Monserrat Itinerary A - 5 Days
ITINERARY A - 5 DAYS
SUNDAY
AM: Baltra: Arrival and Transfer to the boat
PM: Santa Cruz: Dragon Hill (HK/SN/PR)
MONDAY
AM: Santiago: Buccanner Cove (HK/SN/KY/PR)
PM: Santiago: Eggas Port (HK/SN/PR)
TUESDAY
AM: Isabela: Vicente Roca Point (HK/PR/SN)
PM: Fernandina: Espinoza Point (HK)
WEDNESDAY
AM: Isabela: Urbina Bay (HK/SN/KY/PR)
PM: Isabela: Tagus Cove (HK/SN/PR)
THURSDAY
AM: Santa Cruz: Black Turtle Cove (PR)
Baltra: Transfer to the Airport
HK: HIKE / SN: SNORKEL / PR: PANGA RIDE / KY: KAYAK /
PB: PADDLE BOARD
DAY 1: SUNDAY
AM: BALTRA ARRIVAL AND TRASFER TO THE BOAT
Arrive in Baltra Island. After clearing immigration and customs. Our Monserrat Yacht naturalist guide will welcome you to the Archipelago and escort you to the vessel.
We will then sail to Dragon Hill where our first exploration of the Galapagos begins. Dragon Hill is a great introduction to the Galapagos Islands. Here you can relax, swim and snorkel on its crystalline waters.
PM: SANTA CRUZ: DRAGON HILL
Cerro Dragón (Dragon Hill) is consider as a prime birdwatching site. You will take a short walk from the beach to a hypersaline (saltier than the ocean) lagoon frequented by pink flamingos, common stilts, pintail ducks, and other species of birds.
You will pass through a Scalesia tree forest; which is endemic to the area, a quick fact about this iconic specie there are only 400 specimens of Scalesia trees left in the world.
DAY 2: MONDAY
AM: SANTIAGO: BUCCANNER COVE
Santiago Island has seen its share of human activity from whalers and pirates over the years, and despite the introduction of goats to the island many years ago, the wildlife of Santiago has otherwise flourished and provides outstanding viewing opportunities. The island boasts marine iguanas, sea lions, fur seals, land and sea turtles, among others. Enjoy great wildlife viewing both on land and in the water.
Head to Buccaneer Cove to witness the towering cliff wall rock formations. Afternoon excursion to Egas Port to see the salt crater as well as a dark sand beach and tidal pools.
Buccaneer Cove Excursion (AM)
Jump into the panga or zodiac and cruise alongside high cliffs and rock formations on this visit, which was a favorite hideout for pirates looking to stock up their boats with food and water. Spot sea lions relaxing on the beach and sea birds nesting in the cove as you will able to do snorkeling and kayak around the shore.
PM: SANTIAGO: EGAS PORT.
Puerto Egas Excursion (PM)
The spectacular shoreline of Puerto Egas, also known as James Bay spots a great number of shore birds and reptiles – the beach area is home to a plethora of wildlife.
(Puerto Egas) Snorkeling Excursion (PM)
Grab a snorkel and jump into the water right off the beach to explore Puerto Egas' interesting underwater world.
Keep your eyes peeled for rays, turtles, and reef sharks while snorkeling. After this activity, you will visit the large tidal pool area – marine iguanas and Sally Lightfoot crabs are everywhere.
DAY 3: TUESDAY
AM: ISABELA: VICENTE ROCA POINT.
Today we will visit the most western site of the Galapagos Islands, Espinoza Point in Fernandina Island. This island is also one the most pristine on the archipelago as no foreign species have been introduced. We will visit Vicente Roca Point, on Isabela Island, famous for its rich underwater sea life thanks to its location on the Bolivar Channel.
