Santiago and Bartolomé

We slept very well and didn’t even wake up to hear the anchor drop. I didn’t wake up until about five after six, and Mary didn’t awaken until I made too much noise. We found ourselves already anchored near the island of Santiago. We made a wet landing shortly after breakfast.

“New” black volcanic basalt lies next to much older sedimentary layers of compressed volcanic ash along this beach. A baby sea lion was crying for its mother, and the mother was answering with her own calls so that the two could find one another. 

Sea iguanas left lines in the sand with their dragging tails. And blue-footed boobies rested on rocks just off the shore. 

We also spotted several “ghost crabs,” so called because they are white, and because they so quickly disappear into crevices and sand holes as anyone approaches.

Our hike took us along the black basalt where we eventually spotted a Galapagos fur seal, almost perfectly camouflaged against the rock. Check off one more new species sighted! There were a couple new birds to add to the list, as well.

This area has several natural arches or bridges, including some famous ones that have recently collapsed — as they all eventually do.

Dominating the horizon inland is “Pan de Azucar” or Sugarloaf, a volcano that looks the part.

The morning sun became very hot. So we were glad to get our feet a little wet getting back onto the zodiac to return to the boat. As soon as we were aboard, the engines started and we were on our way to Bartolomé island.

After a bit of a break to clean up, Alejandra gave us a bit of a history presentation in the briefing room. It was quite interesting to learn that the first record of these islands dates all the way back to 1535, when a Panamanian priest on his way to Ecuador got lost and stumbled on them by accident. Attempts to commercialize the islands over the centuries have failed, primarily due to the lack of fresh water here.

Lunch today was served outdoors, up on the sun deck, just for a change. Frigate birds were circling the boat, and perching anywhere they could catch a ride — including the railing near where we were eating, on the roof above our heads, and on the rigging just outside our cabin.

Following lunch and a bit of siesta, we got ready to go snorkeling. There was quite a bit of wave action near the rocky cliffs of Bartolomé, and at one point we sort of got banged into the rocks. Visibility was OK, but the waves did stir up some sediment and created some foam.

We spotted penguins shooting under us, moving fast as torpedoes, as always. A large bull sea lion swam under us, as well, taking his time. Mary got out after a bit, but I continued and got the chance to swim in formation with a smaller (perhaps 2 foot diameter) green sea turtle, who seemed unperturbed to have the company.

At 4 p.m., six of the nine members of the group boarded the zodiac once again to head back to Bartolomé for a hike to the summit of the extinct volcano. 

There were almost 400 wooden steps to climb, but the view was spectacular. A small, automated, solar-powered light house sits at the top.

On the way back, the zodiac took us back to the area where we had snorkeled earlier, so that we could photograph the area. iPhones do not serve well as underwater cameras, so it was good to capture the surface, at least. (All of the underwater videos here were shot by our tour guide, Alejandra, on her GoPro)

The area included a huge rock known as the Bartolomé Pinnacle.

A family of penguins and a couple of sea lions — possibly some of the same individuals we had seen in the water earlier — posed for us on the rocks.

Our briefing before dinner included a video on all of the plastic pollution that washes up on these islands daily, some from as far away as China. It was rather depressing to see what we are doing to the planet — even to places as remote and as protected as this.

At dinner, having three large meals each day began to catch up with us. The meal was good, just too much to eat.

Alejandra was showing a movie in the briefing room after dinner, but we knew that we wouldn’t be able to stay awake for it, and decided to skip it.