Galapagos Beluga
ITINERARY DAY BY DAY
8 days / 7 nights
Friday to Friday
Day 5
Punta Moreno / Elizabeth Bay (Isabela Island)
Cruise through Bolivar channel, possible to see whales or dolphins. Dry landing at Point Moreno (Isabela). Green sea turtles, oystercatchers, reef sharks & flamingos in salt water lagoons. Lunch.
At Elizabeth Bay enjoy a panga ride through the mangrove area to see the rays, turtles, sea lions, and, circling overhead, Galapagos hawks. A colony of penguins inhabit a rocky islet at the entrance to Elizabeth Bay.
Day 6
Urbina Bay (Isabela Island) / Punta Espinosa (Fernandina Island)
Urbina Bay is an easy wet landing on a gentle sloping beach. This area is very interesting in that it is a perfect example of the geological activity of the islands. In 1954 over 3 miles (5 kilometers) of the marine reef at the edge of the shore were uplifted by 13 feet (4 meters).
Fernandina is the youngest and most active volcano in the Galapagos with eruptions taking place every few years. The flat lava of Punta Espinosa offers a stark and barren landscape, but here flightless cormorants build their nests on the point, sea lions sprawl on the beach or play in the tide pools and marine iguanas dot the sand.
Day 7
James Bay (Santiago Island) / Bartolome Island
This island has several sites to visit at the western end of James Bay. Puerto Egas with its black sand beaches was the site of small salt mining industry in the 1960s and a hike inland to the salt crater is an excellent opportunity to sight land birds such as finches, doves, and hawks.
A walk down the rugged shoreline, especially at low tide, will turn up many marine species as iguanas basking on the rocks and sea lions lazing in the tide pools. At the end of the trail there is a series of grottoes or sea caves where fur seals and night herons are found resting on shady ledges. Just north of James Bay is Buccaneer Cove, a particularly scenic area of steep cliffs and dark beaches.
Bartolome is a small island that has beautiful white sand beaches, luxuriant green mangroves and a colony of penguins. Activities will include swimming and snorkeling and a climb to the summit of the island for one of the most breathtaking views in all the Galapagos. From the summit you will have the best view of the often-photographed Pinnacle Rock.
Day 8
Black Turtle Cove (Santa Cruz Island) / Baltra departure
Arrive at Black Turtle Cove in the north of Santa Cruz Island. It is a great location to observe mating turtles around this time of year. You saw large groups of resting white-tip reef sharks, schools of golden rays and spotted eagle rays, and a few juvenile scalloped hammerhead sharks and black-tip sharks. Check out and board a bus, drive to the Baltra airport for a return flight to the Ecuador mainland, stopping in both Guayaquil & Quito.