Fernandina Island cruises

About the island

Fernandina Island

Fernandina, once called Narborough Island, is the youngest and westernmost island of the Galápagos, and the most volcanically active. It is also one of the most pristine islands on Earth: no introduced mammals have ever become established here, so its landscapes of fresh black lava and its wildlife look much as they did when the first visitors arrived.

Less than one million years old, Fernandina is a single shield volcano, La Cumbre, which rises to 1,476 meters (4,842 feet) and holds a caldera about 6.5 kilometers (4 miles) wide. It has erupted more than a dozen times since the national park was created, and in 1968 the floor of its caldera collapsed by about 350 meters (1,150 feet). With 642 square kilometers (248 square miles) it is the third largest island, and it has no human population.

On our cruises Fernandina belongs to the western routes and is always visited together with Isabela, usually also with Santiago and Santa Cruz, on itineraries of five to eight days. Its visitor site, Espinosa Point, faces Isabela across the Bolívar Channel. A dry landing leads to a short coastal walk and an inland trail across ropy pahoehoe lava to a wall of rough aa lava, while marine iguanas lie piled on top of each other in the sun. Some itineraries add Mangle Point, a panga ride along the mangroves of the east coast.

Fernandina is the place to see the flightless cormorant, which lost the ability to fly and dives for its food along this cold coast, together with Galápagos penguins, sea lions and Galápagos hawks. The cool, nutrient-rich waters of the west attract sea turtles, which snorkelers often meet feeding on algae, and around June the young marine iguanas hatch and the Galápagos snakes come out to hunt them. The lava cactus, one of the first plants to grow on new lava, dots the black fields.

Because it lies at the far end of the archipelago, Fernandina is for travelers who choose a western itinerary and who value raw volcanic scenery and rare wildlife over beaches. The lava is sharp and uneven in places, the trail has no shade, and the water is cool, especially from June to November, when a wetsuit makes snorkeling more comfortable.

Fast facts

• Fernandina is the youngest island of the Galápagos, less than one million years old.
• No introduced mammals have ever become established on Fernandina, one of the most pristine islands on Earth.
• In 1968 the floor of its caldera collapsed by about 350 meters (1,150 feet).