We started our morning in a place known as Dragon Hill. It’s very impressive to observe the difference between the vegetation zones from the northern side of Santa Cruz Island, compared to those on the south side, which we visited yesterday. The northern side is much dryer, and the change from one zone to the next occurs more quickly. We disembarked with the goal of finding some dragons…the Galapagos land iguanas. This is a restored area, which now is home to several land iguanas that had been repatriated. The population here is healthy now, as we could witness. Apart from our encounters with this unique reptile, we enjoyed of beautiful scenery and some interesting wildlife. We even had a surprise encounter with some flamingoes, which were standing right next to the trail.
We came back just in time to change into our bathing suits and begin our water activities. We went snorkeling off of the Guy Fawkes Islets, and enjoyed beach time on Dragon Hill. Both experiences were very rewarding, with some relaxing time on the beach, and an amazing wall full of invertebrates on our snorkeling excursion.
In the afternoon we moved to a small islet known as Eden. We explored the shores of the area, finding some mangrove forests, home of a variety of nesting shore birds, and we spotted some sea turtles and sea lions as well.
We came back onboard for our last activity of the day—an exploration of Daphne Island. This place is an iconic area for science, as Darwin finches have been studied here for decades, and we circumnavigated the island while learning about the fascinating studies that were based here. We enjoyed of a wonderful sunset, cheering for our adventures with a cocktail at the sundeck surrounded by our new friends.
