We had another magical day in the Galapagos Islands! We woke up anchored at Punta Cormorant, Floreana Island. We started with an early morning walk on a green sandy beach full of peridotite, a semi-precious stone. At our landing spot, we encountered sea lions waking up, some pups nursing delightedly. Along the trail, we hiked in a dry forest of palo santo. We saw a few flamingos in the lagoon and explored another beach area where frigatebirds were trying to get some breakfast, striking the nests of Pacific green sea turtles.
After breakfast, we repositioned the ship to Champion Islet! Multiple activities were offered. First, guests took a Zodiac ride around the islet to look out for seabirds and enjoy the landscape of the islet, which is fully covered by opuntia cactus. Then we went again to explore the islet, but this time we focused on the underwater world, using our glass-bottom boat and, of course, snorkeling. This was a wonderful excursion. We spotted dolphins, what seemed like millions of fish, Pacific green sea turtles, and sea lions. We couldn’t believe we saw all of this before lunch!
After lunch, our young explorers met in the library to make handmade postcards to be delivered at the traditional Post Office Bay later in the afternoon. Afterwards, we enjoyed so many activities, including kayaking, paddleboarding, and Zodiac rides. We spotted marine iguanas, sea lions, sea turtles, blue-footed boobies, and even some spotted eagle rays. We also visited the post office barrel, an important historical site on the islands. In the past, pirates and whalers used to leave their own letters and pick up other visitors’ letters to hand deliver back home. We kept the tradition alive today, and several guests picked up letters to deliver back home.
This was an amazing day spent cruising the enchanted archipelago aboard National Geographic Endeavour II.
