Isabela Island
Today we had a wonderful time exploring the western corner of Isabela, the largest island in Galápagos: we kayaked, snorkeled and took a couple of amazing walks. In the morning we visited Urvina Bay where a very important geological event took place in the fifties. A large current of molten magma from Alcedo volcano moving towards the surface pushed a five kilometer section of coastline upwards as much as four meters. This uplifting was so sudden that even sea turtles, lobsters and fish were trapped, lifted high and dry and stranded up and out of the water and far inland. As we hiked along the two mile inland trail with naturalist Lucho, we were amazed to find large heads of bleached white coral half a mile from the sea.
Lynn led the kids behind the beach on a short loop trail where we found several big and colorful land iguanas. The smaller, dull gray females were much shier than the males, and they retreated into their burrows when we approached. We returned to the beach and played in the cool water or on hot black sand beach.
Gilda took the kayakers across a beautiful calm sea and south along the coast. They had the great luck of finding Galápagos penguins and cormorants fishing and sea turtles swimming right next to the boats and blue-footed boobies were plunge diving nearby. After kayaking Gilda took some of us on the long loop trail at a quick pace and the rest of us joined the kids at the beach and did the short hike in search of land iguanas.
In the afternoon we explored Punta Moreno both on foot and by Zodiac. This extraordinary place has an unusual beauty and we were surrounded by immense barren rough lava flows with very little vegetation. We hiked on the jagged lava and were surprised when we came upon brackish water pools where life flourished. There were bushes, grasses, cacti, and nine bright pink greater flamingos. This exceptional scenery, and the wildlife and plants isolated as they were, in the midst of the solitude of the immense black lava flow, was outstanding.
From the Zodiacs we crossed tranquil mangrove lagoons where there wree spotted eagle and golden rays, and sea turtles and huge schools of yellow tailed mullet swam. On one lava shelf we found huge “godzilla” iguanas setting up territories and a single resting sea lion and one penguin. As we Zodiac cruised back to the ship a flotilla of curious penguins approached the Zodiac, as happy to check us out as we were to observe them. The penguins splashed, dove and played around and under the boat and then continued on to catch a few more fish before they would return to the shore at sunset.
Today we had a wonderful time exploring the western corner of Isabela, the largest island in Galápagos: we kayaked, snorkeled and took a couple of amazing walks. In the morning we visited Urvina Bay where a very important geological event took place in the fifties. A large current of molten magma from Alcedo volcano moving towards the surface pushed a five kilometer section of coastline upwards as much as four meters. This uplifting was so sudden that even sea turtles, lobsters and fish were trapped, lifted high and dry and stranded up and out of the water and far inland. As we hiked along the two mile inland trail with naturalist Lucho, we were amazed to find large heads of bleached white coral half a mile from the sea.
Lynn led the kids behind the beach on a short loop trail where we found several big and colorful land iguanas. The smaller, dull gray females were much shier than the males, and they retreated into their burrows when we approached. We returned to the beach and played in the cool water or on hot black sand beach.
Gilda took the kayakers across a beautiful calm sea and south along the coast. They had the great luck of finding Galápagos penguins and cormorants fishing and sea turtles swimming right next to the boats and blue-footed boobies were plunge diving nearby. After kayaking Gilda took some of us on the long loop trail at a quick pace and the rest of us joined the kids at the beach and did the short hike in search of land iguanas.
In the afternoon we explored Punta Moreno both on foot and by Zodiac. This extraordinary place has an unusual beauty and we were surrounded by immense barren rough lava flows with very little vegetation. We hiked on the jagged lava and were surprised when we came upon brackish water pools where life flourished. There were bushes, grasses, cacti, and nine bright pink greater flamingos. This exceptional scenery, and the wildlife and plants isolated as they were, in the midst of the solitude of the immense black lava flow, was outstanding.
From the Zodiacs we crossed tranquil mangrove lagoons where there wree spotted eagle and golden rays, and sea turtles and huge schools of yellow tailed mullet swam. On one lava shelf we found huge “godzilla” iguanas setting up territories and a single resting sea lion and one penguin. As we Zodiac cruised back to the ship a flotilla of curious penguins approached the Zodiac, as happy to check us out as we were to observe them. The penguins splashed, dove and played around and under the boat and then continued on to catch a few more fish before they would return to the shore at sunset.
