James Island

We visited Espumilla Beach this morning on our fifth day of the voyage. This morning we had very intense activities, disembarking before breakfast for a mile-long walk along a dense vegetation zone. In my many years of guiding, I have never seen tortoises in the wild here until today. It was quite a sight to see them, and a sign that they are recovering from the devastation of their habitat by goats.

There were also lots of finches, and this is a good place to enjoy the singing of males trying to attract a mate. For those interested in photography we stayed on the beach to capture the action of blue-footed boobies and pelicans plunge diving right in front of us. After this amazing episode we sailed to a different visitor site known as Buccaneer’s Cove, where we continued our morning activities with many different options for everyone; snorkeling was at its best, with lots of tropical fish and very refreshing waters; glass -bottom boating was very impressive because of the blue, crystal-clear water in the area; kayaking was no exception, because the geology and the marine life along the bay was spectacular as well.

National Geographic Endeavour then sailed to Puerto Egas and we had lunch while underway. A gentleman from mainland Ecuador attempted to colonize this place in the mid-19th century by starting a salt mining operation. After a few years of activity, he and his workers had to abandon the business because of the harsh condition and lack of fresh water, leaving behind old vestiges of the human history of this place. But this is not the main reason why this place is so well known; one of the most famous visitors to the Galápagos, Charles Darwin, visited here while he was voyaging on board the Beagle.

Puerto Egas is a fantastic place to explore the coast line, with many different sightings, such as marine iguanas, Sally Lightfoot crabs, migratory shorebirds and tidal pools. It probably is one of the best places to see the two different species of endemic marine mammals, the Galápagos sea lion and the Galápagos fur seal.

This was a full, intense and spectacular day with lots of emotions, happiness and peace in this remote enchanted archipelago.