My proposal will appeal to those who love romance and unusual adventures. There is a fantastic place on the island of Java. It is called Ijen volcano. Once here, you will feel like both an interplanetary traveler and the hero of Dante's Divine Comedy.

Excursion to Ijen Volcano includes:

• Transfer from hotel to Gilimanuk port
• Ferry to Java
• Transfer from Ket Apang port to the volcano
• Climbing
• If desired, lunch at a restaurant

Why is Ijen Volcano interesting?

One of the most unusual volcanic complexes in the world consists of 1 4 cones, one crater and two stratovolcanoes. It covers an area of ​​about 20 km². Located around an ancient caldera, inside of which is the world's largest acid lake.

The depth of the reservoir is about 200 m, the radius is 361 m. The temperature on the surface of the lake is 60°C-70°C, and in the depths 170°C-245°C (sulfur boils at such figures). The concentration of sulfurous and hydrochloric acid is very high; life in such water is impossible.

Ijen Volcano has very high fumaric activity. Clouds of hydrogen sulfide are constantly released from rock crevices. Reacting with air, they ignite. The fire is weak and can only be seen at dusk. It has an amazing blue color. Sometimes the amount of gas and liquid sulfur is so large that a kind of blue lava is formed. This phenomenon was first recorded on film and shown to the world by the French photographer Oliver Grünewald in the 90s of the last century.

When condensed, hydrogen sulfide turns into elemental sulfur. In its liquid state it has a bright red color. Then it gradually cools and hardens, becoming at first semi-transparent, with an amber tint, and then yellow.

Sulfur deposits on the slopes of the volcano are a source of income for many local residents. It is mined in an almost artisanal way. Men break off pieces of minerals with hand tools, load them into baskets and carry them to the nearest village. The weight of the cargo is 60-80 kg, and the distance to the receiving point is about 4 km. The work of miners is very harmful, and the income is only 8-1 3 dollars a day.

Now I want to tell you about the trip to the volcano.

How the tour works

I will pick you up from your hotel at approximately 18:00-18:30. We need to start the trip in the evening to climb the slopes of the volcano at dusk and see the blue fire. We will travel in a comfortable minivan with air conditioning.

First of all, you need to get to the port of Gilimanuk; it is located at the westernmost point of Bali. The journey will take 5 -5.5 hours and will pass along the busiest highway on the island.

Closer to midnight we will board the ferry and go to Java, to the port of Ketapang. The swim is short - only 30 minutes. Upon arrival we will be greeted by my partner, an English-speaking guide.

After meeting my partner, we will transfer to his four-wheel drive vehicles. Next we will go to the volcano in jeeps.

The ascent will begin at 02:00. Before this, you will receive protective masks and flashlights to prevent you from inhaling toxic gases and to light the way.

The distance from the foot to the top is about 3 km. The path at the beginning of the climb is steeper than at the top. It meanders between large stones and boulders. Having reached the peak, we will go down 200-300 m, this can be done in 30 minutes. So the journey will take 2-2.5 hours.

Having reached observation deck, we will admire the blue glow of burning hydrogen sulfide. It is unlikely that you will be able to observe such a natural phenomenon anywhere else. If you're very lucky, we'll see real blue lava flowing out of an acidic lake.

At approximately 06:00 we will see the sunrise. You will see yellow-orange rocks, the turquoise surface of the lake and clouds of smoke rising above its surface. If you wish, you can go down to the lake. The water is hot and highly acidic, but you can quite safely touch the surface and even rinse your hands.

IN good weather visible from the top of the volcano neighboring island Bali. The surroundings of the caldera are very beautiful, the slopes with outside covered with tropical forest and coffee plantations.

The descent will take us less time than the ascent. From early in the morning, a small warung is open on the mountainside, we can relax next to it, drink coffee and have a snack.

At the foot of the mountain they sell original souvenirs. Miners pour liquid sulfur into special molds; when it cools, simple figures are obtained. So, if you wish, getting souvenirs will not be difficult.

At 07:30-08:00 in the morning we will be in the parking lot. On the way to the port you can stop at one of local restaurants have a snack. We will return to the hotel in Bali after lunch, around 16:00-17:00.

Important information!

Climbing the Ijen volcano is not always possible.

