We started our first full day of exploration with a wonderful sunrise and perfect weather conditions. In the morning we went ashore to stroll along the trail of North Seymour, and with every step we found a different animal. First we saw the swallow-tailed gulls nesting, then sea lions, marine iguanas, land iguanas, and many frigatebirds nesting on the trees. Some male frigatebirds were displaying their ritual to attract the females, which consists of inflating their red gular sacs, then spreading and shaking their wings while making some rattling sounds. In the afternoon we had a great time snorkeling at Rábida Island, and later walking along an astonishing red beach with colonies of sea lions. Behind the shoreline we saw a flock of pinkish flamingoes nesting at the edge of a brackish water lagoon, while others were feeding on mollusks and microscopic shrimp. The sunset on the horizon was the icing on the cake for such a spectacular day of fun in the paradisiacal Galapagos.
3/3/2025
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National Geographic Endeavour II
Floreana Island
Today we had an optional early wet landing at Cormorant Point’s visitor site, searching for flamingoes and turtles. We also had a fun opportunity to see a few sea lions, Sally Lightfoot crabs and many birds. Back on board for breakfast, we repositioned to our snorkeling site. Today’s underwater wildlife was surreal. Sea lions, fish of all kinds and colors, turtles, sharks, rays, scorpion fish, lobster, eels, and more were encountered. We are currently experiencing the changing seasons and the wildlife is mating, for warmer water will incubate the eggs. We boarded National Geographic Endeavour II for a delicious Mexican lunch as we repositioned again for our visit to the world-famous Post-Office Bay. Before we disembarked, we enjoyed the Darwin presentation given by Naturalist Celso Montalvo. Today we exchanged post cards left from previous visitors to have them hand-delivered, just like the ones our guests are leaving behind. Some of us further explored the bay, opting for kayaking, snorkeling, or enjoying a pleasant walk along the beach. We ended the day with our recap and briefing about our next destination. We are now deeply united with this magical feeling of love, coexistence, and respect for one another as the result of exploring this special place, the Galapagos Islands.