Isla Isabla

Isabela

We were only on Isabela for three days. Between the check in and check out procedure our time was limited. To aggravate the time problem, we were there during election day. Everyone must vote in Ecuador, so trying to get something done was difficult. The island is the largest in the island group and the island with active volcanoes. While none of the volcanoes are active now they can erupt at any time.

We took a tour to an area called the tunnels. It was formed by two different eruptions. The first with a soft material and the second with a hard material. The softer material has been eroded by the ocean to create these amazing formations. The snorkeling was good in this area and we snorkeled for about two hours. We had a sea lion swim right through our group. I was able to swim through the tunnels to the other side which was cool. I spotted a large lobster and noticed that the Galapagos lobsters have a spot in the middle of their head that looks like a large eye. The sea horses are huge, five to nine inches. I didn't have an underwater camera so I don't have any pictures, but enjoy the landscape.

The last picture is of a caldera we passed on the way to Santa Cruz.