After a great adventure on Monday, today we begin our exploration at the very center of the western coast of Isabela Island. The island of Isabela has a recognizable shape, resembling a sea horse. It is the largest island of the archipelago, and the only island in Galapagos where there are six beautiful volcanos, which decorating the island from the northern tip to the southernmost point. In this largest island of Galapagos, you expect to see five populations of tortoise, endemic to each of the largest volcanos whic form this colossal island standing next to Fernandina.
In the middle of the island, we find Alcedo volcano, a well-defined shield volcano, which has the largest native tortoise population in the world. The tortoises are all found in the caldera of the volcano, perhaps due to the humidity that facilitates foraging for the giant. They can often be seen grazing here, or taking a mud bath in the ponds of the areas.
The morning we started with a great walk, looking for Galapagos land iguanas and tortoises. Some of our explorers went for a longer walk, and some explorers opted for a short hike, but we all ended up at the beach, where we enjoyed a quick swim to cool ourselves off a bit beach, before returning to the ship.
In the afternoon, we stopped at another location on the same island called Tagus Cove, located at the foot of Darwin Volcano, which is located just a bit north of Alcedo. Here we offered deep water snorkeling, kayaking, hiking and Zodiac rides, all organized and planned so each of our explorers would have the opportunity to participate in several of these great activities. It was another fantastic day exploring the western islands, and next we will be moving on to the center part of the archipelago. We cannot wait to see what we will find there!
