A Perfect Day in the Galapagos

At about 06:00, our captain moved MV Beluga across the rich waters of the Bolivar Channel and came close to Fernandina. We had wonderful views of the huge domed cone of the volcano, two sets of wispy cloud that appeared to be halfway up it, and a mackerel sky above … the sun was beginning to break through the clouds. We had breakfast, boarded the Zodiacs, and headed to our landing site at Punta Espinoza.

We arrived at low tide and our sea lion welcoming party launched into the water and playfully danced in the shallows. It wasn't long before we realised that this was going to be probably the best landing of the trip so far as we were quite literally tripping over the marine iguanas that were covering the rocks. Avoiding the expansive areas of marine iguana nests, we watched as a Galapagos hawk landed in a low bush, and another landed in a tree just beyond it.

We walked slowly along the path to the rocks beyond and almost immediately saw a metre-long Darwin's racer snake. It was moving, hunting, not keen to stop for anything in its path. There were great piles of marine iguanas everywhere, in numbers we have not seen before, some of them marching towards the ocean to feed, some of them marching back out, but most of them just lying flat, recharging their batteries, and getting warm in the sun. There were hundreds of Sally lightfoot crabs and countless sea lions. On a small sandy beach at the end of the peninsular, a sea lion had just given birth, and we watched as it took its first feed from its mother.

A quick change into wetsuits onboard Beluga and we were back in the Zodiacs and heading for a snorkel. Our first sighting, as some of us jumped in, was a sea lion that was fascinated by us. It hooked up with a friend and between the two of them, they followed us down the coast for 15 or 20 minutes, darting backwards and forwards, staring into our masks and then heading off at high speed in magical twists and turns. The rocks were shallow and covered in green algae, and as we snorkelled along the coast, we saw marine iguanas feeding, and swimming through the surf. There were penguins, flightless cormorants 'flying' past, and green turtles everywhere. It was a marine paradise.

In the afternoon, we moored at Punta Vicente Roca on the northern tip of Isabela. Snorkelling within the walls of a caldera and surrounded by highsided cliffs, there were brown noddies and blue-footed boobies on the cliff ledges, and the occasional great frigatebird. As we went along the cliff wall, there were sea lions on a ledge, large collections of marine iguanas basking on the rocks and below the surface, green turtles and a young Galapagos fur seal.

At 17:30 on the sundeck with drinks in hand, we anticipated sailing over the equator. The engine slowed, the boat's horn sounded, and we raised a toast as we kissed the equator, and as we did we were surrounded by a pod of 500 common dolphins. What a memorable way to mark this moment.

An incredible morning, an incredible afternoon, an incredible day. The Galapagos Islands are like nowhere else on Earth!

Join us on a wildlife voyage to the Galapagos Islands. To find out more, speak to our friendly team.