We are coming to the end of our week around the islands. Today is our last full day and we are visiting San Cristobal, one of the oldest islands. Its coast is very unique and has many tuff cones, all of them lined up one after another, signifying that at one point there was a lot of volcanic activity happening in this area.
Punta Pitt is the northwestern most point of this island and is our morning site. The nearest land mass to the east is the Ecuadorian mainland—it faces the open ocean, and is a feeding ground for red-footed boobies.
After a wet landing the hike began. We walked through a canyon leading us to a climb over an elevation of approximately 300 feet, a landscape that brings everyone to thoughts of landscapes on other planets. The trail then turns flat, leading us to the edge of the point where the red-footed boobies can be seen in their nests, or flying back and forth showing off their popular red feet.
Meanwhile instead of the climb some members of the group decided to take a Zodiac ride, just following the coastline. We had a low tide, so more land and more colors were exposed, and blending with it all were sea lions along the water’s edge and, right above them, the red-footed boobies and frigate birds—busy, flying, landing, nesting, feeding.
At lunch we all shared our morning experiences as the ship made its way to Leon Dormido, or “Kicker Rock.” This is a beautiful land formation sculpted by the ocean and it’s our next place for a visit and a snorkel. Around three o’clock in the afternoon, we finally disembarked into Zodiacs, just to get into the water around the rock. This our last visit and our last snorkel, one never knows what will be seen!
We got into the water, which was a bit murky, and went through a canal into deeper water. Once there we could not see the bottom, but we saw many sharks and turtles, different varieties of fish, and had a wonderful experience.
Back aboard the ship, we got ready for the next activity, a simple ride around Kicker Rock. With a cocktail in our hands, and a beautiful sunset with a breeching whale in front of us, we wondered—what else could we ask for?
