Floreana is also known as the island of mysteries, as some extraordinary events happened here in the 1930’s. The inhabitants were living together with little harmony when death and tragedy found them, the circumstances unclear.
An early wake up gave a great opportunity to enjoy sunrise, followed by a moderate paced walk on an easy trail that goes right through a brackish water lagoon which sometimes has different kinds of birds. We continue our way to the other side of a tuff cone where a second beach has white sand and is home to sea turtles nests. We saw quite a few trails from the previous night, some in the water just hanging around maybe looking for seaweed. Several hundred stingrays live here permanently and can be seen underneath the breakers along the beach. We are back on board for a full breakfast before continuing with the program of the day on this beautiful island.
Around mid-morning and after a short navigation we reached the island of Champion for a Zodiac ride to look for some animals like sea lions, boobies, shearwaters and red bill tropic birds among others, but the one that deserved a little more attention was a species of mockingbirds that became extinct on the main island due to predators and only a few survived here on this island. We saw quite a few unexpectedly close, so we are happy they’re still with us.
Our next outing was going snorkeling in one of the most beautiful locations due to the presence of multiple species of fishes and other creatures; one of them is the playful Galapagos sea lion that was available to give us the best moments of the session. Sharks also showed up and they are like most of the animals here, friendly.
In the afternoon some departed for kayaking around small islands usually teeming with wildlife, while others just disembarked on the beach at Post Office Bay for photography and relaxation. Later everyone came together to go visit the old mail barrel supposedly erected by an English Captain by the name of James Colnett back in 1793 to facilitate communication with home. This tradition is still running as it has become very known among the visitors of the Galapagos and we are so happy to participate in it because it is both fun and effective.
All you have to do is go there and read through the letters. If you see one addressed to a town near where live, you bring it home with you and hand deliver it in the old way. That’s the fun. No stamps needed. The last activity of the day was a Zodiac ride around some rocky island for interesting wildlife, with the sunset providing the last warming rays of a phenomenal expedition on this island.
