| Galapagos 2025 part 6: Fernandina: Espinoza Point, Isabela: Tagus Cove | |
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Slide show option — just for looking at the pictures. | |
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Friday was another spectacular sunrise. The plan for the day (after breakfast, of course) was a dry landing and hike around Punta Espinoza on Fernandina before deep water snorkeling. Lunch (and the boat moving to Tagus Cove back on Isabella) before more deep water snorkeling followed by kayaking or panga ride (or stand up paddle board for Cedric). But first, we had to say hello to the penguins swimming by the boat. |
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And we had to admire the storm petrels walking across the ocean, picking up their breakfast. Fernandina is the youngest of the Galapagos, and also another favorite for marine iguanas. The volcanic rock here is much more ropy and flowing looking than on some of the older islands. |
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| Of course the island is home to more than iguanas: we saw sea lions, lava lizards, crabs, cormorants and pelicans as well. But there were an impressive number of iguanas. |
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When we got back to the boat, we saw we had a visitor on board; this flightless cormorant just wanted to dry off (and maybe digest breakfast). After a snack, we did some snorkeling with the iguanas. Sarah decided to pass on that actrivity. Of course, not just iguanas: there were turtles, rays and penguins. I even cribbed off of Jerry's technique an grabbed a short video of one of the turtles happily munching away. |
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Truly just a stupendous time in the water. So much wildlife, so many charismatic macro-vertebrates — I'm sorry pacific fish, there was just too much to look at. And that was the morning's snorkel; after lunch and moving to Tagus Cove, we swam with sea lions and cormorants (and more sea turtles). |
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We got out of the water and into the panga or kayaks for a poke around Tagus Cove. Jerry, the spelunking geomorphologist, was impressed by the tephra (fragments of volcanic material that to me looked like a cutaway view of ceiling joists — large, squarish rocks — mixed in with the ash and pumice). |
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| After our paddle and panga ride, we enjoyed the sunset as the Nemo motored north, across the equator again, passing these huge cliffs on the west face of Isabella. (We also crossed back into the southern hemisphere overnight.) |
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As we were turning back eastward and the sun was down, we saw orcas playing in the water. First on one side, then the other side of the boat. It was dark enough that the pictures are not great, but that did not diminish how cool it was to see. |
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Another clear night, so another chance to star gaze after what was David's favorite day of the trip. Part 7: Saturday 1/18: Santiago: Salt Mines, Egas Port, Espumilla Beach, Buccanear Cove. |
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