WORLD'S MOST ACCESSIBLE VOLCANO

(August 2006)

They don’t call it that for nothin’.

It’s also true that I haven’t actually checked up on this claim. I haven’t looked around to see if any other active, fire-breathing, lava-spewing volcano might actually be more accessible, but now that I’ve been to Mt.Yasur I’d have to guess that it’s not likely. Oh sure, first you have to get to Tanna Island. And then you have to take an hour-long ass-bashing, body-rocking truck ride over the word’s worst roads. But once you get to the base of the beast it’s just a simple, unobstructed hike to the outer rim – a precariously positioned viewing area just meters from the glowing hole in the ground. All around you is evidence in the form of scattered lava rocks of the danger in which you’ve just placed yourself.

Like a damn fool.

No guards telling you were to go. No guardrails for that matter. No signage warning you “Do Not Cross This Line” or “Warning: Imminent Danger of Agonizing Death”. You are free to do as you wish – just you and the volcano.

We had been hearing about volcanoes since the day we arrived in Vanuatu – a nation made of volcano-formed islands. Indeed Vanuatu sits smack dab in the most active area of the famed Pacific “Ring of Fire” – the volcano belt of the planet. We have several active volcanoes, several dormant volcanoes, and a history of land altering volcanic explosions. Some years ago (ok - a really long time ago) a large island just north of Efate, in what is now the Shefa Province, erupted with such force that it literally blew the entire island apart, killing all it’s inhabitants, and forming a collection of scattered, smaller islands now known as The Shepard Island Group – many of which remain uninhabited. In more recent history (about 2001?) the volcano on Lopevi Island erupted and entire villages were displaced to neighboring islands. Mt.Yasur, located in southeast Tanna, is not only active, but spews out molten lava rocks on a continuous basis.

In training we had some disaster preparedness training that included volcanoes. The good news is that scientists have learned to read the signs of an impending major eruption so that some warning of catastrophe is usually available. The bad news is that we really don’t have many (or any) scientists here and unless we have several days notice there is no getting off this small island. We’re on the other side of the island, so we likely wouldn’t die from falling rocks or lava, but rather from the un-breathable, poisoned, ash-filled air.

It seemed to the more informed among us that the bigger danger is from tsunamis caused by underground earthquakes, and even more so from serious cyclones which hit on average twice a year. Tsunamis would hit with no warning and as such I often lay awake in my oceanfront bungalow and wonder how quickly I would be able to break through the side window if water came rushing in the front door. And which tree I would climb. You are told to find a middle-aged palm tree (this goes for cyclones as well) – the young and old, as in humans, are the most fragile. The middle-aged ones have the strength and flexibility you would need as you hang on for dear life.

This is the kind of shit that keeps me up some nights – Tsunami’s that rarely happen and cyclone’s that come with plenty of warning - somehow forgetting that I share a small island with an active volcano.

I also had the chance to hear and read some first hand accounts of people visiting Mt.Yasur, including a travel writer named Troost who’s most recent book “Getting Stoned With Savages” detailed his recent adventures in Vanuatu. His descriptions of Ni-Van’s, kava, island life, and custom ceremonies are all right on. So naturally I wouldn’t doubt his descriptions of his visit to Mt.Yasur. He visited the volcano on a particularly active night along with his wife and some local guides. The activity of the volcano fluctuates from week to week – locals will tell you it is seasonal, which for them means it flares up when they put the yams in the ground (this month!) and is less active when they pull them out. Troost’s descriptions of the volcano included literally dodging falling molten lava rocks. You never, he was warned, turn your back on the volcano. If you see lava rocks coming your way it’s much smarter to keep your eye on them so you know which way to dodge – turn your back to run and you increase your chance of getting hit. And while Troost survived to tell his tale, there are plenty of stories of the ones that didn’t make it. If you get hit you’re as good as dead even if you survive the trauma of molten rocks melting through your body. The toxic metals in the rock will immediately enter your bloodstream and poison you to death before you could ever reach any kind of medical attention. Which is exactly what happened to a local guy a few years ago. A rock went through his leg, and he lived long enough to suffer and die from the poisons. And then there is the cliched, but obligatory story of foolish Japanese picture taking tourists. As the story goes they perished when they climbed down into the inner rim of the crater, set up the camera for a timed shoot, and while posing they got showered with bright yellow and orange lava rocks. Must have been an ugly scene. I can’t help but wonder if the camera survived and if it recorded any of the drama.