There are two reasons for this:

1. High seismic activity
2. High concentration of gases in the valley

However, I always find out about this in advance. Therefore, if such a situation occurs, I will warn you and we can plan the trip for another day.

We planned our five-day trip to Java back in Moscow, in February, when we bought plane tickets. The difficulty was that they usually travel through Java starting from Yogyakarta towards the ferry to Bali, visiting temples and volcanoes along the way, but our route was exactly the opposite. And so, the plan turned out like this: get to the ferry from Bali to Java, swim across the strait and first of all visit the Ijen volcano. Next we wanted to see the panorama of Bromo volcano, and from there go to Yogyakarta to the Borbodur and Prambanan temples. And then from Jogja take a plane back to Bali. Everything seems simple, but apart from the purchased plane ticket from Java to Bali, we had a vague idea of ​​​​movements along the rest of the route.

Now that I am writing this post, having traveled along the entire route, we already know how it could have been done somewhere cheaper, and somewhere more comfortable. But what’s done is done, and I’m glad that everything turned out this way! But I’ll still write to you about alternative travel options.

If you decide to get to Java by ferry, then a fairly budget option would be to buy a bus ticket to the ferry in Denpasar. Some buses also load onto the ferry, but I don’t know exactly where they go afterwards. In Java, near the port of Ketapang, you can take a taxi to Ijen. Our friend, a guide in Bali named Whiskey, said that the price of such a move would be approximately 350 thousand rupees (about $40). Since we didn’t want to go early in the morning from Kuta to Denpasar and run around looking for where to buy something, it was decided to take a car with a driver. The journey from Kuta to the port of Gilimanuk will cost about 400 thousand rupees. The price of a ferry to Java for a car is 100 thousand rupees ($10), for people it is even less. Now you will understand why I am writing all this)))
Being in a normal Balinese “relaxed” state, we put off searching for a driver until the last minute. As a result, the evening before departure we bought a tour at a regular tourist office in Kuta. We bargained for a long time and agreed that for 1,300,000 rupees we would be taken to one of the hotels on the slopes of Ijen. No matter how hard it is to calculate, we, of course, overpaid. I don’t know why we didn’t turn to Whiskey, I think it would have been cheaper. But as they say in Bali: that means it must be so))
At 6.30 in the morning the car was near our house, and our phone was ringing every two minutes, asking where we were and when we would get out! We got out, and it turned out that in addition to the driver, our friend, who was selling the trip last evening, would be going with us! We asked what he was doing here, it turned out that the driver did not know the way to the volcano. This is certainly not true, but it’s more fun together! Get in the car and let's go!
At about 10 o'clock we were already in the port of Gilimanuk. In this place there is a very small strait between the islands, and a picturesque view of Java opens up.

O. Java, view from. Bali port Gilimanuk

Since we woke up very early and didn’t have time to have breakfast before leaving, we were really hungry. You know, in general I love rice and chicken, and I like all sorts of nasi goreng from the local cuisine, but the hardest thing about our entire trip to Java was that besides this we ate practically nothing else. Even for breakfast! And another feature of any Asian cuisine is spicy food. And so I spend a long time explaining to the lady in the warung (local cafe) that you don’t need to spice it up at all, so that not a bit, but in the end I get my noodles, which it’s impossible to eat without tears, guess why... Dima ate fried rice with vegetables and he didn’t seem to be that spicy, lucky!
After breakfast we boarded the ferry and moved along the strait to Java. During this move, I was once again amazed and greatly saddened by the huge amount of garbage in the ocean.
After the ferry we headed towards Ijen. Dima has a navigator on his phone, but the path along which our friends took us was not marked there; the picture showed that we were driving straight through the jungle. And soon the Internet disappeared completely, so if you come here on your own, save the map for yourself, or print it out just in case!
Previously, the road along which we were traveling was accessible only by jeep, but now it has been put in order, asphalt has been laid and it can be driven by any vehicle. Our car had difficulty climbing the steep hills, so we drove quite slowly and for a long time, but at least we managed to take in the beauty around us!

Along the way we passed the place where the climb to the volcano begins. We got lost a couple of times, which is strange, since there is only one road and it diverges only once. In the mountains near Ijen there are many checkpoints, passing which Dima wrote down in his visit notebook every time.
About half an hour's drive from Ijen there are two small hotels: Arabika Homestay and Catimor Homestay, in our opinion this optimal options to accommodate.

