Galapagos is a place of contrasts, and this first full day delivered a perfect introduction to the interesting diversity that exists here. Starting our day at North Seymour Island, we headed out for hikes to explore the inland territories of this small, central island. We encountered an incredible amount of air traffic, as magnificent and great frigatebirds soared overhead on the updrafts of wind coming off the ocean. Brown pelicans were plunge diving, as blue-footed boobies gracefully entered the water with hardly a splash. As we made our way inland among an incense tree forest, we saw multiple land iguanas searching for sustenance—it is currently the peak of the dry season, and food can be difficult to come by.

We had a great introduction to this unique wildlife as we returned to our floating home, National Geographic Endeavour II, and navigated to Rabida Island. Late afternoon welcomed us as we explored the undersea environment, meeting Galapagos fur seals, eels, scorpionfish, Pacific green sea turtles, white-tipped reef sharks, and large schools of surgeonfish. The late afternoon sun shone through a crack in the clouds as we strolled along a dark red beach among the resting sea lions. It was a fantastic day, showing us that there is a lot to learn about this small world among itself. We look forward to a fascinating week of exploration!