Cerro Dragon & Sombrero Chino

We continued our expedition visiting the northwestern corner of Santa Cruz Island. During the morning we hiked on Cerro Dragon. This beautiful location was at its best today for the tide was extremely low. The impressive black lava flows merging with the white beach and the blue waters of the surroundings were simply amazing! A shallow idyllic lagoon, located some feet away from the landing spot contrasted in a magical way with the surrounding dry forest that is characteristic of this place. Today the sun’s light was gorgeous, allowing our visitors to take wonderful shots. Darwin finches and mockingbirds showed up greeting us with their melodic calls. Our main goal was to locate some of the colorful endemic Galápagos land iguanas that live in this location. We succeeded for we observed some large male land iguanas close to their burrows. Later in the morning we snorkeled around Guy Fawkes Islets where we observed many fish and invertebrate species.

During lunch time we headed to our next destination, Sombrero Chino. Several activities were offered and our guests had a wonderful array of choices. Some went to stretch and relax on a little nearby beach. Some went snorkeling or joined Zodiac cruises along the coastline. Some guests decided to board kayaks in this peaceful area and had a blast for they could not stop praising their experience of being in intimate contact with nature. A breathtaking sunset told us that it was time to come back onboard to share with our friends our experiences. The intense colors and the silhouette of the characteristic shape of “Sombrero Chino” (Chinese Hat) were a golden finale for this wonderful day we spent on one of the ultimate paradises on Earth, the Galápagos!