Española Island
This particular small, rocky island is a real highlight in the archipelago; according to the hotspot theory, Española is supposed to be one of the oldest in the Galápagos. It is located on the eastern-most side, perfectly fitting the description of how the oldest islands suppose to look like and giving it an approximate age of five million years old.
Our destination for the morning was Punta Suarez, home to myriads of sea birds. Blue footed and Nazca boobies, tropic birds, and the majestic waved albatross were easily spotted in the near by hills. The later one is considered to be the largest sea bird currently on the island, and it is only found here from the months of April to the very early weeks of January, just for their annual breeding cycle. It is also the only type of albatross that occur entirely in the tropics; it has a large range of distribution, starting in the Galápagos for their nesting grounds and flying as far as to the southern Peruvian waters to forage.
Besides the astonishing landscapes, Española is the home of thousands of sea lions that today were our welcome committee. These marine mammals are unquestionably one of the highlights of our visit, and to spend time with them is simply a life time experience!
The first sea lion pups are being born right now, and as we explored the island we had the opportunity to see a couple of new born babies with their mothers.
For the afternoon we repositioned the ship to a near by location known as Gardner bay. This is located on the northern side of Española, facing at the distance the Island of San Cristobal, which by the way, is the administrative Capital of the Galápagos Islands.
Gardner Bay is definitely an “eye catching place” with hundreds of sea lions resting on its long white beach. One of the most popular activities in the Galápagos is the snorkeling; the diversity on the tropical fish and the often encounters with ever charming Galápagos sea lions is always something that guests remember for a long time. Today our flippered friends spent quite a bit of time playing not only with the snorkelers, but with the kayakers, creating unforgettable memories for our guests of this unique paradise on earth!
This particular small, rocky island is a real highlight in the archipelago; according to the hotspot theory, Española is supposed to be one of the oldest in the Galápagos. It is located on the eastern-most side, perfectly fitting the description of how the oldest islands suppose to look like and giving it an approximate age of five million years old.
Our destination for the morning was Punta Suarez, home to myriads of sea birds. Blue footed and Nazca boobies, tropic birds, and the majestic waved albatross were easily spotted in the near by hills. The later one is considered to be the largest sea bird currently on the island, and it is only found here from the months of April to the very early weeks of January, just for their annual breeding cycle. It is also the only type of albatross that occur entirely in the tropics; it has a large range of distribution, starting in the Galápagos for their nesting grounds and flying as far as to the southern Peruvian waters to forage.
Besides the astonishing landscapes, Española is the home of thousands of sea lions that today were our welcome committee. These marine mammals are unquestionably one of the highlights of our visit, and to spend time with them is simply a life time experience!
The first sea lion pups are being born right now, and as we explored the island we had the opportunity to see a couple of new born babies with their mothers.
For the afternoon we repositioned the ship to a near by location known as Gardner bay. This is located on the northern side of Española, facing at the distance the Island of San Cristobal, which by the way, is the administrative Capital of the Galápagos Islands.
Gardner Bay is definitely an “eye catching place” with hundreds of sea lions resting on its long white beach. One of the most popular activities in the Galápagos is the snorkeling; the diversity on the tropical fish and the often encounters with ever charming Galápagos sea lions is always something that guests remember for a long time. Today our flippered friends spent quite a bit of time playing not only with the snorkelers, but with the kayakers, creating unforgettable memories for our guests of this unique paradise on earth!
