Climbing Active Volcanos - Bromo and Ijen

Our next adventure was an exciting one as we were hiking up some very active volcanos. We arrived in the cold, deserted town of Ceromo Lawang which was our starting point to see Gunung Bromo. After settling into our concrete shed of a room, we had a little look around and found ourselves on the edge of the caldera. We got our first glimpse of the vast wasteland including the smoking crater of Bromo and accompanying volcanos that we would be trekking towards early tomorrow morning; we could barely contain our excitement.

Dressed in as many layers as we could pull out of our backpacks, we headed out at 2am to climb Mount Penanjakan to watch the sunrise over Bromo. It was pitch black as we hiked towards the viewpoint and there were significantly less people around than we thought. Clambering up the dusty inclines and gripping onto the slippery rocks was not an easy task. After an hour of hiking we eventually found a perfect spot, just below the busy viewpoint in a gap between some trees. All we could do now was wait for the sun to rise and try not to shiver too much. The outline of the volcanos steadily came into view as the blue hues of the sunrise made their way across the landscape. We stood there in awe for over an hour watching the colours change to reveal this picture perfect view. 

After dragging ourselves away from that beautiful scene we had to hike back down, but this time we had light on our side so it was a little easier. It was an odd experience properly seeing where we'd just trekked for the first time, especially as sometimes we were much closer to a cliff edge than we thought! Another thing that changed was the weather as it went from freezing cold to boiling hot in the space of an hour. We made the decision to go straight to the crater edge of Bromo choosing the local route. This meant slipping through the fence followed by a steep hike/slide down the volcanic ash to the edge of the sea of sand. It was like being on the moon, what I imagine anyway, with a vast landscape of grey ash before us and a giant smoking crater in the centre. The distance was deceptive as it took about 45 minutes to trek across but we eventually made it to the bottom of the volcano, our bones shaking from the very ominous rumble above us.

We didn't think about how we'd feel standing at the edge of a frighteningly loud active volcano, but nothing could prepare us for what we experienced. After a gruelling walk up the stairs we came face to face with the crater edge and a roaring that sounded like a hundred jet engines. We were glued to the spot in fascination and terror, there's nothing quite like it. Also we were literally at the very edge, there is a tiny barrier (that I clung to) but nothing else is between you and the crater below. If you're brave enough, Josh was braver than me, you can walk all around the rim where there is no barrier at all. In fact you can see in the photo someone poised on the edge more courageous than us both! It was undoubtedly an experience we'll never forget. The name Bromo derives from the Hindu word for creator and it is a very spiritual place. Many locals trek up here to give offerings to the volcano, happily wandering around the rim with no worries.

By the time we'd struggled our way back down the crater and across the wasteland, it was 11am and we were exhausted. We had a long, difficult journey over to our next natural wonder, Kawah Ijen. A couple of girls we met were determined to hike Ijen that night, despite our train not arriving until 10pm giving them two hours before they had to leave. Add this to the fact we'd had little sleep after waking up at 2am that morning to hike Bromo, it would have been too tiring so we opted to have a night of sleep instead. After an incredibly uneventful day we began our journey to volcano number two at 12am to hunt for the mystical blue flames. 

Our jeep struggled it's way up to Ijen literally only just making it to the base. We began our 3km climb in the darkness not knowing where the edges of the cliff were, with our gas masks at the ready to protect us from the sulphurous gases. We were hiking down into the crater so after all the climbing up, we had to struggle down single file. Similar to our experience at Bromo, we were pretty much blind and had no idea how steep it was until we saw the crater edge in the light; I'm not sure how we got down unscathed! We could see the blue flames licking the side of the rocks in the distance and the closer we got, the more magical it became. It was fascinating watching the sulphur catch light especially as it was the only thing we could see in the dark of the night. We stood watching the phenomenon as the sun rose and the blue acidic lake came into view, as well as the thick clouds of choking sulphur. 

There's no way you can talk about a visit to Ijen without mentioning the plight of the local Sulphur Miners. They work tirelessly for next to nothing, around $10 a day, shortening their lives by years in the process. They were incredibly proud of the difficult job they do and it was unbelievable to watch them brave the fumes without a mask to then carry 100kg of yellow sulphur up the steep cliffs. We did learn that many of them are becoming local guides so things are changing, but it is still a horrendous trade. Our time in Ijen was incredibly otherworldly and as the sun rose we strolled around the acidic lake and watched the sulphur billow out of the volcano. 

We stood and admired the beauty of this volcano for a while, thought about the hardship of the miners and avoided the eye-watering sulphur fumes as much a possible until it was time to depart. We began our ascent up the steep cliff still wondering how on earth we made it down in the dark. On our way back our struggling jeep gave up and as smoke filled the car, we considered if the real danger wasn't the volcano but the dodgy vehicles here in Indonesia. After seeing these natural beauties we were on a high (definitely not because of the sulphur fumes) but couldn't wait to relax on the beach at our next stop Bali.