Isabela (Vicente Roca point) and Fernandina Islands
Early in the morning we sailed towards Vicente Roca Point, and everyone on board was happy to cross Equator. Once in Vicente Roca Point we organized a Zodiac cruise and some deep water snorkeling. The western side of the archipelago, apart from its amazing geology, showed us two endemic flightless bird species: the Galápagos penguin and the flightless cormorant; plus, the two endemic marine mammal species: the Galápagos sea lions and the Galápagos fur sea lions. During snorkeling the highlight for many was to swim very close to green sea turtles – there were at least thirty surrounding us!
In the afternoon we went for a hike on Fernandina Island and walked among marine iguanas. They all were very active since we happened to be there during the beginning of the breeding season. We saw a couple of males that were fighting over territory. The landscape and the fauna in Fernandina makes it one of the jewels in the crown of the Galápagos Islands. Walking along the trail we also came across baby sea lions nursing and flightless cormorants with chicks.
We stayed to watch the sunset from the island and returned to National Geographic Islander with a lot of memories.
