ISLAND HOPPING IN THE GALAPAGOS – ISLA ISABELA

Starting from the island of Isabela, I did another snorkeling tour: los Tunéles. The tunnels were formed (like everything on the Galapagos) by an erupted volcano. When the lava hit the water, it cooled down on the outside and kept floating on the inside, forming formations of tunnels and caves – above and below sea level. Our first stop was a land stop at the tunnel formations above sea levels. There we walked around a bit and got really close to blue footed boobies – an endemic bird species in the Galapagos. The guide explained their way of living and breeding to us and we were able to take cool pictures. Afterwards we went snorkeling. First we were looking for sea turtles and sea horses –and found them. We swam with the turtles for a while before the real fun began: the tunnels and caves below water. The guide will show you different ones and there will be sharks waiting for you – don’t worry, they are small and don’t attack. They just hang out in the caves. The guide will help you stay under water: he pushes you down and a little into the caves, holds you there for a few seconds before he pulls you back up. The first time he did that, I had no idea what was going on and for a few seconds I thought he was going to drown me. Of course he didn’t but a little heads up would have been nice. Overall it was an amazing tour, seeing the blue footed boobies up close, penguins, swimming with turtles, looking sharks in the eye and getting a delicious lunch on the boat.