Galapagos Polaris
ITINERARY DAY BY DAY
8 days / 7 nights
Saturday to Saturday
Day 1
Baltra Island arrival / Cerro Dragon (Santa Cruz Island)
Arrival on the island of Baltra, you'll immediately board the Polaris. After settling into your cabin, join us in the ship's lounge for a refreshing welcome drink and a general orientation about life aboard ship. During this time, your luggage will be delivered to your cabin.
Cerro Dragon, along the northwest coast of Isla Santa Cruz, contains two lagoons where flamingos and land iguanas can sometimes be seen. Vegetation in this area includes Palo Santo trees and Opuntia cacti.
Day 2
Española Island
One of the oldest of the islands, Hood is small and flat with no visible volcanic crater or vent. Punta Suarez is one of the most outstanding wildlife areas of the archipelago, with a long list of species found along its cliffs and sand or pebble beaches. In addition to five species of nesting seabirds there are the curious and bold Hood Island mockingbirds, Galapagos doves and Galapagos hawks. Several types of reptiles, including the brilliantly colored marine iguana and the oversized lava lizard, are unique to this island.
Gardner Bay is on the eastern shore and has a magnificent beach. This beach is frequented by a transient colony of sea lions, and is a major nesting site for marine turtles. Around the small islets nearby, snorkelers will find lots of fish and sometimes turtles and sharks. On a trail leading to the western tip of the island you'll pass the only nesting sites in the Galapagos of the waved albatross, huge birds with a 6-foot wingspan.
Day 3
Floreana Island
Floreana, one of the greenest islands in the archipelago. Ask your guide to tell you about its mysterious history laden with rumors of witches, murderous baronesses, blackmail and dubious disappearances. You first stop is Punta Cormorant, you will see flaming-pink flamingos, a sea turtle nesting area and a superb spot for watching sea birds and sea rays.
At La Corona del Diablo (the Devil's Crown), a sub-marine crater that offers some of the most spectacular snorkeling in the Galapagos. After lunch, sail on to Post Office Bay, where the island's original post office was established in 1793. Visitors drop off unstamped letters and postcards and pick-up whatever mail they can hand deliver themselves when they return home!
Day 4
Fernandina Island / Isabela Island
This morning, you will be up soon after daybreak to urge anyone interested to join us on deck as we navigate close to Volcan Ecuador, a spectacular shield volcano on Isabela Island, which is actually bisected by the line of the equator.
Wind and sea conditions permitting at Punta Vicente Roca, a panga ride (the local name for our Zodiacs) is a possibility right after breakfast. You may see Galapagos penguins here or the flightless cormorants as you explore the shoreline at the base of the steep cliffs of the volcano. You'll sail onward to Fernandina Island, another imposing volcano rising to nearly 5,000 feet. The volcano has a history of erupting every few years and is one of the most active volcanoes in the world.
In the afternoon, you land at Punta Espinosa; marine iguanas lie basking on the dark lava making for quite an unforgettable sight. Sea lions, penguins, herons and sea turtles are seen. Stark lava flows. The only flightless cormorants in the world. It's been a day of exotic sights on this speck of land in the middle of the Pacific, 600 miles from the nearest mainland. You talk about where you are and all you've seen so far over cocktails.