Bartolomé
We had an optional early morning wake up call to start our first full day in the Galápagos. We climbed up three hundred and seventy wooden steps to reach the summit of the eroded rim of Volcan Bartolomé. From the top we had a spectacular view of the surroundings islands. After we’d had our first lessons in geology and the arrival of pioneer organisms to this archipelago, we hiked back down and returned to the Islander.
After breakfast we were briefed on our snorkeling program and snorkeling safety and then we all got geared up to go to our second morning outing. This was a spectacular snorkeling site! We started right from the beach which provided a good opportunity for us to practice and the beginners among us had some extra help from the staff. Those who went snorkeling spotted sea stars, sea lions, a shark and lots of colorful tropical fish; the beach lovers enjoyed the company of some sea lions basking on the sand.
The afternoon’s first outing was again for snorkel lovers and we made a wet landing on the black sand beach at Puerto Egas. This time we had a great time with the many fearless sea turtles and of course again plenty of colorful fish. We dried off and put our shoes on for a spectacular walk along the shore. On this walk we saw hundreds of large marine iguanas, many Galápagos sea lions, a beautiful great blue heron, and two pairs of oystercatchers. At the lava grottos we observed our first fur seals and then to our delight – “thar she blows!” We sighted a couple of Bryde’s whales not far off the coast and we were thrilled to see, not only their powerful water spouts, but also their long smooth backs and sickle shaped dorsal fins. The whales were in the midst of a spectacular feeding frenzy and were surrounded by hundreds of Galápagos shear waters and noddy terns.
Back on board the ship the Hotel staff greeted us with a delicious Ecuadorian ceviche. As the sun set we enjoyed the final minutes of this full and wonderful day in the enchanted islands.
We had an optional early morning wake up call to start our first full day in the Galápagos. We climbed up three hundred and seventy wooden steps to reach the summit of the eroded rim of Volcan Bartolomé. From the top we had a spectacular view of the surroundings islands. After we’d had our first lessons in geology and the arrival of pioneer organisms to this archipelago, we hiked back down and returned to the Islander.
After breakfast we were briefed on our snorkeling program and snorkeling safety and then we all got geared up to go to our second morning outing. This was a spectacular snorkeling site! We started right from the beach which provided a good opportunity for us to practice and the beginners among us had some extra help from the staff. Those who went snorkeling spotted sea stars, sea lions, a shark and lots of colorful tropical fish; the beach lovers enjoyed the company of some sea lions basking on the sand.
The afternoon’s first outing was again for snorkel lovers and we made a wet landing on the black sand beach at Puerto Egas. This time we had a great time with the many fearless sea turtles and of course again plenty of colorful fish. We dried off and put our shoes on for a spectacular walk along the shore. On this walk we saw hundreds of large marine iguanas, many Galápagos sea lions, a beautiful great blue heron, and two pairs of oystercatchers. At the lava grottos we observed our first fur seals and then to our delight – “thar she blows!” We sighted a couple of Bryde’s whales not far off the coast and we were thrilled to see, not only their powerful water spouts, but also their long smooth backs and sickle shaped dorsal fins. The whales were in the midst of a spectacular feeding frenzy and were surrounded by hundreds of Galápagos shear waters and noddy terns.
Back on board the ship the Hotel staff greeted us with a delicious Ecuadorian ceviche. As the sun set we enjoyed the final minutes of this full and wonderful day in the enchanted islands.
