We left the hotel at 6:00 am for our bus ride to the Ferry and another 2 hour ship ride to the island. There was a chef on board so we got a great breakfast on the way.

About an hour into the trip, we also sailed around another island, Daphne Major (an extinct volcano), where we saw the famous Blue-footed Booby and various other sea birds.

The highlight at Daphne were the giant Manta Rays which swam all around us. Two of them actually jumped about ten feet into the air before diving back into the water. Unfortunately it happened so fast that no one was able to get a picture. After about 1/2 hour we sailed on to Bartolome.

Bartolome is a large volcanic island with hardly any ground cover at all. It was created by multiple volcanos (all extinct) thousands of years ago. However the scenery around the island is terrific. Several scenes from the movie “Master and Commander” were filmed here.

We were able to climb to the top of the island via a set of very well built wooden stairs and boardwalks. Our guide talked about the geology along the way. I lost count as we climbed but someone said if was about 400 steps. Did I tell you that it was hot again? Paul and I made it to the top. The views made the climb worth the effort.

After we descended back to the boat, we sailed around the island in search of penguins with no luck. We had a terrific lunch on board the boat and sailed back to the Ferry for another 45 minute ride back to the hotel.