Isabela and Fernandina

Marine iguanas
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This morning we visited Isabela, the largest island in the Galapagos.  The western-most islands in the Galapagos are the youngest islands, as they are closest to the volcanic hot spot that formed the archipelago.  Isabela still has many active volcanoes and evidence of geologic activity.  The site we visited, Urvina Bay, is an area that was uplifted 10 meters from the sea in 1954.  It was weird to walk around an area that was all under the ocean less than 60 years ago!

I love Fernandina
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When we landed on the beach we were very careful to stay away from the ground where sea turtles lay their eggs - it was easy to tell as the sand was shaped into circular pits.  We skirted the beach and went on a walk through the trees.  On the back side of the beach, we saw a huge amount of crabs in the aftermath of a battle.  They fought to see who would mate, but then the winning male had to fight to get the shell off of the female so they could actually mate.  It was interesting but sort of icky to watch.

Fernandina is the best island in the Galapagos!

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We didn't actually see much wildlife on Isabela (a couple of iguanas and a tortoise), but the weather was very pleasant and I enjoyed looking at the little things, like big black fuzzy bees buzzing in the yellow-flowered trees.

After we were done with our walk we also had the opportunity to snorkel. Since this was my second time I felt more confident and went much further out away from the beach.  I tried to stay away from the rocky shoreline because I was afraid of getting swept into the rocks.  However, this means that I passed right by a sea turtle that was milling around on a rock underwater!  Luckily my fellow snorkeler came to get me and showed me exactly where the turtle was.  I was so excited.  I loved being so close to wild animals like that.

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Our second port of the day was Punta Espinosa, Fernandina.  What a breath-taking island!  Just riding in on the pangas was exciting. As we approached the rocky dry landing, we could see marine iguanas sprawled everywhere.  All we had to do was hop off the boat onto the ropey black rocks and we were literally face-to-face with countless iguanas!  This was the largest concentration of the marine iguanas that we saw on our trip.  We learned that the way they position themselves on the rocks to catch the sun depends on how much warmth they need.  Iguanas that just came from the water will stick close to the ground, to try to conserve body heat as they warm up.  Once they are warmer, they can raise themselves up a bit as they catch the sun.

Family meeting
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Iguanas are so fun to watch - so many iguanas, sitting motionless, all in very similar sun-worshipping poses.  It made me want to join them.  I also got a kick of how close together they all heap themselves - especially because they are territorial and will fight to defend their own small area.  We learned about the way marine iguanas get rid of the salt they ingest from all that salty ocean water - they blow it out their nose while sitting around on the rocks.  When explorers first saw this, they thought these little guys were like mini-dragons breathing smoke at them, and were very scared.  I thought that was so funny!

Isabela
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The area we landed in was so fun to walk around in because there are little tidal pools everywhere.  The ground is all black lava rock (you can still see the shapes of lava flow, plus cracks and fissures) and all over the place are little iguanas piled together, sea lions swimming and playing in the shallow pools, and sally lightfoot crabs skittering by.  This is a very wildlife-rich island.

The area we walked around in was very flat, so almost the entire time we could see and hear the waves crash against the shoreline and see the sunny strech of sparkling water.  I think that on some islands you forget that you are in the middle of a vast ocean, but never in the Galapagos.  Even from Fernandina, where we could see another island (Isabela) close by, I couldn't help but think about how immense the ocean is and how small and special these islands are.  It was like we were on an oasis for animals - a safehaven for these little guys!

One of my favorite moments of the trip was when our entire group sat down by a set of linked tidal pools and just watched a baby sea lion play in the water.  I didn't even bother trying to get photos then; all I wanted to do was watch and try to memorize the sensation of hot rock against my legs and the sound of the ocean crashing against the beach.  I really could have sat there all day.  Or week.  In fact, I would like to live on that island.  We saw a sea turtle just chilling on the beach, and a group of sea lions decided to cross the path right in the middle of our little tourist group.  It was such fun.

When we got back to our ship that evening, they had a barbecue for dinner for us!  It was fun to eat out on the deck.  We actually got to do this twice during our 7-night cruise.  These were the only times I was actually able to catch the sunset, as it usually came just after we got back on the ship but before dinner (hence, shower time).