Santiago Island
This morning we landed at Espumilla Beach on the western side of Santiago Island. What a surprise at the time of landing! The sea was calm, and on the beach were a number of ghost crabs, sea turtle tracks and a pair of turtles mating close to the shore.
After landing we headed to the mangrove forest where the Pacific green sea turtles nest and we saw with our own eyes how busy the place can be during breeding season. Here at Espumilla Beach we had a walk in the holly stick forest. These trees are considered the tallest holly stick trees in the Galápagos, and because we are here during the rainy season the forest is green and full of land birds—and the surprise here was a pair of Galápagos hawks!
Later in the morning we visited Buccaneer Cove. Here we had a number of activities such as kayaking, admiring the majestic landscape, glass-bottom boat outings and snorkeling. During the snorkeling outing we spotted lots of tropical fish, sharks, sting rays and spotted eagle rays.
In the afternoon we explored Puerto Egas. This place is known as one of the best shoreline areas for bird watching and today indeed it was! We spotted several types of migrant birds that make the Galápagos shores their home: oystercatchers, whimbrels, ruddy turnstones and many others were foraging along the shore.
The landscape with the view of the volcanoes of Isabela in the distance is superb. This landscape is dotted with sea lions, marine iguanas and some Galápagos fur seals.
Just another day in paradise!
