This week’s the anniversary of the eruption of Pompei. On August 24 AD 79, Mount Vesuvius near Naples erupted to destroy the towns of Pompei and Herculaneum creating a legend that scared a young Kiwi at bedtime for longer than he’d like to admit. (It didn’t really matter that the mountain I grew up under in Rotorua, New Zealand was actually extinct).
A recent post on Forbes Traveler listed the top ten volcanic adventures for the intrepid globetrotter. Here’s their top three.
- Kilauea in Hawaii. Since 1983 the 4091 foot peak has been putting on a spectacular show.
- Mount Liamuiga in St Kitts. You’ll need to travel for six hours through rainforest to reach the summit.
- Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania . Technically it’s not an active volcano, but you can spy hot magma at 1300 beneath the summit. Count on a 5 day hike to conquer Africa’s highest peak.
Here’s three more I’ve been lucky enough to experience.
- Mount Kelimutu on the Indonesian island of Flores. There are 3 different crater lakes, all a different colour.
- Mount Cotopaxi in Ecuador. The most fun you’ll have mountain biking from the snowline to a temperate forest.
- Mount Yasur on Tanna island in Vanuatu. The most fun you’ll have mountain biking on a South Pacific island.
Thanks to Matthew Winterburn on Flickr for the pic of Kelimutu.