San CristobaI Island.
At the northeastern tip of San Cristobal Island lies Punta Pitt. The landscapes in this place are spectacular. Through hundreds of years, erosion has modified two huge tuff cones, and what is left of them stands tall near a small, greenish beach. The trail behind it takes us along a canyon, and we ascend until we reach a ledge from where we can enjoy the panorama of the area. Punta Pitt is known mostly for being the home to a colony of red-footed boobies, and today we were lucky to see several of them courting and calling each other so it was clear that the new breeding season has started! The local vegetation is rather dry, but still they provide food for some endemic birds like the Darwin finches. A couple of juvenile San Cristobal mockingbirds approached us for an unofficial “inspection”; they seemed to be learning to find food and water for themselves and were quite inquisitive. As the ground warmed up we could find more and more endemic lava lizards, some of which started looking for a meal or doing their ‘push-ups,’ a territorial display to keep other lizards away from their little realms. Back in the landing beach, the day became brighter which was perfect to relax or to enjoy the ocean for a while.
In the afternoon our ship dropped anchor at Kicker Rock, an outcrop of rock off the western coast of San Cristobal Island. This is to be our last snorkeling site of the week, and an excellent one too! Although the visibility was variable, many of our fearless snorkelers were able to spot Galapagos and black-tipped reef sharks, spotted eagle rays and Pacific green sea turtles. The walls are covered in marine invertebrates, like barnacles, sponges, corals and sea anemones. Due to the amazing marine conditions and abundance of food, Kicker Rock is the perfect base for various marine bird species; Nazca and blue-footed boobies inhabit it as well as the magnificent frigate bird. The marine mammals are represented by the Galapagos sea lion; it was fun to watch them sleeping on narrow ledges in the vertical walls of Kicker Rock. All this could be observed as we circumnavigated it on board the National Geographic Endeavour. With a drink in hand and a toast, this was the perfect way to end a perfect expedition in the Galapagos Islands… Salud!
