On Board the Carina on Santiago, Galapagos - Buchaneer Cove & Egas Port, Day 14 - Monday, 27 December 2021

Galivanting thru the Galapagos & the Amazon

Day 14 - On Board the Carina (Santiago: Buchaneer Cove & Egas Point & Rabida Island) - Monday, December 27, 2021

We had left Albemarle Point about 9:30pm & had cruised all night.  It was fairly rough for the first couple of hours, then had smoothed out.  We were at anchor in beautiful Buchineer's Cove by 4:30am, so the morning shower & getting ready were easy.  Breakfast as usual at 7am.  Had over easy eggs and potato pancakes & fruit.  We'll certainly miss this food & service!!

Immediately after breakfast, we loaded into the Panga for our morning excursion.  We headed straight for the craggy cliffs to start viewing the local wildlife.  There were Blue Footed Boobys gracing the rocks & this really interesting Yellow Crowned Night Heron.  

Even a sea lion up in the rocks.  How did he get up there?????

As we rounded the corner, Jonathan & I saw rays jumping out of the water in front of us!!!  No this isn't my picture, but I wanted to give you an idea of what we saw!  It was absolutely incredible!  There were several at a time.  My mouth was hanging open.  Jonathan said they were probably Golden Cowl because of their color.  We just happened to be looking in the right direction at the right time!!!!

We continued, seeing one bird after the other!  Brown Pelican, Nazca Booby, Striated Heron.  

Then a Swallowtail Gull with a chick!  The Chick is pretty good size, but wouldn't have fledged yet.  

We continued around the shoreline.  The rocks are beautiful with intricate coloring & shapes.

We motored to the large rock out in the cove.  There were Blue Footed Boobys nesting on this rock.  And unusual Cactus trees.  We just rested against the rock face while Luis talked about this island's history & geology.  

We continued around the shoreline, finding a shallow area with beautiful water.  

Eventually we returned back to Carine, took a short detour back to our original area because there was a cave indention that we'd not investigated fully. It was a lovely morning. We'd seen a hawk flying above us as well as all the standard Magnificent Frigates! We were back on board before 10am & heading to Egas Port for the afternoon. The Captain wanted us to do our snorkeling there!

They left the pangas tied in back for our short trip south to Egas Port.  It only took about a half hour to get there.  There was a big Celebrity Explorer there when we arrived.  They were gathering folks up to leave.  We had spent the time changing into our wetsuits, so we'd be ready to go when we anchored.

This was more like a snorkel in the Caribbean, tons of bright colored fish, urchins, & star fish along a deep crevice.  Didn't see any big turtles or sea lions.  The water was clearer, still pretty cold & George & I got to stay out about an hour.  The girls were a little braver & it was just Luis out with us again.  

George took a few photos of our cabin just for memories sake.  It was really very comfortable, especially with the bed made together - about a queen.  The bathroom was amazingly functional too.  Overall, we were very impressed.  Francisco has been pretty amazing with his towel animals every day.  The only thing difficult was drying things.  We could have hung things on the top floor, but we were just leery of doing that.  Otherwise, there was plenty of storage & very comfortable.  I had used my OAT shower bag & that was very useful. 

We had saved one of the best for last!  We motored across to the beach for a wet landing.  They had brought towels of course & there was a nice ledge to sit on & dry our feet.  We were lucky enough that a tiny little Fur Seal was sharing the ledge with us.  We took tons of photos of him & he cried when we left!!!  The large sea lion was not his mother, she was just a standard sea lion!

This used to be an active salt mine run by Hector Egas in the 60's.  Now it's a part of the National Park & only ruins of the mine equipment & the foundations from a couple of homes remain to remind you of the history.  

Walking along the beach was awesome - saw finches & lots of shore birds.  Identified a SemiPalmated Plover, Whimbrel, Ruddy Turnstone, Sanderling, and flocks of Elliots Storm Petrels wheeling over the water.  There were a mix of Land & Marine Iguanas & Sea Lions everywhere!   

There were all kinds of nooks & crevices.  One is called Darwin's Toilet because it empties out & then refills with a rush from an underground tunnel!!!  The water was so amazingly clear & beautiful.  We stood still to enjoy both the sounds & sights of the active water all around us.  

As we circled back around, Luis overturned a rock to point out a tiny little scorpion! He never fails to amaze!!

We had just stopped to admire a Mockingbird & Luis turned to me & said, "I am looking for a Galapagos Dove." We turned a corner & there it was, right beside the trail! Too funny.

According to my Ebird data, we had walked about 2 miles in a couple of hours.  Leisurely & informative.  Perfect afternoon to finish the week.

Good bye to Santiago Island.  The Captain started the engines as soon as we were on board - cinched up the pangas & we were on our way for a quiet night at Rapida.

Spent the 2 hour cruise to Rapida packing.  Fairly easy, just had to balance things out.  Made sure to get a few pictures of the Island to prove we were there!  It was quiet - we were alone.

We had our last meeting. Shared email addresses & compared our books to make sure we had marked everything we saw. They furnished the champagne to celebrate!!

Couldn't believe our Farewell Dinner - Lobster!!!  And it was perfectly done!  I even loved it!  We savored our last evening together - eating & talking.  Then on to our cabins for a relaxing night.  One more Man in the High Castle to send us off to sleep!  Can't believe this magnificent vacation has come to a close!  It was a perfect escape from our Covid isolation!!  Thank you OAT!!  And Luis and Delfin!!