Day 8 - Friday, March 17

Santiago and Bartholome

This morning, we visited Santiago (James Island). This is a large, somewhat barren island with a mostly volcanic landscape. The vegetation has been severely altered by the feral goat population. We heard that visiting yachts sometimes sail away with a ‘side of goat,’ and we wondered if our dinner that evening might be ‘chivo de Santiago’ – goat from James Island.

We had a wet landing on a beautiful black sand beach at Puerto Egas, on the west side of the island.

Sea lions greeted us as we deposited our towels and snorkeling gear on the beach.

This was the site of a small salt mining industry in the l960s, and we saw signs of former human and goat inhabitants.

We hiked across the island, observing unusual plants - such as these tree cactus -

and getting a good look at two very different ground finches, as well as a warbler finch and a yellow warbler...

Our destination was the Fur Seal Grotto, where we got a look at the Galapagos fur seals in a quiet cave cut into the lava cliffs.

The Galapagos fur seals are endemic to the islands and much less commonly seen than the sea lions, whom they resemble at first glance. A closer look reveals that they are smaller and have a broader, shorter head, resembling that of a bear.

Because of their thick fur, these animals like to hide out in cool caves during the heat of the day and hunt for food at night. The fur seal’s dense and luxuriant coat attracted the attention of sealers who nearly wiped out the entire population in the 1800’s. Today the fur seals are fully protected and have completely recovered; currently there are almost as many fur seals as sea lions, but the fur seals’ secretive habits ensure that they are rarely seen by visitors.

After visiting the grotto, we walked among the tide pools along the coast and saw Sally Lightfoot crabs and marine iguanas.

We saw more iguanas in other locations, but these guys did love to pose for pictures, and we tourists did try to accommodate.

Back at the beach, the sea lions were waiting for us.

Fran joined the snorkeling group, while Margaret and others waded in the clear warm water. We saw white-tipped reef sharks, sea urchins, king angelfish, a brilliant blue parrotfish, a Pacific leopard flounder, yellow-bellied triggerfish, hieroglyphic hawkfish, and a huge school of Galapagos mullet. An underwater wonderland!

During lunch, we sailed across Sullivan Bay to Bartolome (Bartholomew Island), where we spent the afternoon. Bartolome is a small island located off the eastern shore of Santiago. Most likely the first of the islands to rise from the sea, Bartolome is a small island with beautiful white sand beaches. The island’s best-known feature is Pinnacle Rock, which is a tuff cone – a vertical rock formation of hardened volcanic ash.

This afternoon, most of our fellow travelers went on a hike to the summit of the once-active volcano – it was hot and tiring, but they were rewarded with a panoramic view of Pinnacle Rock and beyond.

We joined four others in the panga with our favorite driver, Edison, in search of more penguins.

We were well rewarded – we saw lots of penguins (or penguinos)...

... and more blue-footed boobies, pelicans, oystercatchers, and sea lions.

We also saw a green sea turtle nesting area – a large beach with indentations and tracks up and down the sand.

The hikers and the boaters met on the beach near the base of Pinnacle Rock, for swimming and snorkeling. We also walked along the beach that was littered with napping sea lions and mothers feeding babies.

We both went snorkeling here – Margaret for a short period in shallow water. Fran went into deeper water and saw blue-chin parrotfish, white-banded angelfish, bicolor parrotfish, azure parrotfish and Moorish idols. It was another long day, filled with unforgettable sights and sounds....