I think the difference between them is small, Katimor seems to be more expensive and we chose Arabica. We arrived at the hotel, it turned out to be almost empty and we decided that this would help us reduce the price of housing. The hotel has three room options: economy with amenities in the courtyard, standard shower and toilet in the room, and so-called VIP rooms, which are a little more well-kept than standard and with a TV. The male administrator announced the prices to us and we went to look at the rooms. We were choosing between standard and VIP, the standard rooms look pretty deplorable, but the VIP doesn’t particularly shine with comfort. We decided to take VIP, lowering the price a little, BUT... After viewing, the price suddenly changed, of course upwards, as if due to ignorance of English, the administrator made a mistake in the numbers! As a result, the prices were as follows: an economy room was 150 thousand rupees ($17), but we did not consider it, a standard room was 250 thousand rupees ($28) and a VIP room cost 350 thousand ($39). All our attempts to reduce the price did not work. As we later realized this, firstly due to the lack of competition and secondly from full confidence that even with this price all the rooms would be occupied, which is what happened in the end! We took a standard room; in general, it would be fine for an overnight stay.
The next thing was to find transport to get to Ijen and find out how to then leave this wilderness towards the Bromo volcano.
With the first point, everything was decided quickly; we were offered a bike for 150 thousand rupees ($16), although usually a bike for a day costs 50 thousand) Just like with housing, they flatly refused to bargain. Although they offered to take a bike for 100 thousand but with a driver, that is, it would be 2 bikes! Here's the math: transport with a driver is cheaper than transport without one :)
But the road from this village was not so easy. The simplest option of taking a driver with a car was no longer available, since no one here has a car. We were told that we could leave early in the morning by bus to one of the cities at the foot of the mountains, and then look for a way to go further, and that’s where we stopped.
Having found out everything, we had lunch with fried rice and chicken, drank tea, which by the way is free here at any time, and went to explore the road to Ijen.
As I already wrote, there is only one road here, but we decided that it was better to drive along it while it was light, so that it would be easier to navigate at night. And they brought us an old bike, Dima had to change the speed himself, he had to get used to it. Along the way we discovered a huge number beautiful views. The tops of the mountains and coffee plantations on their slopes, clouds floating between the rocks, at every turn I wanted to stop and photograph these open spaces.

It was getting close to evening, and since we were high in the mountains it became noticeably colder. We started heading back to the hotel and enjoyed a beautiful sunset along the way!

In the village of Sempol, where our hotel is located, there is a small square near the mosque where they sell all sorts of things. If you haven’t prepared warm clothes for the climb, here you can buy pants and a jacket, cookies and water for the trip. We bought Dima sweatpants and some food.
At the hotel, after asking one of the administrators what time was best to leave in order to have time to see the blue fire burning in the crater, we made a trip plan.
We calculate something like this: dawn in this part of Java begins at about 4.30 in the morning, that is, at 4 exactly (or better a little earlier in order to have time to descend into the crater) you need to be at the top. It takes 1.5 hours to climb, which means we start from the foot at 2.30. The road from the hotel to the starting point of the trek takes about 40 minutes, which means you need to leave the hotel at 1.30 with a small margin. We get up at one in the morning, I usually go to bed at this time :) But since we got up early in the morning, we were tired from a long day, and there wasn’t much to do here when it got dark, after having a snack and packing our things, we quickly fell asleep.
And now the moment of X has come! We woke up, drank a cup of tea, dressed warmly, grabbed a warm hotel blanket so as not to freeze at the top, and began our journey to Ijen.
The first difficulty was not long in coming. Dew fell at night, our bike apparently became damp, cooled down and refused to start. Dima used the starter pedal. Several attempts to start our jalopy with its help were unsuccessful, we tried to push it, this also did not help. We returned to the pedal, Dima pressed on it with all his might, his foot slipped and he ran into the edge of the pedal. I severely cut the sole of my foot, but we still have a mountain to climb! Luckily for us, the bike soon started up and we rode along the night road, bundled up against the cold in raincoats.
Then everything went according to plan and after about 40 minutes we were at the starting point. We saw a light in a small house and drove up to it, a man came out to meet us and suggested where we could park the bike. He agreed to be our guide. For this we paid him 150 thousand rupees. I’ll say right away that he would have gone for 100, or maybe less, if you had to bargain on principle, but we decided to agree.
It is worth noting here that some time ago, due to increased activity of the volcano, official tracking to it was closed. Because of this, tickets are not sold here, there are no special guides, ours turned out to be a sulfur miner! Of course, you can go up there yourself, many people do this during the day, but don’t forget that this is an active volcano, and it’s still night here, besides, it’s better if there’s a person nearby who knows the terrain well!
In Moscow, preparing for the trip, we bought headlamps, but that night we were lucky with the moon, it was almost full and illuminated everything around well! The road here is wide and well compacted. The climb is not steep due to the fact that the path winds horizontally along the slope, and does not go straight to the top. But because of this, the path becomes longer, although this is not scary. At that moment I decided that this was my easiest trekking! But, looking ahead a little, I will say that after a few days on Bromo volcano I learned that it can be even easier!
We reached the summit on schedule, overtaking a couple of groups of tourists on the way. And here in front of us is the black abyss of the crater, and at its bottom there is a blue fire burning, or as everyone here says Blue Fire!

