After a long navigation, early this morning we have reached the westernmost islands of the Galapagos Archipelago, Fernandina and Isabela. These are also the youngest islands, and therefore we could enjoy the elegant silhouettes of the shield volcanoes that prevail in this region of the Galapagos. We were awoken by our expedition leader’s announcement - some common dolphins and pilot whales had been spotted, so we were invited to witness this magnificent show from the outside areas of our ship.
Right after breakfast, we set off in the Zodiacs for our first land excursion of the day, in order to visit Punta Espinosa. Located in the northeastern tip of Fernandina, this is one of the hot spots of the week. Fernandina is the youngest and most active volcano of the Galapagos; traces of its activity are all around in the form of fresh lava flows. It is an inhospitable environment, where few organisms have been able to adapt and establish. One of the successful species here is the marine iguana - it is said that there may be around 2,000 iguanas per kilometer of coastline. Once we set foot upon Fernandina we could understand this statement! In the low tide of the early morning, dozens, if not hundreds of them, were already busy grazing on the abundant seaweed of the area. Along the walk we encountered more of the wonders of this pristine island, such as the endemic lava lizard and the unique flightless cormorants. They have initiated their breeding season and several were busy either courting each other or even nesting by the edge of the water. The many intertidal pools of Punta Espinosa offer different habitats to various species, like octopus, pencil sea urchins, and damselfish. Here and there we encountered newborn Galapagos sea lion pups, which entertained everyone with their curiosity and clumsiness. It was certainly a morning we would never forget.
In the afternoon, we travelled across the Bolivar Channel to reach the Isabela coast. Northwest in this island is Punta Vicente Roca, a highly productive area rich in marine life. We began our activities early, so we could make the most of the afternoon light, and left the ship towards the shore to snorkel. Punta Vicente Roca is renowned for its abundance in Pacific green sea turtles; they come to this area to forage on the local seaweed. Once in the water the scenery was surreal, with dozens of sea turtles either suspended in the water column or resting on the sandy bottom. Turtles were not the only specialty of the area, as many were surprised by the brief appearance of the Galapagos penguins, which speedily were hunting their afternoon meal! A little after, we returned to the same coastline to explore it from the comfort of our Zodiacs, so we could enjoy the majestic scenery of the outside flanks of Ecuador Volcano, take photos of the brown noddy terns, blue-footed boobies, marine iguanas, brown pelicans, and the many other creatures that inhabit this coast. We returned back to our ship to navigate northbound to look for the equator line. We toasted for the crossing, for the beautiful sunset and for the enormous full moon raising over the Galapagos volcanoes - a combination of sightings that made this an unforgettable day.