It’s slightly comforting to think that most of the people killed by Yasur were doing something foolish at the time, AKA going for that perfect photo shot, but the truth is that just standing there is a big risk. The guy that died from the rock hitting his leg was, as they carefully point out, standing in the same place as everyone else.

And yet during training when everyone talked about which islands they may want to visit Tanna was always the first one on everyone’s list – who wouldn’t want to see The World’s Most Accessible Volcano given the chance? How can you pass up this nations greatest claim to fame? Sure we also have the SS Calvin Coolidge, the world’s largest, most divable shipwreck off the coast of Espirito Santo, but Mt. Yasur is a V-O-L-C-A-N-O!

So who wouldn’t want to see it?

“I’m not going,” he says.

“What do you mean you aren’t going?” I say

“I mean… I’m not going to stand on the edge of any active volcano”

“Oh, you mean you will go to the edge of the volcano, but you aren’t going to walk around to the more dangerous side, right?” I clarify; making a reference to the exploits described in “Getting Stoned with Savages” a book that Matt read as well.

“No, I mean I’m not going to the edge of any freakin’ active volcano”, he insists.

This guy was killing me. Everyone in our group would have killed to be placed on Tanna if for no other reason than to have easy access to the volcano, but sure enough the guy I get stuck with was the one wuss of the group. How could anyone pass up such a great opportunity?

“Matt, we are going to stand on the edge of that damn volcano!” I declare.

“You can, but I’m not”

“No, we’re going together”

“I’m not”

“You ARE”

“Listen!.. You can draw a goddamn life-size picture of me and take that with you if you want, but my ass isn’t getting anywhere near that thing”

Sheesh. That was the end of that conversation. We were still in training so I figured maybe once we got to the island he would eventually change his tune. Not that I needed him to join me, but I just couldn’t imagine a fellow PCV, a friend no less, passing up the opportunity to experience such a thing.

Shortly after arriving in Tanna we start hearing some positive stories, particularly from Jeff, the PCV that I’m replacing, who has visited Yasur several times. Sure enough Matt decides he wants to see the volcano and we start talking about when we might want to make the trip. We both decide that it’s a special thing and we should wait a while – wait until we’re really bored and just aching for some entertainment. And so we wait. Months come and go, but no plans have been made.

But as it is in this part of the world things just happen randomly. You can never really predict how a day is going to happen. You may wake up in the morning and think you’ve got a leisurely, boring day ahead of you (maybe laundry and other household chores) and next thing you know you’re in the back of a truck heading out to the middle-bush delivering some coconuts or some silly shit like that. Or maybe you had a full day of meetings and “official” work planned but you end the day having accomplished absolutely nothing because no one showed up for the meeting. Saturdays are no different from Tuesdays. Workdays can turn into play days or just the opposite and you might not realize it until the day is nearly over. That’s island life.

And so it was with my first trip to see Mt. Yasur. The Peace Corps has been working closely with a French/E.U. aide organization called POPACA. Our POPACA counterpart is named Steven, a young French guy that has played a key role with Jeff in getting the coffee project going. Several weeks ago an E.U. representative from Belgium paid him a visit. A large (tall and solid looking) middle-aged, balding, gregarious, friendly, chatty, likable kind of guy. It was the kind of visit where some official comes to make sure all the money they send is being spent wisely. But of course no one comes to Tanna just to look at the coffee factory. So when we saw them at dinnertime we asked what plans they had for the evening thinking they might want to join us for some kava. When they mentioned they were going to the volcano our eyes lit up - this was our first and best opportunity. Matt had come down from his village to use the computers in Isangel and had planned on going back home. He had been spending so much time at my bungalow recently (with the Toka festival and such) that he was concerned his own village was gonna forget who he was – not to mention he needed to feed his puppy at some point. But this was a great opportunity – a free ride with our friends. And we had only an hour to prepare.

