Isabela & Fernandina Islands
We had a really good start on this day, for as early as 06:00 in the morning we already had the company of at least 100 common dolphins which came and swam very close to the ship for more than half an hour. Once we had enjoyed the dolphins we found two Bryde’s whales. Normally these whales are skittish and seldom allow boats to get close, but here we are in the Galápagos where the unimaginable occurs and obviously we were able to get really close to these whales and therefore admire them.
At mid-morning we went Zodiac riding along the southern shore of Ecuador volcano, the northwestern most volcano of Isabela Island, where we enjoyed the many fur seals and huge marine iguanas that live on the rocky shores. Several hundreds of sea birds resting on the rocks gave us a magnificent opportunity to perform our photographic skills. The pacific sun fishes were also a great attraction for all of us.
Late in the morning, having the benefit of a radiant sun above us, we went swimming and snorkeling with dozens of sea turtles and zillions of fish as well. The Galápagos penguins performed a formidable show when several of them were fishing just below us, mingling with the snorkelers for a while. We went back to the ship knowing that we should be expecting more excitement. The day was still young and while we were having lunch, the National Geographic Islander started the navigation to the island of Fernandina.
On Fernandina, at Punta Espinosa we found that the flightless cormorants have made a stop in their nesting activities. There was also a very interesting amount of green algae stranded on the shores. It is possible to understand that there are significant changes in the oceanography, probably due to the incoming rainy season that, even though is not very strong yet, is already present. The sea lions are showing themselves as very active, even though there were not very many. We certainly enjoyed the sea turtles that converge here and there all over the surrounding shore lines.
We just finished another day in the Galápagos and once more we are convinced that there is still much more to understand about the wonders of nature.
Note from Lynn Fowler, Expedition Leader: For those who were with the NG Islander three weeks ago snorkeling at Punta Vicente, I have information for you about the large quantity of small dead marine creatures the Darwin Research Station studied for identification. It was dead and decomposing krill of the Euphasidae. There were gallons and gallons of these dead krill at Punta Vicente on Dec. 24 – possibly due to a drastic water temperature change.
We had a really good start on this day, for as early as 06:00 in the morning we already had the company of at least 100 common dolphins which came and swam very close to the ship for more than half an hour. Once we had enjoyed the dolphins we found two Bryde’s whales. Normally these whales are skittish and seldom allow boats to get close, but here we are in the Galápagos where the unimaginable occurs and obviously we were able to get really close to these whales and therefore admire them.
At mid-morning we went Zodiac riding along the southern shore of Ecuador volcano, the northwestern most volcano of Isabela Island, where we enjoyed the many fur seals and huge marine iguanas that live on the rocky shores. Several hundreds of sea birds resting on the rocks gave us a magnificent opportunity to perform our photographic skills. The pacific sun fishes were also a great attraction for all of us.
Late in the morning, having the benefit of a radiant sun above us, we went swimming and snorkeling with dozens of sea turtles and zillions of fish as well. The Galápagos penguins performed a formidable show when several of them were fishing just below us, mingling with the snorkelers for a while. We went back to the ship knowing that we should be expecting more excitement. The day was still young and while we were having lunch, the National Geographic Islander started the navigation to the island of Fernandina.
On Fernandina, at Punta Espinosa we found that the flightless cormorants have made a stop in their nesting activities. There was also a very interesting amount of green algae stranded on the shores. It is possible to understand that there are significant changes in the oceanography, probably due to the incoming rainy season that, even though is not very strong yet, is already present. The sea lions are showing themselves as very active, even though there were not very many. We certainly enjoyed the sea turtles that converge here and there all over the surrounding shore lines.
We just finished another day in the Galápagos and once more we are convinced that there is still much more to understand about the wonders of nature.
Note from Lynn Fowler, Expedition Leader: For those who were with the NG Islander three weeks ago snorkeling at Punta Vicente, I have information for you about the large quantity of small dead marine creatures the Darwin Research Station studied for identification. It was dead and decomposing krill of the Euphasidae. There were gallons and gallons of these dead krill at Punta Vicente on Dec. 24 – possibly due to a drastic water temperature change.
