Arrive to Baltra Island and transfer in.
This beautiful beach is located at north of Santa Cruz Island; the beach has total extension of 1Km. The site takes its name since Second War when the American army left two barges in the beach, the first colonizing people couldn’t pronounce that name correctly: barges, so they called Bachas.
Wet landing and hiking. Description of the place: all the road and the island is composed of lava flows that still they are virtually without eroding and they cover an extensive area, lava pohoehhoe or of cords, hornitos, mollugo, this plant grows in the lava. Lava Colonizers.
Dry landing, landing wet for the beach, activities to carry out in this island: walk, swimming, snorkeling, and photography. We will walk for a path to the top (114 m) pioneering plants that will observe in this place Tiquilia, Chamaesyce, Scalesia, the island is formed by cones, pipes of lava by where lava flow. Wet landing, path to the south beach through mangrove swamps and vegetation of dunes. North beach: Swimming and snorkeling will be the activities that are going to carry out. Since the top of the island Bartolome we will be able to observe the islands as Santiago, Rabida, Isabela. We can find penguins in the Rock Pinnacle.
Arrive to Puerto Ayora, after breakfast our first visit is Highlands of Santa Cruz, where we have a trekking and we will find the giant tortoises in their natural habitat, this is a natural spectacular. For this visit we recommend to use sport shoes, long pants, raincoat, hut and sun block. Back to Puerto Ayora.
After lunch, we will visit the Charles Darwin Station, we will take the bus that take us to the entrance of the center of breeding where we go to appreciate tortoises and land iguanas in captivity, this center is the main site of breeding of the islands. Animals that were in danger of extinction in the different islands are maintained in captivity and thanks at dedicated work of several institutions some species are saving, here was where the most famous tortoise “the Solitary George” the last survivor of the species of Pinta Island lived.
Wet landing, snorkeling and short trekking. This point is located at west of Floreana Island and it is famous to has a dark green beach due to the great quantity of olivine crystals. You can see many marine invertebrates, as well as also sea lions, sea iguanas, the frigates and pelicans.
Second visit: Devil ́s Crown: Activities in this place: panga ride and optional swimming. Panga ride around of a small island, this place was a satellite islet of the island Floreana. Here, we will find a group of rocks that seem to a crown, due to the constant erosion caused by the sea. It is one of the better places to do snorkeling (superficial diving) in the interior and around of the crown, excellent visibility to admire a great variety of fishes and sea animals.
Wet landing. Activities in this place: short walk, swimming, snorkeling, review of the mail. Description of the Place: it is situated to the north of Floreana Island. The Post Office Bay name is because of Capitan James Colnett installed an empty Ron barrel, to use it as post office for the whaling fleets that frequented for a long time the Galapagos Islands. You can send some postcards from here to your friends and relatives or interchange letter to deliver in their destiny.
Dry landing, activities that were carried out in this place: walking; recommendable clothes: sports shoes, hat, cap, solar lotion. There is not color more amazing and outstanding in this tropical desert island that the blue-foot boobies; they have an impressive form to “greeting” and it is a real spectacle to see the ritualistic parade of the entourage. In several islands we can admire this bird due to that nests and feed are located in diverse places close to the coast. In this place we will be able to observe the Albatross with a weight from three to four kilograms and an importance of more than two meters, this creature of aristocratic aspect is one of the largest birds of the islands. Around twelve thousand couples have their nests in the Española Island (some few in the Silver Island near of main land Ecuador). This specie is considered endemic from this island during our walking we will be able to observe these fantastic birds, we will be part of the beautiful and only landscapes that offers this island.
Important Note: Albatross will be not possible to see between January and March. Also we will observe colonies of marine iguanas, zayapas, mask boobies, finches, Española cucuves, and seagulls unique of the island. Our walking will be for lava rock path where we will be able to admire the hollow blowers. The vegetation of this island is of red mangrove.
Wet landing, activities for this visit: short walking, swimming, snorkeling, and observation of seals colony. The sea lion is one of the animals in Galapagos which gets the total attention of the visitors in the Galapagos: they are curious and playful, but at times aggressive; they are nice and loving, but also lazy. In Gardner Bay, we are going to find many of them relaxing in the beach enjoying of the sun. Snorkeling in the area where we will be able to swim with them, besides you observe these fascinating animals, we will swim with the sea turtles, diversity of tropical fish, marine iguanas etc. We will return to the ship, to sail toward the following island. Visit to: Gardner & Osborn Islets.
Dry landing. This center is location in the Main Port. After our breakfast, we will go toward our first visit: Interpretation Center of San Cristobal. The most modern and sophisticated architectural space destined for the natural interpretation of Galapagos, where you can know from the volcanic formation of the islands, the evolution of the species, passing for the history of the human settlements to come to understand to its complex systems and model of management.
Transfer out.