We had waited long enough. And the puppy would live until tomorrow, right?

Half the adventure is getting there. The drive is over an hour long (probably half that time if the roads were properly paved) and takes us directly through the center of the island from west to east. Steve and his E.U. inspector guy sat up front in the cab of the compact Toyota pickup truck. Jeff, Matt and I sat on a pair of 2x4’s that made a small bench in the bed of the truck directly behind the cab, and Kamut sat in the bed of the truck, leaning against the tailgate. Kamut is probably about 35 years old, has spent his entire life on Tanna Island, but has visited the volcano only twice – both times in the daylight.

As we were just starting to leave town some other random Ni-Van dude jumped in the back and came along for the ride. So we were seven in total.

We drove off in the evening, as the sun was beginning to set. About a half-hour into our journey, as the truck climbed high up into the hills of the middle bush, we could look back to a fantastic view of half the island. Lush green tropical landscape, with an expansive view of the Pacific Ocean illuminated by a sun hanging just “inches” above the horizon – a scene right out of a movie. All the while the truck was tossing us around as it toughed it out on a rugged, bumpy, water-worn road. I use the term “road” loosely here.

We also had a new perspective on all the surrounding mountains, which weren’t quite so apparent from our sea-level location down near the coffee factory. My home island was being revealed to me in a whole new way!

Now we were about in the middle of the island, driving along a steep and precarious mountain pass that had no guardrail. Steven decided to stop the truck for a Kodak moment – there was an amazing view of a deep valley off to our left. We had stopped the truck just as we rounded a bend so that directly behind the truck was a steep cliff. Everyone jumped out of the truck except Kamut and the other Ni-Van who both just sat in the truck leaning against the tailgate. A small child appeared down the side of the cliff a bit, and I noticed some small huts scattered about the bushes. The kid said hello and as a joke Steven and I started to chase after him. At that very moment Kamut started a panicky yell:

“Truk ee go bak! Truk ee go bak!”

And sure enough the truck, with the two Ni-Vans inside, had started rolling backwards towards the cliff. Thankfully it was rolling slowly, the emergency break holding to some degree, giving Steven enough time to jump back in and re-set the brake. Had we another second to chase after that damn kid…

So we chased after him anyway, assured that the brake was gonna hold this time (brake or no brake, the Ni-Vans had now decided to wait outside of the truck). But the kid was clever and evaded us instantly. We looked around for just a few minutes as the Belgian was snapping pictures of the countryside before giving up. As soon as we jumped back into the truck the kid magically reappeared, jumping right out of the bushes by the edge of the road, and cheerfully waved us on.

Another half-hour and we had crested the center of the island and were heading down the east side. When the road faced the right angle, and if you looked closely, you could see some other islands off in the distance – Fortuna and Aniwa, each much, much smaller than Tanna. I could kind of see what Steven and Jeff were trying to point out, but damn it there was all this brown smoke in the way. And sure enough, as I looked over to the south, I had a clear view of the famed Mt.Yasur volcano in the near distance. From here you couldn’t see any glow or shooting rocks, but the billowing thick smoke indicated that she was putting on a good show tonight. I got a wave of “holy shit” excitement, combined with a nice solid wave of “HOLY SHIT” fear. Even though it seemed we were only minutes away as the crow fly’s, the access roads would take at least another half-hour – and this would be the most ass-bashing-est part of the trip. A Hummer H1 would be the only sensible production vehicle to take on these roads, but that little Toyota pick-up truck was a real trooper.

In between sections of the worlds worst roads we had to cross an apocalyptic-looking landscape as we neared the base of the volcano. It seems that the winds primarily blow to the north, which has created a large, duned, ash plain where nothing grows. Grey, smooth and ashy. It’s easy to imagine yourself on the moon. Steven speeds up the truck, and swerves around having a bit of fun. In the middle of the ash plain we stop, exit the truck and take a look around. I snap some photos. There was still some slight sunlight – enough to add a dusky glow to the scene. I noticed for the first time that tonight was a full moon. Once a minute or so Yasur would burp out a large cloud of dark brown smoke that the wind would slowly carry off to the north. If you listened closely you could hear a faint rumbling.

