Espanola Island
After a nice soothing navigation, we dropped anchor in one of the best examples of conservation in the Galápagos, Hood Island. This island lies in the south east part of the Galápagos and is the oldest of all of them. We were all eager to go onto the island but really we had not idea what to expect! From afar we could observe little black rocks moving, animals gliding in the air and of course mighty waves striking the coast but little did we know of what awaited us on its shores.
The first part of the morning was spent walking among an explosion of wildlife, all of our guests tried earnestly to stay focused on one animal only to realize that there were many more in back of them and in front and in every possible direction! The island was flooded with sea lions, marine iguanas, lava lizards and all sorts of birds gliding barely above our heads. It was amazing to see animals in their natural wild state, undisturbed and careless of our presence. As we walked away from the coast we could see lizards jumping from one rock to the other and iguanas staring at us in almost an amusing way, as if we were there for the mere reason of entertainment! This morning on Hood was one that we will never forget, but it was not complete until we were able to gaze at the magnificent waved albatrosses that were nesting on every available spot on the island.
After all this exercise and walk, we returned to Polaris to eat our typical Ecuadorian lunch and after a short siesta we were once again ready to go and discover the wilderness of Gardner bay, another breath-taking site on this amazing island.
The whole afternoon was devoted to aquatic activities; such as snorkelling, swimming, glass bottom boating and kayaking. All in all, we had an astounding beginning to an unforgettable journey.
After a nice soothing navigation, we dropped anchor in one of the best examples of conservation in the Galápagos, Hood Island. This island lies in the south east part of the Galápagos and is the oldest of all of them. We were all eager to go onto the island but really we had not idea what to expect! From afar we could observe little black rocks moving, animals gliding in the air and of course mighty waves striking the coast but little did we know of what awaited us on its shores.
The first part of the morning was spent walking among an explosion of wildlife, all of our guests tried earnestly to stay focused on one animal only to realize that there were many more in back of them and in front and in every possible direction! The island was flooded with sea lions, marine iguanas, lava lizards and all sorts of birds gliding barely above our heads. It was amazing to see animals in their natural wild state, undisturbed and careless of our presence. As we walked away from the coast we could see lizards jumping from one rock to the other and iguanas staring at us in almost an amusing way, as if we were there for the mere reason of entertainment! This morning on Hood was one that we will never forget, but it was not complete until we were able to gaze at the magnificent waved albatrosses that were nesting on every available spot on the island.
After all this exercise and walk, we returned to Polaris to eat our typical Ecuadorian lunch and after a short siesta we were once again ready to go and discover the wilderness of Gardner bay, another breath-taking site on this amazing island.
The whole afternoon was devoted to aquatic activities; such as snorkelling, swimming, glass bottom boating and kayaking. All in all, we had an astounding beginning to an unforgettable journey.
