Galapagos Islands
Sea Lions
San Cristobal also known as Chatham is the fifth largest island in the archipielago and has the second largest population. The provincial capital Puerto Baquerizo Moreno , is found on the southwest point of the island. There is little tourist activity although that might change because of the recent introduction of flights from the mainland. There is a number of visitor sites on San Cristobal but these are not frequently visited by the boat companies. A nice place to visit is Cerro de las Tijeritas (Frigate bird Hill). This can be done by foot without a guide. The Cerro de las Tijeritas lies about 1,5 km southeast of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno and offers a nice view on the bay and the town below. Further east lies the Cerro San Joaquin, the highest point of San Cristobal at 896 meters. El Junco lagoon , a freshwater lake at about 700 meters above sea level is one of the few freshwater bodies in the Galapagos and can be found east of Cerro San Joaquin. Here you can see white-cheeked pintailes and comon gallinules, and observe the typical highland Miconia vegetation and the endemic tree ferns. About an hour by boat northeast of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno one finds the Isla Lobos a tiny island that harbours a large colony of Sea Lions and Blue Footed Boobies. There is also a 300 meter trail where lava lizards can be seen About a two hours boatride northeast of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, is another small rocky island called Leon Dormido or sleeping lion due to its resemblance. Leon Dormido is also called Kicker Rock.
Blue Heron
Española is the most southern and remote island of the archipelago. The island is well worth visiting, especially from late March to December, as it is one of the best places to view the waved albatross, one of the most spectacular seabirds in the Galapagos. Punta Suarez is one of the best visitor sites on the island, here you can follow a trail which will lead you past colonies of masked and blue footed boobies and marine iguanas before arriving at the main attraction, the waved albatross colony. Gardner Bay, on the east end of the island, has a beautiful white sand beach where the swimming and you will be accompanied by a colony of sea lions
Floreana is the island of the Galapagos that has the longest and most intriguing history. Among others it was the first island of the archipelago that was inhabited (in 1807). But the island has a lot more to offer than just history. Inland from the village Puerto Velasco Ibarra there is the vistor site of Asilo de la Paz where you can find the endemic medium three finch which can only be found on Floreana. On the north coast of Floreana there are three visitor sites. One of them is Post Office Bay. The bay is called like this because whalers and Galapagos residents used to leave their mail in a barrel in the bay. Any captain of a ship that was heading in the direction the place to which the mail was addressed, would deliver it. Even still that barrel is used today. Nearby is a nice swimming site. Another site on the north coast of the island is Punta Cormorant. It has a greenish beach (the beach contains crystals of th mineral olivine). It is place where you can encounter sea lions playing. It is also a nice place for swimming and snorkeling. A few hundred meters from Punta Cormorant there is the Devil's Crown, a half-submerged volcanic cone that pokes out of the sea. It remains one of the best marine sites of the Galapagos where you can find a lot of pelicans, herons and lava gulls, nesting on the rocks.
Santa Fe Iguana
Santa Fe
Santa Fe is one of the most popular day trip destinations. It has a two trail choices for visitors, one of which takes you to the tallest Opuntia cactus in the Galapagos. While the other trail takes you into the highlands where the land iguana may be seen. After a long walk, a swim in calm waters or snorkeling with playful sea lions, sound pretty tempting.
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