Blue Fire, Ijen Volcano, o. Java

If you look closely, you can see small people in the photo, and the scale of this fire is immediately clear. A stunning sight! Fire can only be seen while it is dark; in daylight, only smoke is visible. There is also a lake at the bottom of the crater. When it is light, it is an incredible light green color, and due to the large amount of sulfur, its acidity is increased. Some write that the lake is filled with sulfuric acid, but this is not entirely true, for example, I washed my hands there. The water in it was quite hot.
Then we began to descend into the crater, it was gradually dawning and incredibly cosmic views opened up.

Crater of Ijen volcano, o. Java

The descent to the bottom is quite steep and winding, and every now and then sulfur miners come along with baskets loaded to capacity. Hell of a job!

Sulfur miner, Ijen volcano

And here we are below, shocked by what we see around us. I won’t even try to describe the views of the crater in words, just look at the photos!
Our guide began to tell us how sulfur is mined.
Volcanic gases come out of the holes in the mountain, which actually burn. Huge ceramic pipes are laid here, in which condensate and sulfur vapors settle.

Thanks to the high temperature, almost 250° C, the sulfur that gets into the pipe does not solidify, but flows out. At first it is fiery red in color, when it cools it becomes amber transparent, and after a while it turns bright yellow.

Sulfur accumulation, Ijen volcano

It is normal to breathe due to gases and vapors at the bottom of the crater it was not possible. It smells very strongly of sulfur, and after a while the throat begins to sore and a cough appears. We knew about this and, again, bought good respiratory masks in Moscow in advance. But those who work there do not have such luxury, and you can easily guess how such work affects the health of the miners! At the end of the hike, we, of course, gave one of our masks to our guide. And this is what Dima looked like.

After the sulfur has cooled, it is collected and placed in baskets. Their weight on average ranges from 70 to 90 kg! And then on their hump they drag it all, first to the top of the crater, and then down.

Meanwhile it became quite light and we approached the lake. It literally hypnotized us, it felt like we were on another planet!

Volcanic sulfur lake, Ijen, Java

It was time to return, our guide asked if we would mind if he grabbed a basket of sulfur along the way, of course, we didn’t mind.

Sulfur miner and part-time guide

Dima decided to help our friend and took one of the baskets. But he didn't go far! If you look closely, you will see the inscription PLAY BOY on the baskets. It's nice to see that even in such difficult conditions, people do not lose their sense of humor, joke, tease each other and laugh. In general, don’t lose heart.
Our friend picked up the basket and walked quite briskly along the rocky slope. At that moment I realized that my work is just an eternal vacation!

I followed him, with a blanket to spare.

And behind me is Dima. I think he was upset that he was going without a basket;)

Crater of Ijen volcano, o. Java

On the way, we constantly stopped and looked at the sulfur mining site from afar. And every time a new view opened up to us!

Sulfur mining, Ijen volcano

Having climbed to the top of the crater, we sat down to wait for dawn. This is where the blanket we picked up at the hotel came in handy.

The sun was slowly creeping out from behind the mountains. And again there was a feeling that we were on another planet!

