On our first day of full day of exploration, we headed south to the oldest island in the archipelago. Four million years ago, Española moved southeast from its original geological hot spot and joined the Galapagos chain. Colonized by pioneer species, the island has indigenous birds and plants found nowhere else in the world.
In the morning, right after breakfast, we visited Gardner Bay for some water activities. Here, the white sand never gets hot, the water was full of tropical fish, and countless sea lions formed harems and prepared for the birthing season. Some of us decided to go deep-water snorkeling off Gardner Islet where we came across some caves and baby sea lions.
Later, we returned to the National Geographic Endeavour and enjoyed lunch and a well-deserved siesta, in true Ecuadorian style. Then we navigated to our second destination, the visitors’ site known as Punta Suarez. This place has the feel of a virgin island, where it seems that the animals have never seen a human being before. At Punta Suarez, we came across the archipelago’s largest colonies of Nazca boobies and waved albatrosses. The tireless sea lions and colorful marine iguanas also conquered our hearts and reminded us of the need to protect them.
It was the second day of our voyage and we couldn’t wait to see what came next.
