Punta Espinosa & Tagus Cove

Fernandina is the youngest island in Galapagos. Access to this area is extremely restricted by the Galapagos National Park and we were one of those very lucky visitors because of itinerary that were able to visit this area.Crossing the Bolivar Channel that divides Isabela and Fernandina Islands is the land of Espinosa Point. As we departed the Catamaran heading to Espinosa we passed by a few penguins on rocks,  we arrived on our panga to a dock and immediately walked  past a colony of marine iguanas and a group of sea lions , this is the most mesmerizing example of inter species coexistence.You better watch your step, since everywhere you turn there are groups of animals casually waddling or swimming or, in the case of the enormous colony of marine iguanas, just hanging around spraying salt water out of their noses from their morning swim. These  much photographed animals behave as if they haven't a care in the world.  These iguanas are so  ugly but somehow endearing at the same time. It’s so  fascinating to sit within reach of these animals and just be part of their environment.

Below are the Penguins on Rocks and a Yellow Wobbler.

Punta Espinosa is not to be missed if you are visiting the Galapagos Islands, these are just  some of the average pictures, the Galapagos can make an ameture look like a professional wildlife photographer.  Here are a few more….


I can just post and post photos from this area but I will continue with the journey. We left Espinosa and the Catamaran had a nice cruise to Tagus cove, on the way there we saw so much wildlife in the water but the best was the very large Whale Shark that came right to my balcony and turned himself upside down and just swam away gently. As I snapped photos of it I noticed my camera was not doing anything and then figured out my battery was charging. Blah!!! I guess you cant get everything plus I just sat back and enjoyed the moment since sometimes one gets so tied up in getting that perfect shot!
We later arrived at Tagus Cove which is located across from Fernandina Island, near the Bolivar Channel dividing the two islands. This spot has been frequented by ships since the 1800s, using the area as an anchorage site and had maritime graffiti all over the cliff walls that was placed there by pirates and whalers from the 1890’s,I called it Ghettolopogus!! .

We climbed 160 steps uphill that led to  trails winding by Lake Darwin up to a ridge display wonderful views of the lake and the Cormorant Catamaran anchored in the cove.  Darwin Lake is located in the middle of a tuff cone at the end of the trail the views were of vast lava fields of adjacent Darwin Volcano.Today was hot and this hiked I could have passed on but it was still worth the effort.
As we all arrived to the boat our guide thought since we were so hot from the hike we all looked like we were ready for a sea dip and off we went on the dingy to the most exhilarating snorkel yet! The water here felt a little cold than the last location, right before we jumped in Mike’s wetsuit zipper broke, I sat on the dingy so anxious to get in because there were so many penguins and sea lions on the cliffs I knew this was going to be good! I looked at him and said just do it you will acclimate , poor guy I know he froze but what was to come was worth it! Our guide told us to be careful because there was a big alpha male sea lion hanging out and she said an attacked from an alph or any sea lion  would be worse than any shark we would ever encounter. This said it makes you gain serious respect quick, though that thought entered my mind the other times we played with the sea lions , those were not as big as this guy! He almost looked like a walrus. If you are attacked out where we were you are done! Long way away from any hospital or civilization! Oh heck you only live once  to the water we went, part of the group was dropped off in another location ahead and Mike and I were a little bit away but we were trying to catch up with the rest of our group and then of course guess what happens….. I hear a large splash and I looked around and underneath me was that big alpha male just staring at me! Oh course this was the only day I did not have my underwater camera, we were just supposed to be taking a dip! But on this day we had the most magnificent and fascinating in the ocean with mother nature! Wow Wow Wow!!!!!!! So back to the alpha, he swam underneath me and turned up to look at me and I just stayed still and we looked into each others eyes and boy did he have BIG dark eyes, I guess we communicated and he knew I was not a threat but it sure was freaky!Then it was splash splash splash and there were about 10 more! The water here was so clear and so beautiful, the bottom of the ocean was black fine lava rock, looked almost fake like we were  swimming in a fish tank it was so perfect! One young sea lion went to the bottom and picked up seaweed and like if he was fetching it for me to play ! My smile was so big I have never felt so alive and at peace with just everything , I was like man this is amazing!!! And it was they were just all over us and I was loving it! Below is a picture of me coming up to see them around us, you can spot one right next to me in the water! By the way they are very fast.
below you can see the penguins on the cliff walls….

The action continued…….. we all arrived back to the boat and we had a ceremony to attend, on of our fellow passengers Teddy from the UK had a surprise for his wife, he planned to renew their wedding vows on the Catamaran so it was celebration time this evening. The crew did such a fabulous job , they made Teddy and Carol a wedding cake and decorated the top deck of the Catamaran for the event! We all joined and had cocktails then had a wonderful dinner in our dining room and went back up to the top deck for some dancing! Oh what a night.


Until tomorrow.

Mangle Point and Urbina Bay

Mangle Point has had no foreign species that  have ever invaded Fernandina Island and therefore it is one of the world's most pristine island ecosystems. The volcano “La Cumbre” dominates the landscape with lava fields reaching the ocean. This area as our guide Paulina told us had not been visited in 12 years and has just recently been reopened for visitors.This was one of the main reasons I chose this itinerary for the Galapagos, though I was not sure about some of the stops because there was not much info about them on the web I took a chance , it was well worth it. Because the area had not been well visited we ran into some local fishermen that were in the area that had traveled at least 60 miles to come to this area to fish and it provided safe harbor for them to spend the night.The mangrove areas were pristine! We entered a through a very rocky bottom that showed how experience our panga guide was, he basically turned the boat backwards so that he can view the bottom and not hit any rocks he is cleaver. As we entered we were welcomed by a few  sea lions and quickly saw like 20 spotted sea rays, sting rays , flightless cormorants. But as we got more into the mangrove we found death , the bill of a swordfish and other carcasses of fish just laying on the bottom which was ok as these local have the right to fish in their area I just did not want to see it. I had been around so much life and friendly animals I did not want to see all of that death plus it reeked!
We returned back to the boat after our dingy exploration and wet suits it was , back in that cold water. Brrrrr. We swam along the  rocky coast and along the way some marine iguanas just hanging out on the rocks and many many tropical fish.But the best was the large turtle that swam so peacefully with me , below is a video of the turtle.

Turtle at Mangle Point

But who would of thought after all that we just saw that was so amazing it would get better. I swan around the corner of the jetty and found a group of sea lions that thought I was their very best friend, I tell you I have so fallen in love with these animals they are fascinating and amazing, as I write I wish I could just snap my finger and be there right now swimming with them. Check out this video I will post of them there is one that just stares at me and just wants to play, then they all jump in and bombs away playtime! What a treat to be in the water with these wild animals, this is not swim with the sea lions at a park it is in their own environment in the wild, just amazing!

playing with the sea lions at mangle point

Later on that afternoon we went for a hike at Urbina Bay which presents some fascinating geological formations. In 1954, characterized by the resulting terrestrial coral reef , geology has given a touch of magic to this place over time. Once upon a time was the bottom of the ocean I am talking about an uplifted area created by the movement of tectonic plates. A big area of the coast of Urbina Bay was uplifted  bringing upwards some giant brain coral and other marine life that composes the sedimentary rock on land.  As we hiked in the gloomy rain  we began to look for land iguanas in the area because this is the Island that has the larger spices though there were not as many as we thought we would see because I think they were all holding up in their land holes staying as warm as they could and keeping from the rain. We did come across a few and they were very prehistoric looking land iguanas.



 Off to Punta Espinosa & Tagus Cove tomorrow.

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