Today we visited Floreana at Punta Cormorant before breakfast and after a wet landing followed a gravel path towards a turtle nesting white sandy beach on the other side of the island. There were tracks of a single female having nested overnight. On the way, we spotted several Galapagos flamingoes feeding in the lagoon. After breakfast, we sailed to Champion Island where we saw the elusive Charles mockingbird and snorkeled with lots of juvenile California sea lions. In the afternoon, we had time to kayak, swim, paddleboard and visit the Barrel Post Office.
9/20/2024
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National Geographic Endeavour II
Genovesa Island
Today is our last full day in the Galapagos. We are now located above the equator in the northern hemisphere. This is Genovesa Island, a pristine island with more than one million seabirds and home to the red-footed booby and much, much more. In the morning, we landed at a white coralline beach for our last walk among swallow-tailed gulls, red-footed boobies, frigatebirds, sea lions, and the world-famous Darwin finches. Then, we went snorkeling and kayaking along the shoreline. Back onboard for an impressive Ecuadorian lunch, the best culinary cuisine is prepared by our chefs. In the afternoon, we disembark searching for many seabirds like frigate birds and Nazca boobies, but the highlight was finding very illusive short-eared owls. We were lucky to find them. This expedition was also special because we had four new soon-to-be naturalists in training, and we wish them well. Back onboard for our Captain's farewell cocktail and final dinner.
