After breakfast we were off to our next island, Isla Plaza. A quick(?) 45 minute bus ride took us back to the Ferry (we soon learned that all trips started at the ferry so we had several more of these bus rides to go). We boarded a boat for a 1-1/2 hour ride to the island.

When we arrived we found that there were actually two islands: Isla Plaza North and Isla Plaza South. We toured the southern island.

The island is a long fairly narrow strip of land with only prickly pear cactus, scrub bush, and a red colored plant called Sesuvium for covering. It has a gentle slope upward towards the middle of the island. But beware. Once you get to the top you find that the whole backside of the island has been chopped off with a several hundred foot drop all along it.

Our arrival was also met with a colony of about 20 Sea Wolves (they look like sea lions but are sturdier) swimming and barking at each other. We even had to step around one on the pier to get onto the island. We toured this rocky island for about 2 hours with our guide talking about the Sea Wolves, the marine and land iguanas, and lava lizards. We also saw large flocks of Red-billed tropic birds and swallow-tailed gulls flying and nesting on the cliffs. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you that it was very hot with minimal breeze. Since we are practically on the Equator we had direct sun all day long. We used a lot of sunscreen and drank plenty of water.

On the way back Paul had the opportunity to go snorkeling. He spent about 30 minutes in the water where he saw a multitude of different tropical fish and a white-tipped shark!

It was then a 1-1/2 hour boat ride back to the Ferry and another 45 minutes ride back to the hotel. Meanwhile at our hotel, one of the sea lions took over a deck chair for it’s siesta.

Since we arrived back at the hotel in the afternoon, we had a chance to explore the village. One interesting stop was the local fish market where fishmongers sell to the locals. A flock of pelicans and a sea lion were on hand to catch any pieces of fish that were discarded as the fish were cut and sold.