Santa Cruz Island - Highlands and Bachas Beach, 11/30/2021, National Geographic Endeavour II
Aboard the
National Geographic Endeavour II
Galápagos
In the morning after a great breakfast, our guests boarded Zodiacs for the northern side of Santa Cruz Island, where a bus took us from sea level to approximately 1800 ft above. Here we walked around massive volcanic formations known as The Twins, which are pit craters. Later in the morning, we descended the southern slope of Santa Cruz Island to the giant tortoise reserve where our guests had a close encounter with these ancient giants.
In the afternoon we visited one of the most beautiful beaches in the Galapagos. “Las Bachas” is named after the mispronunciation of The Barges, referring to two large barges abandoned during the US military occupation of Baltra island. We walked along the beach and enjoyed the beautiful landscape and wildlife present in the area.
Socrates was raised on Santa Cruz Island located in the heart of Galapagos Archipelago. After a childhood filled with swimming, scuba diving, rock climbing and volunteering in conservation projects, he grew very passionate about the outdoors and th...
We spent our day following Charles Darwin’s steps on Santiago Island, a place he spent nine days exploring. National Geographic Islander dropped anchor at Espumilla Beach. We started early in the morning with invigorating kayaking along the shoreline and a leisurely walk on the beach. I was fortunate to lead the walk on Espumilla. We saw Pacific green sea turtles swimming very close to the shore, as well as a good number of blue-footed boobies and brown pelicans diving for fish. Along the shore, we observed Galapagos mockingbirds and yellow warblers jumping from branch to branch. A juvenile Galapagos hawk stood quietly in the button mangrove while observing us with an exhilarating curiosity and tameness. As we decided to continue our exploration, the juvenile hawk decided to follow and constantly looked to us for our attention, as if trained to do so! The hawk followed until we boarded the ship. It was a fantastic moment! Guests enjoyed the final opportunity to snorkel in Buccaneer Cove, where they saw large schools of colorful fish. Today the fish swam close to the surface to feed on plankton. Captain Alexis del Salto repositioned the ship toward James Bay. Expedition leader Socrates Tomala gave a talk about Charles Darwin, and then we disembarked on the black sandy beach. Everyone enjoyed time to swim or practice stretching with our wellness specialist, Stefania. Several guests took out their snorkeling gear and were not disappointed. They spotted sea lions, silver reef sharks and colorful fish! We put our shoes back on, and off we went for a walk along the coastal area. This is the only place to find Galapagos fur seals on land, right by a place known as “the grottos,” or collapsed lava tunnels that once reached the ocean. We saw Galapagos marine iguanas, American oystercatchers and striated herons. To the delight of our guests, several sea lion pups posed for the cameras. It was the last day of our expedition, and what a fantastic trip! The Galapagos Islands offer adventure and pristine nature!
Thanks to its high elevation, Santa Cruz Island has a variety of vegetation zones. Today, we landed on the north side of the island and boarded buses that took us through the humid zone. We visited El Manzanillo Ranch, located within the farming zone of Santa Cruz. We admired the size of the giant tortoises, an endemic species. These amazing creatures prefer the south end of the island with its abundant vegetation and suitable nesting grounds. Upon returning to National Geographic Endeavour II , we weighed anchor and navigated towards Bowditch Bay. This isolated and stunning beach has white sand and turquoise water. It is the perfect location to swim, snorkel, enjoy a stretching session or simply relax.
Santiago Island is special to Lindblad Expeditions, as it is our adopted island. Years ago, the island was overrun by invasive species, like goats, pigs, donkeys and many others! We adopted Santiago Island to support the conservation and restoration of its ecosystems. Today’s results are amazing! The island is once again a paradise for giant tortoises. Thanks to the restoration program, even the iguanas that Charles Darwin saw on his visit are back. In the early hours of the morning, we landed on Espumilla Beach for exploration. This was possibly the best morning of the trip, as this place is a breeding ground for Pacific green sea turtles. The turtles come by the thousands year after year to nest in the Galapagos Islands. Pelicans nest in the mangrove forest, and Galapagos hawks perch in trees. What a paradise for wildlife! We explored Buccaneer Cove after breakfast, where we went kayaking and deep water snorkeling. This was an opportunity to get to know more about the human aspect in the history of the Galapagos. Pirates, whale hunters, seal hunters and Charles Darwin himself visited this place! In the afternoon, we landed at Puerto Egas. Here, we had a couple of options for exploration. Some guests took a hike along the shore of Santiago Island, which was amazing due to the abundance of wildlife. Guests saw sea lions, crabs, iguanas and seabirds. Other guests snorkeled in the shallow reefs. When you land, you can find the ruins of a human settlement left by salt miners that inhabited this bay back in the 1950s. Today, the Galapagos National Park Service protects and manages Santiago Island. What an amazing opportunity to visit Santiago Island, and I can say it was another day in paradise!
