TRAVEL SPECIAL
RAbove : Eye to eye with a green turtle
SBelow : A coral hawkfish rests against
a sea star
On the second week the current had shifted to the north . The action seemed to have cooled down at Darwin , so we tried a dive under the boat with the silky sharks . Some determined souls clung gamely to the line , but with my big camera I was helpless in the face of the current . I abandoned the dive almost immediately and surfaced to the grinning Zodiac driver , who had clearly seen it all before .
Holy mola !
After a second stint at Wolf , we headed south on another overnight cruise , making anchor at Cabo Douglas on the western side of Fernandina Island . It was a much anticipated stop , as the boat is licensed to carry out a morning dive with the marine iguanas . This is a big deal – I had visited Galapagos on two previous occasions and diving with the iguanas was never permitted .
Each morning , the iguanas take a few hours to warm up , then head into the water , where they graze on bright green algae . You have to allow them a bit of space , as they only have a short window in which to feed before their blood temperature falls and they have to leave the water and resume basking .
The dive takes place in the swelly shallows , where the iguanas cling on while munching determinedly at the algae . The viz is fairly awful … but it ’ s an opportunity to witness the behaviour of one of the planet ’ s most intriguing animals , a jungle iguana which has somehow adapted to life on a remote volcanic island .
The other highlight of the southern islands was Punta Vincente Roca on Isabela , where the reef provides a cast of critters attracted by the cooler currents . The stage was set for a particularly big beast , the Mola mola or oceanic sunfish , which visits to be cleaned by hogfish .
The water was the coldest of the trip at about 19 ° C ; as I peered below I couldn ’ t really imagine a sunfish appearing amid this chilly gloom . But after a while Max pointed down excitedly , and I could make out the shadowy outline of something very big indeed .
Max motioned us to descend , and I did my best to be stealthy . However the darkness and depth had got to me ; I fluffed my buoyancy and ended up practically on top of one of the Mola ( there were two !); so close that it gave me a dirty look and swam off , followed by its partner .
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