Traveljunkieindonesia.com – If you have the urge to ascend spectacular peaks, watch the sun rise through the haze of steaming craters and peer into the earth’s bubbling core, you’ve come to the right place. Indonesia is the destination for volcano enthusiasts. This is thanks to the fact that it lies on a significant segment of the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’, where two large crustal plates (the Indian Ocean and western Pacific) are forced under the massive Eurasian plate, where they melt at approximately 100km beneath the surface. Some of the magma rises and erupts to form the string of volcanic islands across Indonesia. Indonesia’s volcanoes do erupt, sometimes with shocking consequences.
So here, Top 13 Amazing Volcanoes in Indonesia:
Java
1. Gunung Bromo – journey to Bromo, a sacred and eerie peak surrounded by the desolate Sea of Sands
2. Gunung Merapi – tackle the lush, jungle-covered slopes of Merapi, an almost-perfect conical volcano dominating the cultural heartland of Java
3. Gunung Krakatau – take a boat trip to see the remnants, and new beginnings, of one of the world’s A-list volcanoes
4. Kawah Ijen – spend the night at a peaceful coffee plantation before climbing this volcano to view its remarkable turquoise sulphur lake
Bali
5. Gunung Agung – take one of the numerous routes up and down Bali’s tallest and most sacred mountain; include seldom-visited temples in your journey
Sumatra
6. Gunung Sibayak – enjoy an easy and rewarding day hike a few hours’ bus ride from Medan
7. Gunung Merapi – climb Sumatra’s most restless volcano in the middle of the night for a sunrise view from the top
8. Gunung Kerinci – brave this challenging ascent up into the heavens on Sumatra’s highest peak
Nusa Tenggara
9. Gunung Rinjani – join pilgrims at the summit of this sacred peak, which has a huge crater lake overlooked by the active cone of Gunung Baru
10. Kelimutu – wonder at the ethereal scenery atop this volcano, with its three differently coloured crater lakes and lunaesque landscape
11. Wawo Muda – climb the summit of this cone in Flores, which only emerged in 2001, and view several small lakes of a rusty-red hue
Maluku
12. Gunung Api Gamalama – catch the view from Ternate of lovely Tidore and its string of offshore volcanoes
13. Gunung Api – scramble up this volcano in the Banda Islands to experience the awesome sunrise views
Happy Green Travels!
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