Santa Cruz is the second largest island of the archipelago after Isabela. It is home to the largest concentration of inhabitants of the province because of the first airport operation on Baltra Island, just north of it. One of the visitor sites is Cerro Dragon, located on the northwest coast of Santa Cruz, named after the large land iguanas, which look like small dragons.
It is a colorful coastline due to the different terrain components, along with the huge variety of plants which give a nice contrast to the site. After many years of conservation programs, the land iguana population is coming back from near extinction. This was apparent during our hike, where we easily spotted several good-sized land iguanas near their burrows. It was an incredible experience to see these dragon-like creatures up close.
It was another exciting day of exploration, and more discoveries await us tomorrow as our expedition continues!
