Tower Island (also known as Genovesa Island) is a shield volcano in the Galápagos Islands in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The horse-shoe shaped island has a volcanic caldera whose wall has collapsed, forming the Great Darwin Bay, surrounded by cliffs. Lake Arcturus, filled with salt water, lies in the centre, and sediment within this crater lake is less than 6,000 years old. Although no historical eruptions are known from Genovesa, there are very young lava flows on the flanks of the volcano.
This island is nicknamed ‘Bird Island’, because of the large and varied bird colonies which nest here. Visitor sites on the island include Prince Phillip’s Steps, which is a rocky path leading up the 25m high walls to the largest bird colonies on the island. The other site is Darwin Bay, a small beach where visitors can see sea lions, birds and a great view from nearby cliffs.
Things to See and Do
* Bird colonies
* Prince Philip’s Steps
* Marine Iguanas
* Darwin Bay
* Sea lions
Cruise Season – Jan - Dec
Currency – U.S. dollar2 (USD)
Language – Spanish
Population – 40,000 approx (Galapagos islands)
Land Area – 14 km²
Electricity – 2 perpendicular flat pins USA style
Time – GMT minus five hours
International Country Telephone Code – + 593
Port Location – There is no port at Genovesa island, however dry landings are made at Prince Phillip’s Steps and Darwin Bay.
Transport Links – Flights to the Galapagos are relatively easy to arrange and depart from Quito and Guayaquil on a daily basis for the Isla Baltra airport, about two hours by public transport from Puerto Ayora, the main settlement of the Galapagos, on the central island of Santa Cruz.
On arriving into Baltra, all visitors are immediately transported by bus to one of two docks. The first dock is located in a small bay where the boats cruising the Galápagos await passengers. The second is a ferry dock which connects Baltra to the island of Santa Cruz via the Itabaca Channel.
Genovesa is the most remote of the islands, and requires an overnight boat ride through seas that can occasionally become mildly rough.