Cachalote 8 Days - Tower (East)

Upon arriving to Baltra, you will be transferred to Santa Cruz Island, where the activities will begin with a visit to the Highlands to see giant tortoises in the wild. After lunch, you will visit Charles Darwin Scientific Research Station to learn about conservation efforts. The rest of the afternoon you have free time. Dinner and rest on the yacht.

Full itinerary map here: http://bit.ly/cachalote-tower-8-days

Begin your day at South Plaza Island situated off the east coast of Santa Cruz, where you will see one of the largest populations of land iguanas in the archipelago. You may also see frigate birds, shearwaters, brown pelicans and masked boobies, and snorkel from the beach. During the afternoon we visit Santa Fe Island, which has one of the most beautiful coves of all the region. Here you may see species like the land iguana which is the largest of their kind in Galapagos. Manta rays and sea turtles may be seen here too.

The day begins at San Cristobal Island with a visit to Witch Hill, where you may go for a swim and also see a small population of sea lions that resides there. In the afternoon we go to El Junco Lagoon, located at an altitude of 700 meters, which is a nice site for bird watching. Return to the yacht and dinner.

Disembark at Gardner Bay on Española (Hood) Island. You can take a short walk and watch the groups of see lions gathered together, along with mockingbirds, and finches. You will also have the opportunity to practice snorkeling. After lunch, the cruise will head to Punta Suarez, where you will take a walk along the lava terrain to visit the sea bird colonies, including waved albatross and blue footed boobies

At the beginning of the day we disembark at Punta Cormorant on Floreana Island, on the green sand beach. Then you will head for a walk to a brackish water lagoon that is the home of flamingos, stilts and sandpipers; then you will visit the “flour beach”, and you will have the opportunity to practice snorkeling at Devils Crown. After lunch, the cruise will take us to Post Office Bay, where you will learn about the first post service that was established here by early whaling ships in the late 1700s.

We begin with a visit to Cerro Dragon on Santa Cruz Island. Here we will be able to see various types of bird, such as boobies, frigates and pelicans, along with marine turtles, rays and sharks. Take a trail to Dragon Hill for a beautiful view of the bay and western archipelago. Continue the excursion to Sullivan Bay on James Island, a recent formed lava field that shows a variety of interesting patterns.

An early start at Genovesa Island, a low lying volcano rising above the ocean surface. A vast variety of birds can be found here, like frigate birds, red-footed boobies, swallowtailed gulls and storm petrels. After this, take a steep climb up Prince Phillip steps, where you may see blue and red footed boobies. In the afternoon we go to Darwin Bay, to take an easy trail to observe frigate birds, gulls, herons, finches and mocking birds. You can also enjoy a swim or snorkeling in the harbor.

The day begins at Black Turtle Cove, where you will see three kinds of mangrove plants, red, white and black, and also white tipped sharks, spotted rays and pacific marine turtles. After this activity, you will disembark at Santa Cruz Island and head to the airport to take your flight back to the continent.