Hood Island
Today was the first full day in the Galápagos Islands. We started our exploration in Punta Suarez at the western side of Española Island (Hood is the English name), the oldest island in the archipelago, about four million years old.
At 8:00 o’clock am, we disembarked on a small cement dock; during the hike we enjoyed close contact with many different species of birds, reptiles and mammals. There were sea lions, marine iguanas, hood lava lizards, blue-footed boobies, Nazca boobies, Darwin finches, yellow warblers, swallow-tailed gulls, hood mocking birds, red billed tropicbirds, Galápagos hawks and waved albatrosses with chicks.
The albatross is the largest bird in the island with 8-foot wingspan and weighing 3-4 kg; it is the only one of thirteen albatross species to occur entirely within the tropics. The dance is a wonderful display, it is complex and takes a long time to refine; we were lucky to watch a fraction of the dance. We were also very excited to watch those beautiful baby sea lions being fed by their mothers.
At noon we had an exquisite Ecuadorian lunch to recover our energy. In the afternoon we focused on water activities. We had many options: deep-water snorkeling around Turtle Rock, the glass bottom boat for those who wished to enjoy the underwater ecosystem without getting wet at all, and also opportunities to kayak. After this outing another fascinating day has come to an end.
Today was the first full day in the Galápagos Islands. We started our exploration in Punta Suarez at the western side of Española Island (Hood is the English name), the oldest island in the archipelago, about four million years old.
At 8:00 o’clock am, we disembarked on a small cement dock; during the hike we enjoyed close contact with many different species of birds, reptiles and mammals. There were sea lions, marine iguanas, hood lava lizards, blue-footed boobies, Nazca boobies, Darwin finches, yellow warblers, swallow-tailed gulls, hood mocking birds, red billed tropicbirds, Galápagos hawks and waved albatrosses with chicks.
The albatross is the largest bird in the island with 8-foot wingspan and weighing 3-4 kg; it is the only one of thirteen albatross species to occur entirely within the tropics. The dance is a wonderful display, it is complex and takes a long time to refine; we were lucky to watch a fraction of the dance. We were also very excited to watch those beautiful baby sea lions being fed by their mothers.
At noon we had an exquisite Ecuadorian lunch to recover our energy. In the afternoon we focused on water activities. We had many options: deep-water snorkeling around Turtle Rock, the glass bottom boat for those who wished to enjoy the underwater ecosystem without getting wet at all, and also opportunities to kayak. After this outing another fascinating day has come to an end.
