An ancient volcanic landmass, well known for its beauty and fascinating wildlife, was our host island today. Española is characterized by its high endemism, due to the fact that is over three million years old. This span of time has allowed the island to built up and establish a unique ecosystem that is only found in Española Island.
The morning outing at Gardner bay amazed our guests. The first activity at this island was a snorkeling excursion. The rich water of this place makes the underwater realm an ecological treasure. Many juvenile Galapagos sea lions joined us, as our guests excitedly observed a great variety of colorful fish, overjoyed with the underwater biodiversity that symbolizes Gardner Islet spotted.
After our deep-water snorkeling outing, we headed to the beach. The sand that has accumulated over the years is made out of organic sources, and provides one of the best places for the formation of sea lions colonies. The close encounters of our guests with these playful and curious marine mammals made their morning experience unforgettable.
In the afternoon, the National Geographic Endeavour was relocated to the northwestern side of the island to have a unique wildlife encounter. Punta Suarez is one of the most fascinating and eye-catching places, where we could get close to unique species such as colorful marine iguanas. Although the basaltic coastline of the place was hit badly by the surf in the last few days, the remarkable sea lions and sally light-footed crabs came to greet us as we were landing. The outing was demanding due to the difficult terrain, but it was worth every breath, because blue-footed boobies were dancing and displaying their courting behavior. Nazca boobies as well as swallow-tailed gulls and mockingbirds were also sighted in our walk. Our afternoon outing didn’t ended until Mother Nature gave us an exciting grand finale—the first wave albatross that returned early on the season was soaring over the cliff of Punta Suarez. Today’s experiences have demonstrated to us the magic of this treasure of an island.
