North Seymore and Santa Cruz

We see North Seymore in the morning and Santa Cruz in the afternoon (somehow we fit in 3 enormous and incredible meals too!) In the morning we get our first view of some fascinating birds as well as our first iguanas and crabs. I'd seen pictures of blue footed boobies before - but it was absolutely astounding to see them in the flesh and blood. Blue is just not a color you see very often in nature! We saw a mating dance, parents nesting on eggs, and even newly hatched chicks! We respected the 6 foot rule as much as we could - but sometimes the birds were closer than that to the trail. We also saw two groups of frigate birds - each had a number of males with their magnificent red throats inflated! No wonder this feature attracts the females - they were astounding! We even saw carrying nesting materials. There were various other finches and a lava heron too. The iguanas are really neat - they are land iguanas (I didn't even know there were various types) - they look so prehistoric! I feel like I am in a 1950s monster film. This is everything I hoped it would be! Of course there are sea lions too. Being from Maryland - I'd never have thought I'd be amazed by crabs - but the red ones are so brilliantly colored and there are even little black ones. In the afternoon, the land was different - mostly black basalt and some very red dirt - the red reminds me of Hawaii - but nothing is lush. More and different birds and iguanas - large yellowish iguanas as well as black ones - finches, mocking birds, and one that looked something like a duck. Unfortunately there was also a feral cat - proof of the difficulty in keeping the islands pure. If this one is not caught, it could have a substantial effect on the ecosystem. It runs off into the brush. In the evening we see 6-7 large sharks circling the boat and sea lions and fish chasing florescent fish that are jumping out of the water. Amazing! Harry spends a long long time watching the evening 'fish show' - but still does not say he has changed his mind about the trip. I think he is just not ready to admit this is fun.