Española Island
Today was our guest’s first full day in the Galapagos Islands, and overnight we traveled all the way to the southeast, to the oldest part of the archipelago. At this time of year, the island of Española is at its absolute best! During this morning’s walk, we encountered many inhabitants of this place—it truly was a fantastic experience, beyond our wildest imaginings. The unforgettable blue-footed boobies were everywhere. What is particularly wonderful about boobies is that we don’t just see them as we hike along the lava boulder-strewn trail at Punta Suarez; we really get to know them! We watch them perform their comical courtship, we hear them whistle and honk. Marine iguanas were sun bathing also. The animals go about their natural behavior as if we weren’t even present, as you can see in this picture of a Galapagos sea lion, a recently proclaimed endemic species closely related to the California sea lions.
In the afternoon we focused on water activities—an important part of our Galapagos experience, as the area is not only a national park but a marine reserve as well. We went “deep water” snorkeling around the enchanting Turtle Islet, whilst others took glass-bottom boat rides or swam and snorkeled from the long, white, sparkling beach at Gardner Bay. We truly had a great time exploring the marine ecosystem, much of which I captured on film for a bit of an identification session that night at recap.
Today was our guest’s first full day in the Galapagos Islands, and overnight we traveled all the way to the southeast, to the oldest part of the archipelago. At this time of year, the island of Española is at its absolute best! During this morning’s walk, we encountered many inhabitants of this place—it truly was a fantastic experience, beyond our wildest imaginings. The unforgettable blue-footed boobies were everywhere. What is particularly wonderful about boobies is that we don’t just see them as we hike along the lava boulder-strewn trail at Punta Suarez; we really get to know them! We watch them perform their comical courtship, we hear them whistle and honk. Marine iguanas were sun bathing also. The animals go about their natural behavior as if we weren’t even present, as you can see in this picture of a Galapagos sea lion, a recently proclaimed endemic species closely related to the California sea lions.
In the afternoon we focused on water activities—an important part of our Galapagos experience, as the area is not only a national park but a marine reserve as well. We went “deep water” snorkeling around the enchanting Turtle Islet, whilst others took glass-bottom boat rides or swam and snorkeled from the long, white, sparkling beach at Gardner Bay. We truly had a great time exploring the marine ecosystem, much of which I captured on film for a bit of an identification session that night at recap.
