Cerro Dragon and Black Turtle Cove

View from Cerro Dragon

As usual, I was awake at 5:30 this morning so I walked to the lounge for a drink of water and to do my morning German lesson. It wasn’t long until other passengers started trickling in. Mary came down a little after six. Breakfast included eggs over easy with western spices, French toast with walnuts, bacon and fresh papaya and pineapple.

Flamingo near Cerro Dragon

At 8 am we boarded the pangas to ride to Santa Cruz Island for a hike on Cerro Dragon or Dragon Hill, so named for the number of Galápagos land iguanas to be found there. We made a wet landing in the sandy area of the beach although most of the beach was littered with volcanic rock. Several of us elected to ride the panga barefoot then carry our hiking shoes up the beach where we put them on.

Land iguana, one of the "dragons"

We hadn’t walked far on the trail until we saw a large male land iguana basking in the sun. Like most animals we have seen in the Galápagos, the iguanas showed no fear of us. We walked a short distance further into the island and saw a marsh area with a young flamingo feeding. We watched it for a while remarking on the feeding technique of stirring the mud with the feet then scooping with the beak. They are really beautiful and remarkable birds. We had seen flamingos a few times in the Everglades but never this close.

Feral goats near Cerro Dragon

As we followed the trail around Cerro Dragon, we heard the bleating of goats and eventually spotted several Spanish goats at a distance. These animals are considered to be invasive and are controlled if they are on National Park property. The problem is that some farmers nearby have goats that escape onto the National Park where they breed to form herds of feral goats.

Land iguana under a prickly pear

The walk around the hill was beautiful with excellent views of several islands. The prickly pear cacti grow as tall as many trees and have trunks over 12 inches in diameter. We saw several wild cotton plants in bloom along with wild morning glory. We noted an abundance of portulaca growing along the paths. Lots of lava lizards scampered among the portulaca and cacti.

After our walk, we boarded the pangas for the ride back to the Galaxy Yacht where Marcelo has fresh squeezed orange juice and a snack for us.

The ship started sailing for Baltra to refuel so we had some free time through lunch.

After we were in the dining area, the ship’s chef demonstrated making ceviche, Ecuador style. He started with chunks of red snapper adding lime juice, red onion and spices. It was an excellent appetizer with a slice of plantain. The buffet had broiled fish, roasted chicken, white rice and salad fixings. Dessert was a mango custard. As always, everything was good.

Sally Lightfoot crab

We had free time after lunch, so we sat on the top deck for a while then chatted with other passengers in the lounge. The last outing of the day was to Black Turtle Cove from the pangas. We were not to disembark from the boats but would observe wildlife from the small boats. We saw many green sea turtles, white tip sharks, eagle rays and a marbled stingray. We saw red snapper as well at several species of mullet. There were several species of birds out but nothing we hadn’t seen before. It was a nice way to spend the late afternoon.

Green sea turtle

We returned to the Galaxy Yacht a little before 6 pm so we had time to relax for a minute before the nightly debriefing and dinner at 6:30. Willo showed us a 3-minute video that he created using clips of our trip. We then discussed plans for Friday which will be our last full day in the Galápagos. We will visit the islands of Rabida and Sombrero Chino.

Dinner appetizer was a small salad, and the main course was a choice of turkey or pork with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables. Dessert was apple strudel. We were happy with the meal and sat at the table chatting until we walked into the lounge. Cindy and I had a Manhattan, Galápagos style. Mark had a local craft beer. We went up to our cabin around 8:30.