Volcan Pacaya

Remember Geography lessons in Secondary 3… where the theory of volcano formation, and terms like “lava river” and “molten lava” were just words which we had to form a picture from via imagination and if we were lucky, a couple of 3D drawings? Well, due to the thankfully lenient (or non-existent?) laws on safety and natural park protection, we journeyed 2 hours on a reject yellow school bus from the 80s, then hiked 2 hours through loose black lava rocks, horse shit, rain, cold, mud and steep slopes. We suffered through falls, scrapes, cut up hands and legs, and just when we (at least I was…) on the verge of tears, there it was.

The most unbelievable vision I’ve ever seen and I hesitate to put pictures up coz it just will not and could not do it justice. We stood literally 3 meters from molten lava flowing down the volcan. It was pitch dark by the time we reached the summit, and the luminous lava, the heat radiating from the molten rock and the sheer danger of it all kept us all balancing on the shaky ground of loose rocks, with only a stick to help us along. Jem’s stick, poked into the rock, actually caught fire as there was apparently a little molten lava not far below where we were standing. I fell about 15 times that night and everyone else at least 7 on average. But every cut and scrape, every ache and every bruise was worth it. I’ve come as close to molten lava as humanly possible, and it was bloody amazing. It might not be possible in a couple of years… all we need is one person to fall in the lava river and they’ll ban night hikes for good. Pack your bags, grab some garden gloves, waterproof jumpers and go.



The Grueling Hike



Wish i knew how to attach the video clip we have. Thanks for the pictures, Dave!