After leaving Academy Bay, the sailing was smooth up to the Plaza Islands. These are tiny, up-lifted islands off the east coast of the greater Santa Cruz Island which are just a couple hundred feet away, but very different in many respects.
South Plaza, where we landed, is slanted towards the north, so the low-lying shoreline is occupied by Galapagos sea lions dispersed into about ten territories. Each has its beach-master and the day will soon arrive that major fights will take place for dominance. The females have started to pup – in fact one female and her newborn were right next to the trail, a red patch indicating where the placenta must have been. Right next to them, however, was a land iguana with bloody lips. No other clue was necessary to tell us the sequence of events around here!
The focus of the morning was definitely land iguanas. The red vegetation across the island, the sesuvium, or sea purslane, created a dramatic back-drop for every photograph taken. Flying again and again along, across, above and out from the low bluff of the southern side, were Galapagos shearwaters, red-billed tropicbirds, frigates and swallow-tailed gulls.
When we returned to the landing jetty, we were once more reminded that Galapagos is not a zoo despite the plentiful and apparently benign behavior of the animals around us, these are wild animals that fight daily for survival. One sea lion, seemingly at ease, rolled in the water near our Zodiac with half its back skin torn off by a recent shark attack. However, since the shark obviously did not break into the body cavity and damage any internal organs, the sea lion stands a chance of survival (we’ve seen worse who managed to survive with the healing salt water around them). Just minutes before, we had seen a sea lion carcass up on a high rock (meaning it managed to get that far before dying). By now, with the bleaching of the sun and time, the vertebrae and scapula stood out in stark contrast to the dark brown fur and red plants around it.
On our return to the ship, many guests decided that a cooling-off period was needed, so took advantage of our time at anchor to jump into the water from the loading dock. Others who were more daring, went from higher off the dive platform as well.
Right after leaving our anchorage off South Plaza Island, we sailed close by Gordon Rocks, a massive remnant of volcanic tuff cone, eaten away by the sea and used by sea birds as roosting sites. It’s also a well-known dive site, known for its swift currents and large marine life. Also before lunch, Jonathan gave a presentation on the human history of the islands – appropriate being a native-born “Galápageño’ himself, born and bred on the island of San Cristobal.
Early afternoon had most everyone ready for an exploration of the bay inside Santa Fé. The surf was crashing on the outside of the island with force and energy, but inside, we could see from our anchorage a calm lagoon of light blue. The snorkelers found the wind had stirred up the waters even inside the bay, so the visibility wasn’t much, but even so some got glimpses of sea turtles, sting rays and sea lions…not a bad snorkel, all things considered! The kayakers got a good paddle and saw wildlife along the rocky coast and beaches and even saw mustard rays and turtles from above!
The hikers, in the second half of our afternoon, tackled the rocks of the island. Fairly warned (!), there was a long, fast trail option offered that took people up a rock-filled gully to the base of an escarpment, then up a steep path to the top where, when all is said and done, made it all worthwhile. The vista from the top overlooks the aquamarine-filled bay, rimmed by cactus-trees and beaches, with a deep blue ocean beyond.
The short trail led people over to some immense prickly pear cactus trees of large girth and broad branches, below which were the endemic Santa Fé land iguanas. Much paler than the others of the archipelago, Conolphus pallidus are found here on this island and no-where else in the world. A lone Galapagos hawk put in an appearance, the ace predator of the islands.
Back onboard at sunset, we all gathered for recap in the lounge once more, to share our thoughts, experiences and photos. Time is flying! Onward to our next destination! New sights are to be had!
