Southern Isabela

This morning, we awoke to completely clear blue skies and a gentle breeze just off the western coast of Southern Isabela. After a delicious breakfast, we disembarked on a short ride to the nearby beautiful black beach of Urbina Bay. We began our walk along a comfortable route inland accompanied by several sulphur butterflies. Within moments, we encountered a Galápagos giant tortoise in our path. We continued walking and came upon three huge land iguanas very near the trail. These were some of the largest, most handsome and colourful land iguanas we have seen thus far.

Continuing on, we entered the area once inhabited by mangroves. Present day, the mangroves no longer exist here as they were annihilated by the volcanic eruption which occurred here in 1954 and uplifted this entire area above sea level. In its place now, are the remaining coral heads and skeletal remains of sea turtles, barnacles, and the sea life which once inhabited this area. It was so amazing to be walking inland and discovering the remnants of tube worms, shells, and various types of coral so far from the shoreline as it exists today.

Once we returned to the beach area, we walk along the rugged terrain, climbing over giant lava rocks as quickly as we could manage, knowing that our reward, once we returned to our landing site, would be a delightful, dip in the cool, inviting Pacific Ocean.

The water was pleasantly calm and the perfect temperature to revive us after our arduous, but fascinating journey. The children searched the nearby shoreline amongst the lava remnants for crabs, little fish, sea urchins, algae, anemones and marine iguanas. After a refreshing swim, we returned to the ship for an Ecuadorian feast. The food was spectacular and delighted our palates beyond all expectation.

After the fiesta, you have the opportunity to take a siesta or to have a sublime hour long massage.

The ship repositioned during lunch slightly to the south of Isabela Island to Punta Moreno between two large volcanoes, Sierra Negra and Cerro Azul. Magnificent views!

Revived, yet again, we set out on our afternoon excursions. Our choices were either a long hike along a lava flow interspersed with lagoons containing brackish waters and different wildlife than we have seen before. We saw greater flamingos and moorhens or common gallinules, which were very colourful.

The other option was a boat ride through the mangroves where we saw many sea turtles, mullets, spotted rays and a colony of resting male sea lions. We ventured out along the shoreline and saw rocky formations covered in sea lions, crabs, marine iguanas and, best of all, many penguins.

After riding the waves back to the ship, we met in the lounge to play an exciting game - National Geographic Bee which covered the highlights of our last few days here in the Galápagos. Then we retired to the dining room for yet another indescribably delicious dinner prepared by the amazing culinary staff aboard the Islander.