Dragon Hill
Today we visited the northwestern coast of Santa Cruz Island, where we had a dry landing and a walk to a nice beach.
The morning hike was on an incredibly muddy trail that led us to Dragon Hill—a place named long ago after the scores of iguanas lounging on the hillside. The slopes are covered in lush, green vegetation resulting from an extremely wet season, and the land iguanas contrasted beautifully with the green. In some areas they were not as easy to find, particularly the females with their darker colors. Males were easier to spot, and a pair of them even put a show on for us—they started fighting in front of us so we had to stop and admire the spectacle. Male iguanas will get upset about finding females during mating season, and this kind of behavior is a common practice among this extremely attractive species.
On our way back to the ship to change and get ready for snorkeling, we had a chance to see Blue Footed Boobies plunge into the water, diving for food.
The snorkeling was great. We saw white tip reef sharks, lots of tropical fishes, and even a spotted eagle ray half the size of our Zodiacs. Sea lions joined us swimming along the impressive undersea wall, with its myriad of invertebrates and a galaxy of beautiful colors.
Lunch was great; I had a paella and ice-cream… Yummy!!!
In the afternoon we went snorkeling at Sombrero Chino, a name given to the islet because it’s shaped like a Chinese hat. There were different options for the afternoon activities: kayaking, Zodiac rides along Santiago coast, or just relaxation at the white sandy beach. Galápagos Penguins waved us farewell as we returned to the ship.
