Traveling through Equatorial Galapagos on Ocean Adventures’s ship The Eclipse, the second night on our itinerary was to travel around the largest Galapagos island. Isabela Island is shaped like a Sea Horse and is one of the younger islands. Being a mere mere 1 million years old, Isabela Island was created by six volcanoes – Alcedo, Cerro Azul, Darwin, Ecuador, Sierra Negra, and Wolf. All of these volcanoes are still active except for Ecuador.
This morning we were given an early morning optional excursion. The morning’s hike was to climb up past Darwin Volcano Lake to the edge of the Darwin Crater. Tagus Cove was a popular place for pirates and buccaneers. The surrounding cliffs around the protected cove are covered with graffiti, the oldest dating back to 1836 and the most recent in 1987. The island is now protected from continuing graffiti, but the originals remain.
We were to have a dry landing on a slip of rocks and then a short staircase leading into the island. There were a number of steps to climb and trail continues upwards to the viewpoint.
A Small Ground Finch flew in right beside me and didn’t seem to care about the group of visitors nearby.
Rising up above Darwin Lake, the clear skies gave way to a beautiful view of the lake and Tagus Cove. The small speck in the cove was our ship, The Eclipse.
Along the difficult uphill trail, a Ground Finch’s nest caught my eye. Truly a work of art.
The terrain made me think that perhaps I was on another planet. Rather stark, the volcanic earth was cool below the warm and humid morning air.
At last we reached the summit and had an expansive view over a large Lava field. This was the turning point, and there was nothing to do but go downhill from here.
There were plenty of ground finches flying in the early morning sun, with yellow warblers singing in the background. A Galapagos Hawk flew over for other parts. The air was clean and the sky blue. It was truly a beautiful way to start the day.
Emily Carter ~ Nature as Art 
That is one HUGE place with that endless horizon! Interesting place 🙂 🙂
It truly is amazing how these places looked small, but then walking along the volcanoes and lava fields we were nothing but a speck. Galapagos is such a unique place. Hope you’re doing well Andy.
I’m doing alright, Thank you 🙂 Nature truly is an amazing thing huh!
You bet..doing anything exciting soon? I’ve got lots of adventures in the next few weeks. I’m doing trying to get killed on a horse. 🙂
lol! I haven’t really figured anything yet, hopefully by summer I will though, god knows I need a vacation lol
That poor finch looks as though it had a rough morning, or a very rough night. Were there berries fermenting for the finch to feed on? 😉
He does look a bit ruffled. Didn’t see any berries, but a possibility.
I’m actually glad you shared the shot with the graffiti as sometimes we need a reminder of how glaring and obtrusive we humans can be.
That said, that little finch reminds me of a scraggly stray dog. Lol, but the nest was really qutie impressive. Hard day’s work maybe?
What a wild landscape. The view of the tranquil waters and the cove is stunning as is the lava field. Wow, you are so lucky to have experienced this all. We live in such a diverse world, God is great, gosh I feel lucky just to be alive right now. Thank you for sharing and bringing this feeling to my day even as the sun does not shine, the drizzle carries on, and the spring temperatures today have chosen to be on the chilled side. I am smiling for what you’ve allowed us to witness. And I think I’m lucky to have taken this trip with you in this last hour or so.
😀 Cheers be to you!
Some of the graffiti was high on cliffs that were nearly impossible to reach. It was actually cool to see markings from people from long ago. Why people need to do that is beyond me.
Loved the finches, they were all over the place and so brown and adorable.
OH I truly hope you’re having better weather by now. I saw all of your wonderful visits and comments and I’ll try to catch up on them today. I wish you could have been there in person with me. I’ve traveled a bit and have found that there are a lot of similarities in the topography and what really is different is the people.
But the Galapagos is completely different. So many volcanic islands, such a variety of wild life, a harsh and desert like tropical climate. You were smart to enjoy these together. I’m only half-way through the trip, so keep tuned. XXOO
It sounds like the kind of hike I would enjoy. I agree: nests are truly works of art.
It was really an awesome hike and a great workout. Although we went at a snails pace, some had difficulty with the continual climb. But what views!
Looks like a beautiful place! 🙂
It truly is. So happy you’re enjoying these posts.