Today our guest explored the westernmost realm of the Galapagos. During the morning, the entire guest landed and snorkel at Punta Espinosa, Fernandina Island. The highlights of the morning were the countless Galapagos marine iguanas that were basking at the shoreline as our guest explored the island. As well in the morning while snorkeling our guest observe many Green sea turtles feeding on sea weed over there rocks. For the afternoon, everybody went on panga rides to experience Punta Vicente Roca, Isabela Island. This site offers an impressive view of a collapsed volcano. As well, the rocky cliffs provide shelter for Galapagos fur seals and are a good perch for seabirds like Nazca boobies, flightless cormorants and Galapagos penguins.
5/11/2025
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National Geographic Endeavour II
Española Island
We started our expedition by visiting one of the oldest islands of the archipelago and quite a fantastic one. We explored the beach in the morning and the inside of the island in the afternoon. Our first outing was a snorkel exploration of a small islet located on Gardner Bay, where we observed sharks, sea lions, sea turtles, spotted eagle rays, and many colorful fish! The temperature of the water, great visibility, and an abundance of life made for an outstanding first deep-water snorkel. We also walked and swam on a beautiful white sand beach next to the big colony of sea lions that live here. In the afternoon, we hiked on Suárez Point. This is the only site in the archipelago where we can find the very famous waved albatross. We walked a rocky trail and spotted marine iguanas and lava lizards with nearly every step before reaching the nesting grounds of Nazca boobies and the albatrosses. These wonderful and magnificent marine birds nested and displayed for their mates. We observed the beauty of these animals as we enjoyed the sunset. It was a spectacular first full day.
