Today, you will spend the morning visiting Urbina Bay (wet landing), an area on the western coast of Isabela Island. Urbina Bay is a volcanic uplift where the ocean floor recently rose 4 meters for a stretch of almost five kilometers. Today our walk will be close to 2Km (1.5 miles), the area is covered with native vegetation, but fossils of marine organisms are still visible along the path. At this visitor site, you can walk in areas that were once below water and see high and dry corals and other marine life. There is a good chance to see Galapagos land iguanas in their natural habitat (we did) and the gentle Giants, the Galapagos giant tortoises (we didn't).

A well deserved lunch will be served on board the ship. In the afternoon, you will visit Punta Espinosa (dry landing), rimmed with a mangrove forest, on Fernandina Island. First,disembark for a one-mile walk, then take a dinghy ride to observe Galapagos penguins, as well as flightless cormorants. The walk will be of medium difficulty on black lava rocks scattered with hundreds of marine iguanas and you will see flightless cormorants, penguins, pelicans and sea lions. This is the jewel of the National Park. The youngest volcano, one of the most active ones, and the largest island with no introduced mammals are only some of the qualities for this extraordinaire site. Marine iguanas cover up the recent pahoehoe lava flows; Flightless cormorants and penguins escorted by Galapagos sea lions. Tide pools and mangrove add excitement for the afternoon experience. The walk will be of medium to low difficulty over lava flows and sandy areas. Total distance is 1,5 km. (1 mile).

Relax and enjoy your farewell dinner on the ship this evening.

 

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