Vicente Roca Point Excursion (AM)
Vicente Roca Point has great deep-water snorkeling at one of the richest marine havens on Earth (Bolivar Channel). Vicente Roca Point is renowned for its Galápagos green turtles, which are very numerous on the bay. Although the spot is known for its high concentration of green turtles, sharks and rays can also be observed when underwater visibility is good. We take a dinghy ride along the coast to observe a great diversity of sea and coastal birds;
Nazca and blue-footed boobies, noddies, brown pelicans, penguins, flightless cormorants. The upwelling of cold-water currents in this part of the Galapagos gives rise to an abundance of marine life. Our snorkeling will take us along the cliffs and offers the chance of exploring two shallow underwater caves with rich marine wildlife.
PM: FERNANDINA: ESPINOZA POINT
Espinoza Point Excursion (PM)
Espinosa Point on Fernandina Island is one of the most pristine islands in the world, with none of man’s introduced species to date. From here we can see the island of Isabela across the Bolívar Channel, an area that boasts some of the highest diversity of endemic sea fauna in the Galapagos. Fernandina is the youngest of the Galapagos Islands and a visitor favorite.
When landing, check out the tidal pools where there is abundance of sea life, including small fish and mollusks. If we are lucky, a sea turtle or ray may be trapped in the pools. A little further ahead we will pass through some marine iguana burrows and sea lion colonies. The trail continues to where several flightless cormorants have their nests. This remarkable bird is only found in western Galapagos, and experts estimate that they may only be a few hundred individuals in total.
DAY 4: WEDNESDAY
AM: ISABELA: URBINA BAY
After a long journey from the central part of the Galapagos, we will arrive to the pristine and remote West of the archipelago. Our visits today are Urbina Bay and Tagus Cove on the west of Isabela Island, where we will have our first encounters with flightless cormorants, penguins, giant tortoises and beautiful landscapes and amazing snorkeling opportunities.
Urbina Bay Excursion (AM)
Urbina Bay is a fascinating visitor site that came to be as the shallow sea bottom uplifted in 1954 showing a large coral reef sticking up above sea level. Because of this, Urbina Bay is one of the newest features in the Galapagos. This visitor site is located at west of Isabela and provides spectacular views of the Alcedo volcano. The long trail starts on the beach where a wet landing is made. In this location, you will likely see wild Galapagos Giant Tortoises and Galapagos Land Iguanas. As the trail circles back towards the shore line you'll come across colonies of the unique Galapagos Flightless Cormorant which lost its ability to fly. This is also a great spot for snorkeling, as you can come close to a Galapagos Penguin Colony and see Galapagos Marine Iguanas feeding underwater.
PM: ISABELA: TAGUS COVE
Tagus Cove is located on the Northwestern coast of Isabela. It is a historical site visited by Charles Darwin in 1835, where graffiti has been carved into the rock walls by visitors over the past centuries. This spot has been frequented by whalers and pirates since the 1800s that used the area as anchorage. The name of the site dates back to 1814 when it was visited by a British ship, The Tagus, which had anchored there in search of giant tortoises to be used as food supply on the boat.
Here, we will admire a variety of seabirds, such as blue-footed booby, brown noddy, terns, flightless cormorant and Galapagos penguins depending on the season. Occasionally you might see woodpecker finches, the Galapagos hawk, the yellow warbler or a large-billed flycatcher. After a dry landing one, we can climb up the trail to visit Darwin 's Lake. The lake is located on the slopes of Darwin Volcano and is, surprisingly, a salt water lake above sea level.
Our naturalist guide will tell you what are the different scientific theories for this occurrence. Meanwhile, in our snorkeling there are chances to see sharks, turtles and sea stars. You may also see various different types of colorful fish.
DAY 5: THURSDAY
AM: BLACK TURTLE COVE / BALTRA AIRPORT
Black Turtle Cove Excursion (AM)
Explore the mangroves by panga to find rich marine wildlife between the fresh and salt waters. Keep any eye out for manta rays and sea turtles in this tranquil ecosystem. Whitetip reef sharks can also be seen gliding by.
Baltra
Disembark at Baltra for flight back to Ecuador mainland.
