The day started with a beautiful sunrise as we landed at Bartolomé Island at 6:30 in the morning. The first three groups ashore went up to the summit of the Island non-stop seeking some extra exercise. Other groups went up the island at a slower pace. At the end, either on the way up or on the way down, all guests learned about the geology of Galapagos while observing a number of splatter cones, tuff cones, and lava tubes. The light was great for photography, so our guests dedicated a lot of their time to capturing the scenic beauty of Bartolomé Island. Then it was 8:00 a.m. and everybody got back on board for breakfast.
After breakfast, starting at 9:15 a.m., the guests went ashore to relax, swim, and/or snorkel. The snorkelers had a fantastic time as they saw a good diversity of fish and invertebrates, such as king angelfish, yellow tailed surgeonfish, white-tipped reef sharks, sea stars, and sea cucumbers, among others. During this part of the morning the expedition staff of the National Geographic Endeavour offered three different glass-bottom boat outings, allowing the non-swimmers to explore the underwater world of the Galapagos. Everybody had a great time as they learned about Galapagos sea life. Then it was time for lunch so we headed back on board.
Right after lunch the guests of the National Geographic Endeavour had the chance to ask questions about photography during a session with one of our photo instructors, and were able to attend a talk given by one of the members of the exploration team on the human history of the Galapagos Islands. Our young explorers and teenagers joined our expedition leader to recycle old brochures into paper beads.
After lunch the National Geographic Endeavour changed her position to Sombrero Chino Islet. The action began again at 3:30 p.m. with an opportunity for the guest to go on a deep-water snorkel adventure and/or a Zodiac ride. The highlights of these outings were the Galapagos penguins that allowed everybody to observe and photograph them as they were standing on a rock just above the water. It was already 6:00 p.m. and so then we returned to the National Geographic Endeavour.
