Today we landed early in the morning for a pre-breakfast excursion at Cormorant Point where we hiked around a brackish water lagoon and had a chance to observe American flamingoes and blue-footed boobies from up close. Later in the morning, after our ship repositioned, we snorkeled around Champions Islet after exploring the shoreline aboard our Zodiacs. During lunch, we repositioned to Post Office Bay where we delivered our postcards and then had a chance to kayak and stand up paddleboard in a mangrove area teeming with young sharks, rays and sea turtles.
2/25/2025
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National Geographic Endeavour II
Isabela Island
Today we had a day full of wildlife encounters on Isabela Island. We started early in the morning exploring the coastline of Urbina Bay at the bottom of the slopes of Alcedo Volcano. During this spectacular hike, our guests had their first encounter with giant tortoises in the wild. Unlike on the island of Santa Cruz where we see tortoises while visiting private farms, the giant tortoises of this visitor site had made a long journey all the way down from the volcano, far from any human settlement, to lay their eggs and feed on the lush vegetation. In the afternoon, some of our guests went for a Zodiac ride along the coast of Tagus Cove, a tuff volcanic formation that is home to several species of seabirds. Blue-footed boobies and Galapagos penguins were the main attractions of this exploration. After a successful Zodiac ride before sunset, our Zodiac driver, José, spotted a feeding frenzy. Many blue-footed boobies and brown noddies put on a show for us to close a wonderful day exploring Isabela Island.