[insert moon/yasur photo]

Then it was back into the truck that had to cross a former lakebed before heading back into the bush. What happened to the lake I’m not sure, but the map we have at the factory (dated 1995) clearly shows a large body of water right where our truck was now driving. Curious. Should this be cause for concern? Or is it normal for lakes to just disappear? Did it run out to the ocean, or did it drain into a crack in the Earth?

The road circled around another 15 minutes or so, taking us to the east side where a couple guys where collecting the $23 fee to access the access road. And what a rip-off – the “road”, which led us up to within a 5 minute walk of the outer rim was barely a road at all. It was like the kind of road you see in SUV commercials where a new Jeep is traversing some impassable boulder situation or a Chevy Tahoe is climbing a steep grade that you just know was faked. Absolutely the worst driving conditions EVER. A testament to the value of a Toyota that we made it up alive, but my whole body was paying the price.

Within minutes of paying we are parking the truck halfway up the side of Mt. Yasur.

It’s not even worth mentioning, but here goes anyway… the Vanuatu Post Office has this thing about placing postal boxes in “unique” places. Back in Vila there is a small island just off the mainland – Hideaway Island. You can ferry out in 10 minutes and then kick back with a beer from the small bar/restaurant and maybe do some snorkeling. Here they have the world’s only underwater post office! We actually learned about this on the plane ride in from Auckland when they subjected us to a tourist video. So I snorkeled out and dove down the ten feet to check it out. Silly really. Just a sunken cubicle sized box where you can insert a special laminated postcard that you would write on with a wax pen all of which cost you far too much and probably gets the black wax all over everyone else’s normal mail when it gets sent out. The box looked mossy, rusty and rarely used, but they sure played it up in the tourist information guides. Along with…

The World’s Only Volcano Postal Box! And now that I’ve seen the volcano box, just a rusty unused mailbox next to where we parked our truck halfway up the side of the volcano, I’d have to say the underwater post is about ten times more clever. And I never thought I’d hear myself saying such a thing.

As soon as we jump out of the back of the truck we hear a large rumbling. It sounded exactly like how you might imagine a T-Rex might sound if it were sitting on the other side of the hill and was bleching after having just ate a large meal.

It’ll sound like a cliché but Kamut and I both immediately had to piss. It wasn’t cause we were scared – I swear! – but rather a long, bumpy truck ride. So we walked over to the side of a cliff area to relieve ourselves. It was dark so it took a moment, but as my eyes adjusted I realized steam was coming off the side of the rocks all around us. I bent down and felt the ground – it was warm. In some places it was hot. Again, the loud rumbling. And then an excited chill runs through my body.

Now I was on the verge of un-contained excitement. Kamut and I ran back to the group and we all bounded up the mountain. The Belgian guy, having not read or heard any stories about Yasur, previously didn’t believe us when we gave him instructions not to turn your back on flying molten lava rocks. He really thought we were pulling his leg when we calmly explained that it was smarter to stay in place and just dodge the rocks if they were coming your way. He didn’t think that would ever be a possibility. But now that we were climbing up the side of the hill he was making excited exclamations and all his doubts were immediately put aside. As were mine. A bit of fear was starting to set in. Huge rumbling again. Large plume of smoke ejected above our head.

Wait… was this a good idea?

Hell yeah.

Was this a smart idea?

Hell no.

I looked all around and noticed that the landscape had changed from Lunar-like to Mars-like. Lava rocks of all different sizes (several feet in diameter to just a few inches in diameter) were scattered all about – each one had blown out of the volcano and landed right were I saw them. Not a few here and there, but thousands such that a small path had been cleared away so the tourist could more easily navigate in the dark.

