April 21, 2023
The morning started with everyone laughing at Bill, who had somehow misheard the breakfast time and showed up an hour early. While we were waiting for breakfast to actually be ready, I walked up to the top deck to see the beautiful island of Bartolomé and Pinnacle Rock staring back at me in the morning light.
Our second full day in the Galápagos was spent on Santiago (St. James) and Bartolomé Islands.
Santiago felt completely like we were walking on the moon. Black lava fields stretched in every direction with very little vegetation breaking things up. We spent the morning hiking across the lava fields, taking photos, and stopping at lava tunnels and formations along the way. At one point, I climbed down into a lava hole but thankfully, Bill and Paul managed to dramatic rescue.
Later we headed down to Santiago Beach for a swim and our first snorkeling of the trip. A pelican floated nearby while we were in the water, and below the surface the water was filled with beautiful fish. We snorkeled out past one of the points into some deeper waters and saw a few penguins swimming with us.
After our swim, we got back on our panga and moved to another location near the base of Pinnacle Rock for more snorkeling. The water was a lot colder, waves crashed against the rocks and the water was a lot deeper. Penguins moved underwater below us, sea lions swam nearby, schools of fish moved through the darker blue water, and starfish covered sections of the rocks below. We also had our first sightings of the Blue Footed Boobies resting on a rock.
That afternoon we continued on to Bartolomé Island in the Sullivan Bay. We were greeted by a penguin and a sea lion waiting near the landing area like some sort of welcome committee. We climbed to the top of the volcanic rock to the lighthouse with Pinnacle Rock visible below us along the shoreline. The hike to the top involved 372 wooden steps surrounded by lava rock, cactus, and views across the islands in every direction. Along the way, Fernanda explained how surprisingly light the lava rocks were because of the air trapped inside them. Terry picked up a large one and held it over her head while Steve immediately started moon-walking around us.
On our way back down, we stopped to look down at the underwater volcanic cone.
The seas were rough most of the day and everyone felt it by that point in the trip. During one rain delay, a young sea lion climbed onto the panga and took a nap while we waited things out.
