Southern Isabela
Early in the morning we set sail for Urvina Bay. This unique place was uplifted during a seismic event in 1954. We began by exploring the coastal area. There we encountered large heads of white stony corals that where once there was ocean but now have trees and bushes all around them.
All the vegetation here grows on top of the coral heads. We saw a large amount of fossils spread along the trail. There were also some very colorful male Galápagos land iguanas guarding their territories and showing off their bright yellow skin to females. It seems we are approaching their breeding season, as a few females land iguanas were spotted checking out some males. One of the surprises was finding a couple of young Galápagos giant tortoises well hidden in the bushes looking for shade.
After a great sunny warm morning we jumped in the water for a refreshing dip, and nearby there were a couple of green sea turtles and a flightless cormorant fishing in the same area.
We left Urvina Bay and headed further south to Punta Moreno, one of the most exceptional places in Galápagos. This place looks like another planet with extraordinarily well preserved lava covering the ground. The colors are strikingly red and in the middle of this vast lava flow we encountered some brackish water ponds where we saw some greater flamingoes. During our walk we also witnessed frigate birds bathing in the pond. There must have been at least 60 of these birds barely touching the surface of the water with their bellies and wings raised just enough to remove the salt off their feathers.
The sunset this afternoon was very colorful and a perfect end to our day in southern Isabela.