By this time, other tourists began to arrive at the volcano; not everyone was ready to climb here at night, and some did not know about the blue fire. In any case, there are many more tourists during the day. And local entrepreneurs take advantage of this. We didn’t notice this at night, but at the beginning of the path to the crater there is a sign that it is very dangerous to go down, and this is the absolute truth, and as dawn broke a guard appeared near the sign who did not let anyone go down without a guide. And, of course, for a certain amount, he either escorted tourists down there himself, or sent his friend.

The sun continued to rise slowly, illuminating the crater more and more....

And on the opposite side the Moon was still visible, slowly leaving the slope.

Stunning contrast!

A look from a different angle at the crater of the Ijen volcano.

And this is the road along which we have to go, the very edge of the crater!

And again the crater of the volcano.

We sat for a while and began to descend from the volcano. The night shift sulfur miners were walking down the road with us at a brisk pace.

And more and more people working in the morning came to the meeting, with empty baskets.

I was very glad that the sun came out and it became warm. I decided to take a photo against the backdrop of the view from a height of almost 2400 meters. This is certainly not Agung with Rinjani, but it is also very beautiful!

There are peaks rising all around, I don’t know if they are volcanoes or not, but they are very similar.

On the way we came across one sulfur miner; he had no fingers. It is not known whether this is related to his work or not, but anything is possible.

A little lower down the slope there are check scales, here the miners weigh their baskets. Although in fact, they feel their weight quite accurately with their hands.

Here they take a smoke break, and tourists drink tea and have a snack.
You can also buy sulfur figures here. They are made by the miners themselves. There are figures made from molds in the form of animals and hearts, and others in the form of icicles like flowing sulfur. And there are heaps like anthills, this is from sulfur dripping into the water. We exchanged one that looked like an anthill for the second respirator, and our guide gave us another one in the shape of an icicle. If you buy them, then you can bargain; they come up with prices themselves, focusing on the size of the figures.

But first, the main “boss” checks everything properly!

At the drop-off point, everyone sits patiently, waiting for their turn to weigh the baskets.

Two people near the scales help lift the load onto the scales, and another one weighs, records the data and gives the miners a receipt, according to which they receive money at the window nearby. On average, it comes out to 75 thousand rupees (about $7.5) at a time. There are two lifts per shift. Some people bring two rockers in one trip, carry one for a bit first, leave it and go for the second, changing them all the way.

After weighing, the contents of the baskets are sent to the truck.

We said goodbye to our guide, we had to return to the hotel and get ready for the bus. But before we got on the bike, we went to look for a toilet. There is generally a normal one there, but due to the fact that the volcano is officially closed, the water supply does not work and, accordingly, the toilet does not either. And since there are a lot of tourists here, this problem was solved like this.

And while we were looking for this place, we came across a minibus driver in the parking lot. He asked if we needed to go somewhere, we had difficulty explaining that first we would return to Arabica on a bike, and then we should head towards the Bromo volcano, to the town of Probolinggo. Luckily for us, that’s where he was going. The driver first announced to us a price of 600 thousand rupees ($65), we negotiated this figure to 400 thousand ($45) for two. The joyful ones sat on their bike, which again refused to start, pushing it down the hill and quickly reached the hotel. We collected our things and soon a minibus arrived. We sat in the back seat and along the way we looked at the views of the mountains surrounding us a little more.

The Ijen Volcano crater is one of the most attractive and dangerous on Earth. An active volcano constantly spewing clouds of sulfur smoke, the world's largest acidic lake Kawah Ijen, incredibly beautiful blue fire and inhumane working conditions for miners extracting sulfur. We went down into the crater of the volcano to see it all with our own eyes.

In fact, Ijen is not just a volcano, but a volcanic complex of more than a dozen volcanic objects: stratovolcanoes, volcanic cones, craters, located within a radius of 20 km around the caldera.

But it is precisely this that attracts tourists crater with acid lake, the shores of which are a natural large deposit of natural sulfur. The crater has a radius of 361 meters and a depth of 200 meters.

Road to the crater of Ijen volcano

In order to get to famous lake, necessary first climb to the top and then go down inside the crater. The path from the ticket office to the top is about 3 km, the height difference is 500 m. If you don't rush, the road is quite simple. Steeper at the beginning and almost flat after the cafe halfway.

