Bartholomew and Santiago Islands

What a wonderful day we had visiting these two central islands in the Galápagos. Our day started with Bartholomew Island, well known for its geological formations that give us a better idea about the volcanic origin of the islands. The view from the top is the greatest prize as it is consider being the most famous and best known for all the visitors.

After this walk we enjoyed a tasty breakfast on the teak deck as the weather was just perfect. We had a very nice warm sunny day, excellent for the water activities that we had on the golden beach of Bartholomew. Some went snorkeling and others went on the glass bottom boat, many also had a wonderful time exploring the southern coast where many nests of Pacific green sea turtles can be observed along.

After visiting Bartholomew we headed towards Santiago Island, where kids enjoyed their afternoon playing on the beach with some young Galápagos sea lions and snorkeled with sea turtles. Later on we all went together for an amazing walk where lots of Galápagos marine iguanas were seen along the coast sun bathing, and some new born sea lions were either looking for their mothers or nursing on the very rich milk the females produce.

We also had a very close look at a Galápagos hawk, the top predator of the islands. On this island the females practice polyandry, which means that they can have more than one male in their territory and all males share the nest duties with the female. We had a very spectacular sunset as we headed to our ship and shared some of the best moments and stories we all had about this special day.