Galapagos Islands
Sally lightfoot crab
Santiago is the fourth largest island in the archipelago sizing about 585 km2. The island offers several spectacular visitor sites within its limit. The main site is Puerto Egas, south of James bay on the west side of the island. Puerto Egas has a long lava shoreline and harbors an array of wildlife Marine iguanas bask in the sun while land iguanas scatter around feeding on exposed algae. A lot of Sally Lightfoot crabs can be found in the tide pools. Further down the trail in the inlets one can encounter fur seal lions. Besides being an excellent spot to take pictures, Puerto Egas is also good place to snorkel as it allows you to see many tropical species of fish in their natural habitat. Further inland one can find the sugar loaf volcano. This is an extinct volcano with a 395 meter summit. The summit can be reached by a 2 km footpath, alongside this path you will find Lava-lizards, Darwin's finches and Galapagos doves. At the summit ,at the end of the path, the view is spectacular. There is also a chance you will see Galapagos hawks, which usually can be found at the summit. Other great sites of the Santiago Island include Buccaneer cove, which has beautiful cliffs, and Espumilla Beach where you can take a nice swim and sometimes observe flamingos.
Bartolome Island offers one of the most spectacular views of the Galapagos. The view towards Santiago from the 114 meter summit of the islands is one of the most photographed ones. This islands also has good swimming and snorkeling sites. Here you will also have the chance to encounter the endemic Galapagos penguins that frequent the cove, as well as marine turtles and a gaudy variety of tropical fish.
Sullivan Bay, Santiago Sombrero Chino , this tiny island, southeast from Santiago, is a recent volcanic cone recognized for its descriptive name. To the north there is a small sea lion cove, where a visitor sight awaits. Taking the trail through the sea lion colony, marine iguanas scurry everywhere. There are snorkeling and swimming opportunities in which sea lions, manta rays, schools of topical fish and sharks can be admired.
Rabida Island , also known as Jervis, lies 5 km south of Santiago. There are reddish beaches because of a high iron percentage in the lava. This island has one of the best places to see pelicans nesting. Near the beach, there is a salt-water lagoon where flamingos and white-cheeked pintail ducks can be seen, although during the 1990's the flamingos rarely been spotted. There is a trail that will take you up to a volcanic peek covered with palo santo trees, from where the red color of the beach and volcanic formations can be appreciated. At the end of this trail there is an excellent snorkeling spot.
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