We were able to walk around wherever we pleased, but we all followed a path that led to a wide ledge on the outer rim. As soon as I crested the path I felt a pulse in the air pressure, heard a low rumble, saw a quick orange flash, and then witnessed the volcano erupt. The roar was thunderous now. Thousands of bright yellow-orange rocks shot straight up into the air – high enough to top the highest part of the outer rim. They arced up and out into all different directions and I stopped right in my tracks.

“Don’t turn your back, don’t turn your back” I kept chanting to myself.

My heart was beating out of my chest. I could feel my pulse pumping in my neck and wrists. Mother of god. Everyone in our group was hootin’ and hollerin’ now – all sorts of expletives. Matt, the Belgian and myself all yelling out in excited joy and fear.

Within a second or two I could clearly see that the eruption was spewing away and to the sides of where we were standing. Thank god. The wind was blowing in that direction as well therefore the ash and smoke were never a problem as we had been told they might.

I continued walking along the outer rim to a higher, closer, and more optimum viewing area where several other tourists had gathered.

The volcano kept erupting more than once a minute – sometimes straight up, other times a much wider but lower spray. Every five minutes there would be an ominous calm where nothing happened. You could always see a glow down in the hole, but the nothingness was unnerving. And then there would be a flash of light, a pulse in the air pressure, and BLAM!! A huge fireworks display. Then several minutes of smaller bursts before another huge blast.

Jeff and Steven, both veteran’s of the volcano, each said that this was the most active they’ve ever seen it. In fact Kamut, seeing it for the first time at night, was absolutely terrified and ran back to the truck. Jeff, nervous for Kamut, but also scared himself, also ran back to the truck, but not before trying to get us to abort the trip. But Matt, the Belgian, and myself were all ecstatic – this was certainly the best thing we’ve seen in Vanuatu by far – and one of the best things we’ve ever seen in our lives.

While I never really felt truly in danger - although you can never really be sure – there were a few times when we all took several steps back and just sort of kept our eyes on all the falling rocks. We never had to dodge anything (thank god) and there were only a few occasions where the rocks came within a few meters of us. Close enough to cause alarm, but more than anything it just added to the excitement. If your life wasn’t in mortal danger what fun would it really be?

After a short while Kamut, Jeff and the other guy all were ready to leave – but the rest of us were just mesmerized by the volcano and didn’t want to leave. The Belgian guy was maybe the most excited of us all and he was getting some good digital video. I was trying to get some still images but couldn’t really capture the true feeling of the moment. You’re just gonna have to come see for yourself.

Oh – and the volcano is relatively small. At least, that was my impression. Mt. Yasur itself is only 300 meters high. The outer rim of the crater has an opening about 1500 feet by 1000 feet. Maybe smaller. The inner opening – the actual mouth of the volcano, is about a third of that. When it shoots up on an average eruption the lava rocks don’t clear the top of the outer rim – but when it shoots really high I would guess it clears 100 meters from the opening of the mouth. Someone told me that there are actually four different openings, visible only from the opposite side of the outer rim, but the only way your getting me over there is if you “take a goddamn life-size drawing of me”

More links:
http://www.rambocam.com/archive/yasur.html
http://www.shunya.net/Usha/Vanuatu/Vanuatu.htm
http://www.vanuatu.net.vu/tourism/intro/infocolumns/Yasur-Snow-Boarding.shtml

[special notes: 1. Big thanks to Mark Hernandez for giving me the book “Getting Stoned with Savages” – very entertaining. I’ve shared it with several other PCV’s in my group. 2. I don’t know much about other volcanoes on Vanuatu, but since this is the only one they ever talk about I figure it’s the only one that is still actively spewing out lava rocks. 3. I don’t know the exact dates of the Sheperd Island volcano eruption or the Lopevi eruption – if you do please email me and I will be grateful and I will edit my post. 4. Matt resents that I refer to him as a “wuss”. He’s not, but he was. 5. I’ve since visited Yasur a second time and was only mildly disappointed that it wasn’t as good a show – you just can’t predict when it will be really going off. But even when it’s small eruptions it’s still a volcano. 6. It might sound like all fun and games here in Vanuatu, but we really are doing work too. I swear!]