Today is the last full day of the cruise, and we visit Chinese Hat and Dragon Hill. For some reason Sombrero Chino is disappointing – maybe due to the fact that the access to the island is limited to a small section of the foreshore. We encounter another sea lion mother and newborn pup, and a nearby Galapagos hawk, which has been feasting on the placenta.
A great morning snorkel session follows on the opposite shore. No less than 4 white-tipped sharks in the water, one of which swims unconcernedly beneath me as it goes about its business. There are a lot of fish in the water, with many more smaller fish than we have encountered previously. It is also possible again today to swim back to the Beagle, rather than clamber back into the panga, so I continue the Australian national pride activity of being first off the side of the panga and last out of the water by swimming back to the boat.
This afternoon, we take a short hike around Dragon Hill, home to some of the more photogenic landscapes that the Galapagos has to offer, and also home to some duelling land iguanas. The landscape is quite salt-affected and acidic
