During the raining season, the best way to enjoy the Galapagos Islands is to get up early. Today’s early morning outing started with a hike to the summit of Bartolomé Island which is 359 feet or 120 meters high.
This tiny island shows a unique volcanic moonscape of rust-colored spatter cones, contrasting with large pale tuff cones and sooty lava flows, where the action of erosion over time has created elegant features in the soft volcanic ash. Few plant species can withstand this kind of loose terrain and the drought conditions, and therefore only a few animals that have become very well-adapted to desert-like environments can be seen here, such as locusts, lava lizards and snakes.
After admiring the geology and landscape of the island, we headed back to our home for the week, the National Geographic Endeavour. Our next activities would be water based, and we landed on a golden beach to relax and practice snorkeling before heading to deep water. Once we all were ready for the experience of a lifetime, our Zodiacs brought us to the snorkeling grounds, to explore the surrounding deep water in the search of sharks and penguins. We were not disappointed, for we were able to see many white-tipped sharks along with several schools of fish, rays and even a few penguins.
In the afternoon around 3:00 pm, we anchored close to Sombrero Chino and the Bainbridge Islets. These interesting small volcanoes were probably formed when the sea level was lower, as parasitic cones of Santiago or James Island. Our afternoon was devoted to exploring the area, with a fantastic deep water snorkel where sharks, rays and large schools of fish were once again spotted, while others opted for a late Zodiac ride along the shoreline to find Galapagos penguins, sea lions. We headed back to the ship once the sun began to set on this incredible landscape, as another unforgettable day in paradise comes to a close.
