to a higher location on Santa Cruz Island, to Los Gemelos. These outstanding geological formations are sinkholes of approximately 100-meters deep, surrounded by a unique Scalesia pedunculata forest. Walking through this dense forest was amazing due to the presence of different species of Darwin’s finches. A delicious lunch was waiting for us at a mesmerizing site, a ranch/restaurant surrounded by Galapagos giant tortoises. After we finished our lunch, we enjoyed a stroll to look for this gigantic and beautiful reptile, which gave us the chance to take wonderful pictures with them.
The last full day of our expedition brought us all the way to the most eastern region of the Galapagos, San Cristobal Island. Two of the highlights of the day were the stunning red-footed boobies and of course, the infinite landscapes that San Cristobal offers. We started our morning with an early hike at Punta Pitt and enjoyed the sea lions that were everywhere. During lunch, we navigated to Cerro Brujo, categorized as one of the ten most beautiful beaches in the world. We had a spectacular day to end our expedition. We created so many memories filled with wonderful moments we had in this unique place!
Our day of exploration on Española Island was full of close encounters with its endemic wildlife. From 6 am to 6 pm our day was full of activities, with great opportunities to witness the magic of this archipelago.
