Floreana Island
Today we had a visit that I am sure changed the way of how we view nature. The fascinating exposure of both land and water worlds has been something that will remain with us forever. We have done so much during the entire day that it is so hard to choose one particular experience as a highlight.
Let me start with the visit to the post office barrel early in the morning which was particularly enjoyable. The human history of this place has a mark of mystery that precisely gives the nickname to the island, the mystery island! There have been so many strange situations happening in this island since the beginning of its colonization that many books have published some of the histories trying to unfold the truth behind the local myth.
After breakfast, we headed to one of my favorite sites for snorkeling activities, Champion Island. It has been here where we’d seen the best of the Galápagos under water world, so far. Lots of tropical fish, playful baby sea lions, white tipped reef sharks, a variety of sea stars and an extraordinary under water topography had made us all have the greatest enjoyment of the week.
After lunch, we had several choices that were combined with a walk on Punta cormorant. A lagoon located not too far from the landing site was full of bird life and the highlight were of course the flamingoes! It was great to see all those birds sharing a healthy ecosystem, since the flamingoes were naturally accompanied by some other shore bird species such as the Galápagos ducks, black necked stilts, semi-palmate plovers, whimbrels and herons.
As an extra bonus of an already beautiful afternoon, we had the unexpected appearance of a green sea turtle making its way out of the water, attempting to nest in the higher grounds of the beach.
As a grand finale, we had a couple of flamingoes flying above heads just as we were making our way back to the ship. Not bad to call it a day, don’t you think?
Today we had a visit that I am sure changed the way of how we view nature. The fascinating exposure of both land and water worlds has been something that will remain with us forever. We have done so much during the entire day that it is so hard to choose one particular experience as a highlight.
Let me start with the visit to the post office barrel early in the morning which was particularly enjoyable. The human history of this place has a mark of mystery that precisely gives the nickname to the island, the mystery island! There have been so many strange situations happening in this island since the beginning of its colonization that many books have published some of the histories trying to unfold the truth behind the local myth.
After breakfast, we headed to one of my favorite sites for snorkeling activities, Champion Island. It has been here where we’d seen the best of the Galápagos under water world, so far. Lots of tropical fish, playful baby sea lions, white tipped reef sharks, a variety of sea stars and an extraordinary under water topography had made us all have the greatest enjoyment of the week.
After lunch, we had several choices that were combined with a walk on Punta cormorant. A lagoon located not too far from the landing site was full of bird life and the highlight were of course the flamingoes! It was great to see all those birds sharing a healthy ecosystem, since the flamingoes were naturally accompanied by some other shore bird species such as the Galápagos ducks, black necked stilts, semi-palmate plovers, whimbrels and herons.
As an extra bonus of an already beautiful afternoon, we had the unexpected appearance of a green sea turtle making its way out of the water, attempting to nest in the higher grounds of the beach.
As a grand finale, we had a couple of flamingoes flying above heads just as we were making our way back to the ship. Not bad to call it a day, don’t you think?
