Sombrero Chino Island & Sullivan Bay
The marvels of the Galápagos Islands impress us as the days pass. Today we visited one of the geologic marvels of the archipelago, and the best place to begin our exploration was at Sombrero Chino. A magical Zodiac cruise offered a perfect way to enjoy nature’s exquisiteness. As we landed on the lava rocks, shorebirds such as striated herons were concentrated on the rocks where they were hunting their prey out of the crevices. Following the coastline, an encounter with a white-tipped reef shark quickened our pulses as it swam underneath our Zodiac. Farther into the visit, Galápagos penguins proved themselves the masters of the water as they were hunting white salemas underwater.
Once back on board National Geographic Islander, we prepared to see what one of the largest marine reserves of the world would show us. Deep water snorkeling was outstandingly good. The symphony of color played by the reef fishes was marvelous. From the bottom of the sea garden eels were the perfect contrast in an underwater landscape, and as an addition Galápagos penguins made us feel out of this world. After this delightful experience, we enjoyed the wonders of Sombrero Chino on a short hike along the coastline.
After a delightful buffet lunch, we pulled anchor and started sailing to our next destination. In the afternoon the exploration improved as we headed into the lava fields of Sullivan Bay. The splendor of the site was unique and magical. Since the very beginning of the hike, the rocks and the way lava was formed was completely astonishing. Black like the evening and viscous like melted chocolate, Sullivan Bay made us feel as if we stepped back into time to see how all the islands looked when they were all young, several hundreds of thousands of years ago. The way the pa-hoe-hoe lava spread made us experience the wonder of nature when an island is built.
At the end of the hike, we enjoyed an awe-inspiring sunset as the last breath of the sun hit the tuff cones in the area turning them into an orange coloration. The charms of Mother Nature speak alone, and today we heard the majestic symphony that the living paradise of the Galápagos Islands played to us.
