Santa Cruz Island and Daphne Major, 9/18/2024, National Geographic Endeavour II
Aboard the
National Geographic Endeavour II
Galápagos
This morning, National Geographic Endeavour II anchored at the northwestern coast of Santa Cruz Island. During the morning, our guests explored a Galapagos dry forest in search of Palo Santo trees, giant Galapagos prickly pear cactus, and Galapagos land iguanas.
In the afternoon, we explored Borrero Bay, which is a mangrove ecosystem where some of the guests kayaked, and others went on Zodiac rides.
Salvador Cazar studied biology at the Universidad Nacional Del Sur, Bahía Blanca, in Argentina and at the Catholic University of Ecuador. Between 1988 and 1994, Salvador worked as a naturalist and tour leader for several national and international to...
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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.
We are ready for another day of adventures in the Galapagos. Before breakfast, Zodiacs take us to Bartolome. This island is considered an open book of geology due to its young age and small size. It contains the hints of colonization of the islands by plants and animals. The views from the summit are majestic and best represent the Galapagos geology. The island’s beach offers great photo ops for wildlife and landscape. It also offers great snorkeling from the beach to see various fish, penguins and sharks. Chinese Hat is another beautiful small island ideal for various activities, like snorkeling with a great variety of fish, sea lions, rays, sea stars, and even penguins. Later in the afternoon, we use Zodiacs to explore the coasts of Santiago and Chinese Hat, both with great opportunities for wildlife and views of the surrounding geology with a clear water channel.
