Bartolome Island
Our week in the Galapagos Archipelago flew past, leaving us all with a wealth of experiences and memories that would remain with us for a long time to come, as a unique experience of being completely at one with the natural world.
Our last day was different yet again, a completely new experience as each day before it had been, and packed with adventures.
Bartolome Islet lies to the east of the fourth largest island in the archipelago, and completely in its rain shadow, as a result of which the island is arid and devoid of vegetation, making the startling volcanic features all the more evident.
We hiked to the top of the tuff cone before breakfast, where our efforts were rewarded by spectacular views over the pinnacle rock and an extensive lava flow dating back just over a hundred years. After breakfast we disembarked onto one of the half-moon shaped beaches we had seen from above, and several of us donned our masks immediately, to join a playful Galapagos penguin in the water.
Those who wished took a nature walk across a sand dune to a second, longer beach. The wildness of the place was breathtaking, and the relaxation of the park rules in this area made it a wonderful opportunity to commune with one’s surroundings, admire the turtle nests, gape at an intense feeding frenzy and indulge in some beach combing amongst the rapidly-disappearing ghost crabs.
Our week in the Galapagos Archipelago flew past, leaving us all with a wealth of experiences and memories that would remain with us for a long time to come, as a unique experience of being completely at one with the natural world.
Our last day was different yet again, a completely new experience as each day before it had been, and packed with adventures.
Bartolome Islet lies to the east of the fourth largest island in the archipelago, and completely in its rain shadow, as a result of which the island is arid and devoid of vegetation, making the startling volcanic features all the more evident.
We hiked to the top of the tuff cone before breakfast, where our efforts were rewarded by spectacular views over the pinnacle rock and an extensive lava flow dating back just over a hundred years. After breakfast we disembarked onto one of the half-moon shaped beaches we had seen from above, and several of us donned our masks immediately, to join a playful Galapagos penguin in the water.
Those who wished took a nature walk across a sand dune to a second, longer beach. The wildness of the place was breathtaking, and the relaxation of the park rules in this area made it a wonderful opportunity to commune with one’s surroundings, admire the turtle nests, gape at an intense feeding frenzy and indulge in some beach combing amongst the rapidly-disappearing ghost crabs.
