The colors and contrasts between islands are incredible as we navigate to a central island in the archipelago of Galapagos. Floreana historically has been important as one of the only consistent sources of fresh water in the island chain. We start early at Cormorant Point landing at an olivine crystal sandy beach with a grey incense tree forest inland. As we cross an isthmus to a white coralline beach which is where we notice one of those contrasts, two completely different beaches and origins within a few hundred meters. In the dunes we find large indentations which are an indication of the nesting behavior of the Pacific green sea turtle. High overhead magnificent frigates hover searching for the meal of the day. As we move close to the small waves as they crash upon the shore we encounter various diamond sting rays which appear to be feeding as the waves upturn small crustaceans. As we walk on the path it is hard to imagine that this area was occupied by feral goats not so long ago, damaging the delicate environment that is island ecology. Currently there is a restoration plan to return Floreana to a time before major damage was incurred with introduced species. As we continue the morning we navigate to the small Champion Island which is a satellite island that holds a small population of Floreana mockingbirds which have almost gone extinct due to invasive species, hopefully they can return to the main island soon as it is restored without the threat of damaging invaders. We eventually enter the cool waters at Champion to find an underwater environment rich in various species as young sea lions jet by us and large schools of king angel fish feed all around us.
Into the afternoon our Captain navigates us towards Post office bay where we directly meet the human history of the island as we land at post office bay. The small post barrel here was set up in the late 18th century to facilitate communication between the archipelago and England. Whalers, explorers, and famous visitors have all used this system which is the oldest postal system in the pacific and the Americas which still operates to this day. As the sun shows us its deeper hue we explore the coast among the mangroves and lava flows. Numerous sea turtles and rays float among our kayaks and we understand why this was such an important destination for visitors through the centuries not only for the fresh water and food found here however also for the beauty of this rugged place.
