Galapagos is full of surprises. When you think you've seen it all, there is always something new. Today is the last day of our journey and we began the morning with an early hike to the summit (114 m) of Bartolome. Since this is a young island, Bartolome has a great number of almost intact secondary volcanic cones. As we ascended to its peak we encountered pioneer plants such as carpetweed (Tequilia nesioticus).
We had breakfast on the Polaris' teak deck and enjoyed the morning's breeze caressing our skin. Then off we went at 9:00 a.m., ready to experience a festival of new adventures; we snorkeled with fish AND penguins, went for glass-bottom boat outings and/or took a walk along an extremely pretty, golden-sand beach. When compared with the early walk to the islet's summit, this stroll gave us a whole different feeling for Bartolome. People are surprised at how varied this tiny island is; Bartolome is only 1.2 square kilometers.
Today's picture shows the beautiful sand dunes behind the landing beach. Dunes are a result of waves and wind washing and blowing from the direction of the prevailing winds. Seeds of pioneer plants such as the beach morning glory (Ipomoea pes-caprae), red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle), sea purslane (Sesuvium edmostonei) and spine shrub (Scutia pauciflora) wash up on the shore. The seeds germinate and produce mature plants that then reproduce and form clumps of stalks. As blowing sand accumulates some plants are buried. But pioneer plants have the ability to grow upward even after they are covered. The sand catching ability of these plants is necessary to maintain a dune. In time, hillocks are formed and a sand dune is born. Dunes that are facing the sea are primary dunes.
What a gorgeous dune we visited today!
