Bartolomé & James Island
The voice of our Expedition Leader came early this morning to wake us up for a pre-breakfast power walk to the top of Bartolomé Island. The boardwalk allowed everyone to admire the volcanic scenery, which was visible in all directions. Spatter cones, ashes, tuff cones, bombs and lava tubes were part of the vocabulary list that became visible as we made our way up the steps. Various types of pioneer plants were clearly colonizing the ground and triggering the question in our minds, how does anything survive here? Some of us took many pictures of the craters, lava cactus and the few lava lizards that were found on the visit, but one that was not to be missed was the photograph of the Pinnacle Rock.
Breakfast was devoured and soon after that we got in our wet suits and landed on the beautiful pinkish golden glittering sand. It was low tide, kids were soon making castles, splashing or trying to spot a couple of penguins that were swimming in the shallows of the bay. Snorkeling was the popular option. The glass bottom boat did several trips to the same spot so most people had a good view of the underwater world. There were chocolate chip sea stars, many anemones, sea lions, a white tip reef shark and, best of all, penguins fishing.
This is our last day onboard. We have time to sit on deck, relax, and try to dry every piece of wet clothing that has been with us in many of our water activities. Time has passed too quickly and we have learned many things this week. Some of us have exceeded our own physical limitations and others have discovered a true love for nature.
Galápagos keeps surprising me in many ways. One of those is that it has the power to bring out the best in people and create a bit of awareness that we are all connected and that this part of paradise is an example to the world. It is everyone’s responsibility to keep it this way for many generations to come.
