Today we woke up with the calm ocean that covers the western realms of the Galapagos Islands. Onboard the National Geographic Endeavour we visited two islands today, Fernandina and Isabela, the youngest in the Archipelago.
During the morning we landed on the only visitor site of Fernandina called Punta Espinoza. The name is due to the incredible number of marine iguanas and the spines that they have on their backs. Here we were transported to another world. As the volcano that formed this island is the most active around, fresh-young lava flows make the landscape kind of inhospitable, except for a few species. Here we found a large population of marine iguanas, penguins, cormorants. But the highlight for most was to witness the magnificence of several blue whales.
Then after the hike we went into the water to discover the fascinating world of the sea turtles that eat the abundant algae here, as well as iguanas feeding underwater and many different species of tropical fish.
Later we navigated north to Isabela Island and to a beautiful place called Punta Vicente Roca. We used this time the zodiacs for rides along the coast. The dramatic forms that a volcano can take are always surreal. Half of the volcano collapsed a long time ago, revealing how the magma penetrates the rocks until it makes its way out as an eruption. We also found some more endemics here like penguins, pelicans and other shoreline birds.
To finalize the day, we navigated again north to where the equatorial line divides Isabela and where we used this excuse to have some wine tasting on the bow of the boat.
The sun set in the horizon and so another wonderful day in the famous Galapagos.