Path to the crater of Ijen volcano

Usually people start to enter the crater around one in the morning. But if the volcano is more active, this time may be shifted to the morning or entry for tourists may be prohibited altogether. On the day we climbed, the entrance opened at about 3.45. This meant that we had less than an hour to travel if we wanted to see the sulfur burning with a blue flame. We reached the top in about 45 minutes, and spent another 15 minutes going down. For me, moving at such a speed was not easy. And, I must admit, we didn’t have time. From above we saw several flashes of blue fire, but below after 5 am it was already light and managed to photograph only individual flashes. It was already too late for the super shot with the blue fire spreading across the crater.

The road back is very beautiful. The remaining peaks of the volcanic complex are visible, a veil of fog and clouds enveloping the slopes, trees scorched by fires and dense vegetation of forests and fields.

Is it dangerous to be in the crater of Mount Ijen?

Be sure to use a protective mask or respirator! Sulfur dioxide is very dangerous to health.

The answer is unequivocal: yes! Acrid sulfur smoke (sulfur dioxide or sulfur dioxide) is very dangerous to health. The high temperature near the pipes from which sulfur flows is simply life-threatening. For good shots, I went to the epicenter of thick whitish-yellow smoke. Despite the mask, it was very difficult to breathe, eyes filled with tears, workers shouted “Dangerous!” after each next step along the slope over boiling sulfur. I “felt lungs” all day. I think that nothing bad will happen from one such adventure, but it’s better not to take unnecessary risks.

When going down into the crater you need to be careful.

• Firstly, be sure to wear a protective mask. The more efficiently it filters the air, the better. There are known victims among tourists who neglected safety rules.
• Secondly, keep in mind that the road is on rocks. Comfortable shoes and gloves will help you overcome the path.

The beauty of the crater

Being on the slopes of the crater remember the Divine Comedy and the 9 circles of hell. Lifeless slopes, flowing hot sulfur, clouds of acrid smoke bursting from the bowels of the earth and the emerald surface of a deadly acidic lake, on the surface of which sulfurous plumes stretch.

acid lake

Lake Kawah in the crater of Mount Ijen is largest acid lake in the world. It consists of concentrated hydrochloric and sulfuric acid dissolved in water. The volcano releases hydrogen chloride as a gas. When interacting with water, it forms sulfuric acid with a pH of about zero. Hydrochloric acid dissolved in water gives the lake a beautiful turquoise color.

The lake is deadly, however, you can touch it with your hand. The temperature on the surface is 50-60°C, and in the depths - over 200°C. The depth of the lake reaches 200 meters.

Blue fire

Amazing blue fire phenomenon is actually sulfur dioxide that burns at a temperature of 600°C, which gives the fire its characteristic blue color. The glow is quite weak, so it can only be seen at night.

Lava flows burning with a blue flame can be observed on Ijen extremely rarely.

Sometimes the workers themselves set fire to the sulfur. Some of the smoke condenses in ceramic pipes installed in the crater and flows out of the pipes, forming stalactites of natural sulfur. Red liquid sulfur spews from the vents and cools to yellow on the surface. These stalactites, by the way, are sold to tourists as souvenirs.

Ceramic pipes condensing sulfur dioxide vapor. Liquid sulfur flows directly from the pipes and cools on the surface.

Lava flows burning with a blue flame can be observed on Ijen extremely rarely. Unfortunately, many sites show pictures of Olivier Grunewald and make it seem like this happens every night. Don't believe it! Usually only sulfur dioxide burns and there is no lava.

Sulfur mining

A worker puts sulfur into baskets.

In the crater local residents sulfur is extracted manually. This is very hard and dangerous work. Without protective suits, and many without even masks, the miners use crowbars to break off pieces of sulfur and place them in a basket. They carry these baskets 200 meters to the top of the crater, and then descend 3 km to the foot of the volcano to the village, where they receive a reward for the work done. The weight of such a basket is 60-80 kg, some manage to lift up to 90 kg.

A worker mining sulfur in the crater of Mount Ijen

Typically workers make this journey twice a day. For 1 kg of sulfur they pay 900-1000 IDR, which means about $5 per basket or $10 per day. By local standards, this is a highly paid and prestigious job. The island of Java has a very high population density and unemployment. Sulfur miners are a kind of working elite.

