We spent the last day of our expedition at Santiago Island. We deployed kayaks and Zodiacs to explore the coast, including the amazing landscape at Buccaneer Cove. Our guests enjoyed snorkeling with colorful fish and whitetip reef sharks, and we even spotted a manta ray. The glass-bottom boat was in operation, and there is nothing better than dry snorkeling! In the afternoon, we walked along the shoreline of Puerto Egas, where we took pictures of marine iguanas, herons, coastal birds, and Galapagos sea lions with their pups. Our wonderful expedition came to an end, and wonderful memories will stay in the hearts of our guests for a long time!
10/4/2024
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National Geographic Endeavour II
Genovesa Island
With coffee in hand, I stepped out onto the front balcony of the lounge to see what was going on. We had just entered Darwin’s Bay, dropped anchor, and the juvenile red-footed boobies had found the ship and were flying around us on an inspection tour. The rest of the day continued with discoveries of all kinds. An early morning inversion layer (locally known as “garúa”) had fallen and dampened the environment with much desired drops of fresh water, although the chicks of various species didn’t appear terribly pleased in having wet feathers. On our return, the same bedraggled individuals looked smooth, sleek and dry once the sun had come out. The Galapagos National Park has only two sites for visitors, both spectacular, both well worth a slow walk among the palo santo trees to see the great frigatebirds, red-footed boobies, Nazca boobies, Galapagos doves, Darwin’s finches, short-eared owls, and storm petrels. Snorkeling, kayaking, and paddleboarding along the base of the cliffs of Darwin’s Bay followed. There’s nothing quite like this island anywhere in the world.
