Bartolome Island
We were up with the sun today – and rising early was no easy task after staying up to enjoy folkloric music and dancing last night! But those of us who took the pre-breakfast outing did not regret getting up early this morning. A golden light on red cinder cones and black, barren lava flows delighted the photographers among us. We climbed over 370 wooden steps and left the Polaris far behind in the azure sea (see photo). Indeed the view from the top of Bartolome Islet was worth every breath that it took to make the climb.
After a hurried breakfast, six of our guests boarded a small yacht and headed off for two morning dives. They returned just before lunch with smiles on their faces and answered my questions about the dive with: “awesome!” They had seen the “usual” which means schooling fish, sea turtles and rays. No sharks today, but on the other two dives they had seen both white-tipped reef sharks and hammerheads.
The rest of us divided our time and energy between beach walks, glass bottom boat outings and snorkeling. The experiences at the golden beach of Bartolome were also described by the “awesome” expression. Our guests snorkeled with penguins, sea lions and many colorful fishes. Some of us even saw sharks from the beach.
My only concern, as Expedition Leader, is what can we do to impress these travelers for the rest of the week? We have almost seen it all and the trip is only half over. Just kidding, of course – I have much excitement up my sleeve still: flightless cormorants, red-footed boobies, nesting frigates…in these “Islas Encantadas” every single day is as good as – yet very different from – the last.
We were up with the sun today – and rising early was no easy task after staying up to enjoy folkloric music and dancing last night! But those of us who took the pre-breakfast outing did not regret getting up early this morning. A golden light on red cinder cones and black, barren lava flows delighted the photographers among us. We climbed over 370 wooden steps and left the Polaris far behind in the azure sea (see photo). Indeed the view from the top of Bartolome Islet was worth every breath that it took to make the climb.
After a hurried breakfast, six of our guests boarded a small yacht and headed off for two morning dives. They returned just before lunch with smiles on their faces and answered my questions about the dive with: “awesome!” They had seen the “usual” which means schooling fish, sea turtles and rays. No sharks today, but on the other two dives they had seen both white-tipped reef sharks and hammerheads.
The rest of us divided our time and energy between beach walks, glass bottom boat outings and snorkeling. The experiences at the golden beach of Bartolome were also described by the “awesome” expression. Our guests snorkeled with penguins, sea lions and many colorful fishes. Some of us even saw sharks from the beach.
My only concern, as Expedition Leader, is what can we do to impress these travelers for the rest of the week? We have almost seen it all and the trip is only half over. Just kidding, of course – I have much excitement up my sleeve still: flightless cormorants, red-footed boobies, nesting frigates…in these “Islas Encantadas” every single day is as good as – yet very different from – the last.
