San Cristobal à San Cristobal

An impressive tuff cone has been carved by erosion into an outstanding natural sculpture, being a resting place for marine birds such as blue-footed bobbies and brown pelicans. One of the most beautiful white sand beaches of the Galapagos (swim or snorkel). View sea lions, sally lightfooted crabs, blue-footed bobbies. Behind the dunes, you find a coastal lagoon, which was visited in the past by the locals to extract salt, today it is home to some shorebirds such as stilts and plovers.

The vegetation (as it is one of the oldest islands) shows some endemic species such as Scalesia incisa (flowering plant) only found on this island.

Bartolomé Island is a volcanic islet in the Galápagos Islands group, just off the east coast of Santiago Island. It is one of the « younger » islands in the Galápagos archipelago

Punta Vicente Roca is one of the marine sites Isabela Island has to offer. On the southern side of Ecuador Volcano, the tip of land on the western end of Isabela is named after Vicente Ramon Roca, President of Ecuador from 1845-49, who as Prefect of Guayas had proposed the Ecuadorian annexation of the Galapagos Islands in 1831. The geological formations, the underwater caves and lava tubes offer fascinating views of the coastline. View less

The South Equatorial Countercurrent hits this part of the archipelago from the west and the water offers abundant food sources for different marine life and seabirds. It is normal to see Pacific green turtles, but sharks, rays, whales and dolphins can also be expected, apart from a small colony of fur seals. Blue-footed Boobies, Nazca Boobies, Brown Noddies and other seabirds nest in the cliffs and both the endemic Galapagos Penguins and Flightless Cormorants have established small colonies nearby. Marine iguanas also like this area because of the rich variety of seaweeds growing underwater along the western coast of Isabela. As a marine site, deepwater snorkeling is also possible at Punta Vicente Roca.

With the gentle slopes of La Cumbre volcano in the distance, the low, lava-forged coast of Punta Espinoza on Fernandina Island is a spectacular sight. Hundreds of marine iguanas rest on the black rock of recent lava flows absorbing heat from the stone and defending their territories against one another. Galapagos sea lions and their pups also take shelter here, resting on the beach and playing in the shallow tide pools sprinkled along the coast. View less

Walk past high sandy areas where marine iguanas lay their eggs and along low, shallow mangrove ponds ringed with bright red Sally Lightfoot crabs and Flightless Cormorants drying their stubby wings in the sunshine.

La crique de Tagus est bordée par une côte rocheuse abrupte et a offert pendant des siècles un abri aux navires et aux yachts. La crique doit son nom à la frégate britannique HMS Tagus, qui a visité les Galápagos en 1814. Dès les années 1830, d’autres navires ont enregistré leurs visites en peignant ou en grattant leur nom sur les rochers. À l’approche des Galápagos, on peut souvent observer des manchots et des cormorans sans ailes, deux oiseaux que l’on trouve principalement sur la côte ouest d’Isabela et sur la côte voisine de Fernandina. Afficher moins Depuis l’atterrissage, un sentier traversant une forêt d’encens mène le long du lac Darwin jusqu’à un point de vue au sommet d’un cône d’éclaboussures. Au cours de la randonnée, plusieurs oiseaux terrestres sont souvent présents, notamment des pinsons terrestres moyens, des éperviers des Galápagos, des parulines jaunes ainsi que des moucherolles à gros bec et vermillon. Les noddis bruns et les fous à pieds bleus préfèrent les rochers le long de la côte.

Elizabeth Bay est l’un des sites marins de la côte ouest d’Isabela. Au sud du volcan Alcedo et au nord de la Sierra Negra, Elizabeth Bay se trouve dans l’extension est-ouest la plus étroite d’Isabela, là où les coulées de lave de ces deux volcans se sont reliées. Les rivages d’Elizabeth Bay présentent des mangroves et plus particulièrement la partie la plus à l’est, une crique dans laquelle on ne peut entrer que par un canal étroit, qui présente des mangroves rouges, blanches et noires. Différents animaux préfèrent différentes parties d’Elizabeth Bay. Las Marielas, trois rochers à l’entrée de la baie, sont préférés par les fous à pieds bleus, les cormorans volants et les pingouins des Galápagos comme lieu de repos, tandis que la zone de mangrove est préférée par les grands hérons bleus pour chasser ou les frégates magnifiques pour se percher. La baie est utilisée par les tortues, les raies et même les requins pour se nourrir ou se reposer. Les eaux peu profondes et le système de racines des mangroves dans le petit bras de mer permettent aux petits poissons de se cacher des plus gros prédateurs.

