Española Island
We returned to Española Island today and I tried hard to find the land tortoise that we saw here last week. No one had seen a tortoise at Punta Suarez in over 100 years until we did last week, on November 30. This week all of my group looked and listened intently. At one point one of the guests said excitedly “I see it there in the bushes!” only 10 yards away from the trail. Unfortunately it was a “petrified land tortoise”: just a rock.
Despite not finding the tortoise again, we had an amazing morning. The guests were very exited to see so many species of birds. We saw Nazca boobies with recently hatched chicks and albatross dancing. The juvenile albatross are still unable to fly but are rapidly losing their down and will soon leave the island. There was a Galápagos hawk one yard from the trail which sat still long enough for everyone to get a good picture. On the way back to the ship another hawk appeared. It was posing even better for pictures with the Polaris in the background. We came back on board very happy after this great walk on Punta Suarez.
In the afternoon many other activities awaited us. We had outings in the glass bottom boat, and both deep water and beginners snorkel options. I chose to go snorkeling and the experience was phenomenal. The water temperature was warm and the visibility was clear to at least 30 feet. We swam with colorful fish and a friendly young male sea lion. After snorkeling we enjoyed a rest and a stroll along a lovely white beach. Snoozing and playful sea lions and mocking birds in territorial flick fights entertained us. We had an excellent day!
We returned to Española Island today and I tried hard to find the land tortoise that we saw here last week. No one had seen a tortoise at Punta Suarez in over 100 years until we did last week, on November 30. This week all of my group looked and listened intently. At one point one of the guests said excitedly “I see it there in the bushes!” only 10 yards away from the trail. Unfortunately it was a “petrified land tortoise”: just a rock.
Despite not finding the tortoise again, we had an amazing morning. The guests were very exited to see so many species of birds. We saw Nazca boobies with recently hatched chicks and albatross dancing. The juvenile albatross are still unable to fly but are rapidly losing their down and will soon leave the island. There was a Galápagos hawk one yard from the trail which sat still long enough for everyone to get a good picture. On the way back to the ship another hawk appeared. It was posing even better for pictures with the Polaris in the background. We came back on board very happy after this great walk on Punta Suarez.
In the afternoon many other activities awaited us. We had outings in the glass bottom boat, and both deep water and beginners snorkel options. I chose to go snorkeling and the experience was phenomenal. The water temperature was warm and the visibility was clear to at least 30 feet. We swam with colorful fish and a friendly young male sea lion. After snorkeling we enjoyed a rest and a stroll along a lovely white beach. Snoozing and playful sea lions and mocking birds in territorial flick fights entertained us. We had an excellent day!
