ISABELA ISLAND
Isabela, also known as Albemarle, is the largest of the islands in the archipelago. It is also one of four that has humans inhabiting it, in two locations at Puerto Villamil and Santo Tomas. It has five active volcanoes, Wolf, Darwin, Alcedo, Santa Tomas and Cerro Azul.
There are ten tourist sites on the island. Details of some are given below:
Named after a British warship which anchored here in 1814, this cove is located to the west of the island and it is usual to take a panga trip below the high cliffs. Here there is an opportunity to see penguins as well as marine iguanas, Sally Lightfoot crabs and sea lions. As with many sites blue footed boobies are in abundance.
After a dry landing one, can climb up the trail to oversee Darwin's Lake. This is below the slopes of Darwin Volcano and is, surprisingly, a salt water lake above sea level. It is said that the salt water is drawn up from below by adsorption through the porous volcanic rock of which this part of the island is formed.
The trail also has a monument to a sailor who was lost at sea and there is a large amount of graffiti carved into the rock sides of the cove. Originally the names of ships that called at the island it has, in later years, degenerated into painted graffiti which, despite attempts to stop it, is still occasionally inflicted upon the rocks.
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South from Tagus Cove and still on the West coast is Urvina Bay. The waters of the bay are a good place to see turtles and rays and ashore is a short trail leading to a coral reef, which is evidence of an uplift from the sea which occurred in 1954. Marine iguanas, flightless cormorants and pelicans can be seen at this site.
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Further south still is Elizabeth Bay. It is not possible to land here so a panga trip is the only option. At the entrance to the bay are the Mariela Islands which offer an excellent opportunity to see penguins. The end of the bay is notable for three species of mangroves, and rays and turtles can be found in the waters.
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It is possible to climb to the top of this volcano. Landing at Puerto Villamil at the south of the island it is necessary to take an 18 km ride to the smaller settlement of Santo Tomas on the slopes of the volcano. From here one can walk, or hire horses, for the further 9 km to the top of the volcano. The visitor trail goes round the rim. Vermillion flycatchers, Galapagos hawks, finches and short-eared owls are likely to be seen on this trail.
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Still active, and recently seriously so, it is possible to take a trail to the crater from Shipton Cove on the East coast of the island. This is a wet landing and the trail is steep, rocky and about 10 km long. Because the journey takes between 6 and 7 hours to the 1128 metre peak of Alcedo, there is a camp site so that the return trip does not have to be completed in a day. However a camping permit is required from the Park authorities.
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