Our first sight this morning was a breathtaking one, of volcanic landscapes and massive lava fields. We have anchored by Sombrero Chino, a small islet comprising of a spatter cone. There is just a narrow stretch of sea that separates it from the island of Santiago, and it was in this area that in 1897 a volcanic eruption produced a large volume of lava which expanded the coast. Several small-sized lava tubes were formed at the edge of the flow, which are now the home to a small population of endemic Galapagos penguins. Today, we searched for them in their usual rocky spot, however they were busy hunting their favorite prey, small silvery fish that abound in these shallow waters. During our Zodiac ride we saw other sea birds typical of the shore, like the brown pelican, blue-footed boobies, striated herons and the pirates of the air, the frigates. A little later in the morning we returned to snorkel in these tranquil waters. Several fish species were found here, and some snorkelers were fortunate enough to have been in the path of some fishing penguins! Sombrero Chino has a tiny but very attractive beach with white sand and turquoise waters. The volcanic landscapes around it are fantastic, and the group of guests that visited the beach had to share it with a few Galapagos sea lions. Curious and playful, they were a delight to observe. Sally lightfoot crabs decorated the rocks, and we also had a lot of fun watching the very busy life of some lava lizards!
We then returned back on board, as we had to start our next navigation. We sailed close to one of the Bainbridge Rocks, an eroded tuff ring that holds a lagoon in its center. It is best viewed from the top deck of the National Geographic Islander. Today we were happy to see that some greater flamingos had found a good hide-out place here and were probably making the most of the food in the lagoon.
By the early afternoon we had already moved further north along the eastern coast of Santiago Island. We dropped anchor at Sullivan Bay, which is part of the same 1897 lava flow we had seen in the morning. Having navigated for a while, we could now realize the vastness of this black lava field and how massive the eruption must have been. We landed ashore on the black basalt, and everywhere we looked was a photo opportunity of beautiful ropy shapes in the now solid lava. The terrain is so new and dry that very few organisms are able to inhabit it. Today we found a few pioneers, like some small lava cacti and mollugo plants. The endemic painted locust seemed to particularly like the warmth of this place, as they were everywhere. The Santiago lava lizard ventures here to either catch them or feed on whatever they can find. The sheer blackness of the lava and the surrounding volcanic landscapes were enough to make us feel transported to another dimension…one that seemed closer to the origins of life on earth. What an amazing and special place this is!
