The Galápagos archipelago is divided into several geological regions. The eastern islands are the oldest as they moved further away from the hotspot approximately four million years ago. Creatures established here have evolved into new forms, resulting in a high endemism rate on Española. We anchored at Gardner Bay in the morning, and while we navigated westbound towards our new visitor site, Punta Suárez, we were greeted by a huge pod of bottle-nosed dolphins. What an amazing way to start our expedition in the Enchanted Isles!
- Daily Expedition Reports
- 12 Dec 2021
Española Island, 12/12/2021, National Geographic Endeavour II
- Aboard the National Geographic Endeavour II
- Galápagos
Gaby Bohorquez, Naturalist
Gaby was born and raised in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Her first job in the Galapagos was on board a 90-passenger cruise ship as the cruise director’s assistant, and she fell under the spell of the Enchanted Isles. She returned to Guayaquil to study at the ...
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Exploring Galápagos
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Gardner Bay and Punta Suarez, Española Island
It was our first full day in the Galapagos, and we started our exploration with Española Island, on the southeastern side of the archipelago. The first visitor site, Gardner Bay, has a mile-long sandy beach with turquoise waters, which provided a perfect opportunity for snorkeling. Here, we also enjoyed observing a variety of wildlife, like mockingbirds and the Galapagos sea lion. Soon after we were all back onboard, we had lunch and repositioned to Punta Suarez for a walk to search for the famous waved albatross. Today they were incubating their eggs, and soon we’ll have little chicks all over the island. We also had an opportunity to take a shorter walk, enjoying baby sea lions, turtles, and much more. We were welcomed by wildlife with no fear…and our expedition story has just begun.