As we slept, the boat moved to a different destination, Sullivan Bay of San Salvador Island, and dropped anchor at about 5 a.m. The water wasn’t always smooth, and it was a rough night for many on board.
There was an optional “pre-breakfast activity” at 6 a.m., just before dawn. Mary opted out, but I went down to the main deck and joined Alejandra, our tour leader, the single man in our group, and the couple from Illinois, Tom and Joan, the physicians.
We boarded the zodiac and were taken the short distance to shore for a “dry landing,” meaning that the zodiac could drive up to the rocks and allow us to step out without setting foot in the water. This was successful, but the sea mist made the rock wet and slippery near the shore, and we had to be quite careful until we got a dozen or so yards inland.
The rock here is a very young lava flow, documented as being only about 200 years old. As the lava came up from the volcanic vent, the top that was exposed to air cooled more quickly than that underneath, causing odd, rope-like patterns in the crust.
Also formed by this process were myriad bubbles and hollow areas beneath the crust. As the crust has cracked and fractured here and there (mostly due to iron veins that oxidized) the crust has broken, separated, and in some places collapsed.
The black lava flow supports only a few lichens and a scattering of tiny tufts of grass, springing up in the cracks. As a consequence, there is very little in the way of wildlife here on this barren rock — some tiny lizards, a species of orange grasshoppers, and near the sea, a few small crabs. Otherwise, it’s a perfect moonscape.
Despite the rough terrain, we moved pretty quickly. Alejandra said that she had never gotten so far down the trail with any previous group. We wound up making a complete loop, whereas most go only a ways, then turn back. By doing the full loop, we got into areas new to her, and at one point, even she had to open her backpack, get her camera, and take a couple photos.
The zodiac picked us up on the same rock, and we were back on the boat just in time for breakfast, again with dry feet.
Following the meal, we all changed into swimsuits and returned to the main deck for a briefing session in the library/lounge. After that instruction, it was time to get into our wetsuits and prepare for our first snorkeling experience.
The zodiac took us back to the same island, but this time we avoided the rocks and made a wet landing at a sand beach. Here, Alejandra provided more instruction, helping everyone get comfortable with their mask, snorkel, and fins.
Some of the experienced snorkelers were able to take off and go, and I could have joined them. But Mary has only had a couple of previous snorkeling experiences, and these were not necessarily positive. This time, she came armed with a mask with corrective lenses that allow her to actually see something. So I stayed with her as she got acclimated, until we could go out together.
The number and variety of fish just in this small area was rather astounding — definitely the best snorkeling experience I’ve ever had. We had been told by Alejandra that this area was a good place to see rays, but we didn’t spot any (we later saw some from the boat that jumped into the air). It was a fascinating and most enjoyable experience, and we stayed out for nearly an hour before the zodiac picked us up out of the water and took us back to the boat.
The boat set out for a 2-hour navigation around the island to a different bay, where a second snorkeling session was planned for after lunch. However, the captain received a “mayday” call on the radio from a day-cruise boat on fire. We were one of the closest vessels, so he turned the boat around and headed toward the emergency.
The thick, black smoke plume was visible from many miles away, and as we drew nearer, the huge orange flames were clearly visible on the stern and central superstructure of the boat.
The passengers had been transferred off the boat by another day cruise boat. A couple of small speedboats had arrived ahead of us, and had picked the last couple of crew members out of the water.
Other boats arrived and sent zodiacs with gas-powered pumps aboard to suck up sea water and spray onto the flames, but the bigger boats stayed back. Our crew broke out fire hoses and our captain maneuvered close to the fire. But he couldn’t get close enough for the water to reach the flames.
The hose from our boat was dropped to a zodiac from a different boat (possibly the boat that was one fire?) that was there, but had no water pump aboard. While our boat pumped the water, that zodiac took the end of the hose closer and helped in the effort as our crew watched.
Soon there were four zodiacs with hoses directing water onto the flames. The black smoke turned to gray and white, probably as the diesel fuel burned away and left only the structure of the boat itself to burn.
From the first call for help to the last effort, we watched the crews for about 2 hours, from roughly 11 a.m. until just after 1 p.m., but they never could get to the fire in the lower decks.
Amazingly, once the excitement was over, we found lunch waiting for us on the main deck. Of course, we were not in position for the afternoon snorkeling, so we had some siesta time after lunch as the boat navigated to Rabida Island for our next adventure.
Once again we collected our wetsuits, masks, fins, and snorkels on the main deck, and once prepared, boarded the zodiac. On the way, we spotted a fin on the surface of the water. Some immediately thought, “shark!” Others hoped, “dolphin!” It turned out to be (at least according to Alejandra) a giant, deep water sunfish — very rare to see in these shallow waters.
This time, our snorkeling location was quite a bit farther from the boat. Alejandra invited any who were inclined to join her as she scouted the location, looking primarily for rays. Only Joan, the doctor from Peoria joined her, while the rest of us waited on the zodiac. They found none.
We collected the two swimmers and the zodiac moved on to a different location, where we all entered the water. We saw swarms of fish, including some species that we had not seen in the morning. We also got very close to a few brown pelicans that were fishing in the area. They stood on rocks and watched us swim within four or five feet of them.
There were many sea lions on the beach, including young pups that wanted to play with us, and juveniles in the water, playing with one another. On our walk, we saw several “lava lizards,” and many birds. These included a Galapagos Dove, plus a great many Blue-Footed Boobies, and brown Pelicans who put on quite a show diving for their evening meal. The pelicans sort of splash into the water for their catch, but the Boobies dive straight down like Olympic divers from a high board, making almost no splash at all.
The zodiac retrieved us from the beach, and we got another show from the Boobies on the way back to the boat. Before dinner, our evening briefing told us what to expect for tomorrow — another full day.
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