Floreana’s Post Office Bay has received its name as the site was used to leave mail for retrieval by others who were thought to stop at the Galapagos Islands or might be heading for the addressee’s direction. First mentioned by Porter in 1813 as “Hathaway’s Postoffice”, HMS Beagle’s captain FitzRoy stated that it was not in use in 1835 as the island was already settled at that time. Floreana had been the first island to be settled by Ecuadorians in 1832. View less

Today a barrel instead of the original box is used by visitors who leave their own postcards and retrieve mail for hand-delivery. Apart from the beach and mail barrel the bay offers good swimming and snorkeling. The area holds remains of a failed Norwegian fish canning plant and settlement dating back to the 1920s. A lava tube in the vicinity can also be explored. Although Floreana is inhabited, the number of residents is reduced because of the difficult access to water. A track from Post Office Bay connects with the only road from Puerto Velazco Ibarra on the west coast to a spring in the highlands.

Champion Islet is a small islet some 700 meters off the northeast coast of Floreana. It is one of four marine sites surrounding Floreana and offers excellent deepwater snorkeling opportunities. Curious sea lions approach the snorkelers while turtles slowly swim by and sharks, sting rays, and a high diversity of colorful fishes can usually be seen. During a Zodiac cruise around Champion Islet not only seabirds such as Nazca Boobies, Swallow-tailed Gulls, or Red-billed Tropicbirds will be seen, it is also possible to spot the rare Floreana Mockingbird.

Floreana Island’s northernmost point is called Punta Cormorant – named after the British naval vessel HMS Cormorant and dating back to the late 19th century. From the landing beach a short track leads to a shallow lagoon that is famous for its flamingos. The brilliantly pink birds skim the salty waters for shrimp and tend to chicks on the nest. The trail then scales a low hillside through scattered Palo Santo trees to reveal an idyllic white-sand beach on the other side of the point. View less

Standing at the edge of the lapping waves, you might spot mammoth female sea turtles hauling themselves out of the sea to lay eggs in the sugar sand dunes that lay high above the tide line. Before returning to the landing site your guides may also point out White-cheeked Pintails, Blue-footed Boobies, Yellow Warblers, and Medium and Small Ground Finches.

Los Gemelos (Les Jumeaux) est un site de visite dans les hautes terres de Santa Cruz. Situé à une quinzaine de kilomètres au nord-ouest de Puerto Ayora, la route qui mène de Puerto Ayora, au sud de Santa Cruz, à Itabaca, au nord, dissèque les cratères jumeaux. Les cratères de fosse se forment lorsque le toit d’un vide souterrain s’effondre. Le plus petit cratère de fosse se trouve sur le côté est de la route, tandis que le plus grand se trouve sur le côté ouest. Vu d’en haut, les deux ouvertures dans le sol ne sont pas du tout identiques. Afficher moins Leur disposition pourrait impliquer une chambre magmatique allongée ou un tube de lave menant plus à l’ouest et le plus grand jumeau ayant en fait été autrefois deux petits cratères de fosse dont la paroi de liaison s’est également effondrée. Les sentiers traversant une forêt de Scalesia donnent non seulement accès à de bonnes vues des cratères de fosse, mais permettent également d’observer certains des plus petits oiseaux terrestres. On peut souvent y voir des moucherolles vermillons, des parulines jaunes, des colombes des Galápagos, des pinsons terrestres moyens et plusieurs autres espèces de pinsons.

Cerro Dragón’s land iguanas once played an important part in a conservation program headed by the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galapagos National Park. When the reptiles’ numbers declined in the 1970s, some animals were taken to breed in captivity and were released back into undeveloped areas. Today, it is an honor to see the success of this program firsthand at Cerro Dragón. Walk inland on a trail past small saltwater lagoons that periodically feature flamingos, to see the reintroduced animals.

In a periodic local phenomenon, during rainier times the salinity in the lagoons drops with the inflow of freshwater. As a consequence crustacean populations decline, which in turn means the shorebirds become scarce.

An impressive tuff cone has been carved by erosion into an outstanding natural sculpture, being a resting place for marine birds such as blue-footed bobbies and brown pelicans. One of the most beautiful white sand beaches of the Galapagos (swim or snorkel). View sea lions, sally lightfooted crabs, blue-footed bobbies. Behind the dunes, you find a coastal lagoon, which was visited in the past by the locals to extract salt, today it is home to some shorebirds such as stilts and plovers.

The vegetation (as it is one of the oldest islands) shows some endemic species such as Scalesia incisa (flowering plant) only found on this island.