Begin the morning at Tagus Cove on Isabela Island, a historic anchorage once frequented by pirates and whalers dating back to the 1800s. After a dry landing, hike along the slopes of Darwin Volcano to panoramic viewpoints and Darwin’s Lake, a saltwater crater lake situated above sea level. A dinghy ride beneath the cliffs provides opportunities to observe Blue-footed Boobies, Brown Noddies, and Flightless Cormorants. Snorkeling introduces another side of the cove, with Galapagos Penguins, schools of fish, and possible sea turtle encounters. Later, explore Urbina Bay, where a dramatic geological uplift in 1954 exposed part of the shallow sea bottom and coral reef. Walk among coral fossils while looking for Galapagos Land Iguanas before snorkeling near a resident Galapagos Penguin colony and watching for Marine Iguanas feeding underwater on algae.