The best thing you can do for workers is to give them a respirator.

However, this does not help them live long. Sulfur fumes are so dangerous to health that young guys look like old people, and average life expectancy is about 47 years.

Despite the appalling working conditions, the workers are amazingly friendly and cheerful people. I experienced culture shock when a worker carrying a basket weighing more than himself gave way to me on the rocks leading to the top of the crater. Many times they suggested a better route to us and happily posed for tourists.

The best thing you can do for workers is to give them a respirator or at least just a protective mask. They cannot even afford to buy replacement filters; they have neither money nor opportunity. Many workers are not even aware that the air they breathe is dangerous.

The workers all smoke. They say that this helps them to slightly reduce the smell of sulfur, which becomes simply impossible after some time.

Where to stay?

Most often, visitors to Ijen stay as close to the volcano as possible so that they can drive to the entrance at night and climb up to the crater. I advise you to look at the following options: and.

How to get to Ijen Volcano from Bali?

Getting to Ijen Volcano from Bali is not difficult. Need to get to the ferry to Java in the west of the island, cross to the island of Java and drive about 2 hours to the foot of the volcano. It is better to start climbing at night, so plan to spend the night near the volcano.

Many combine visit to Ijen volcano with a trip to and climbing the Bromo volcano. In this case, an alternative option is possible: fly to the city of Yogyakarta, Surabaya or an arc city in Central or East Java and then go to. But you will have to reserve time, because the journey from Yogyakarta to Bromo can take 12 hours.

It is located at the junction of two tectonic plates, forming the so-called “ring of fire of the earth”, caused by the friction of these plates. It is in this area that volcanoes form and most earthquakes on the planet occur. The island itself is also of volcanic origin. A mountain range stretches along the entire island, topped with peaks exceeding 3000 meters. There are over 100 volcanoes in Java and about 35 of them are active.
Fans of extreme excursions from all over the world come here to see this mysterious and unpredictable miracle of nature with their own eyes.
Those wishing to visit these places can purchase a guided bus tour at any travel agency. Or you can rent a car and a driver, who will be happy to tell and show you everything for a small fee, and such an excursion will cost much less.

Volcano Merapi.

The 2915 meter high volcano is the most active in both Java and all of Indonesia. The name translates as “the place from which fire comes out.”
The most catastrophic eruptions occurred in the 10th century, when the eruption turned the once fertile lands into a scorched desert for 3 centuries, and the ancient state of Mataram was almost completely destroyed. In 1673, an eruption completely buried several cities. In the 30s of the last century, more than 1000 people were injured due to a powerful eruption.
Nowadays, eruptions occur about 2 times a year, and once every 7 years there is an eruption of particularly monstrous force. Streams of hot lava continuously flow along the scorched slopes, so the safest place to observe the volcano is a station built specifically to study its activity.

Volcano Semeru.

This volcano is the highest on the island, its height reaches 3646 meters. Over the past 5 years, an increase in activity has been noted; gas and ash emissions on the southern slope occur every 30-40 minutes. Therefore, the safest northern slope for observation is Papanjakan, which is reached by a path surrounded by impenetrable jungle. The most impressive view opens at sunrise, when the peaks of Bromo and Semeru, located on the same line, begin to emerge from the clouds in the first rays of the sun. This panorama is one of the most unusual and breathtaking in the world, reminiscent of alien landscapes.

Volcano Bromo.

The volcano was formed in the 11-kilometer Tangger caldera, formed after a prehistoric catastrophic eruption. Over the past few decades, it has been constantly active: the 200 m deep crater is constantly shrouded in smoke. It is best to watch the sunrise here; for this you need to arrive to these places in advance. In a nearby village you can spend the night inexpensively.
In addition, you need to stock up on masks, protective cases for cameras and warm clothing: the crater is usually cool and very windy. The road to the crater runs between gorges along paths strewn with ash. The climb on foot lasts about 30 minutes, many suggest a horse, but in any case, the last part of the journey is about 100 meters, you will have to climb the steep slopes yourself. The crater itself is equipped with concrete observation deck, from which at sunrise the volcano appears in all its splendor: the height is breathtaking, the landscape resembles a fantasy, the sun gradually paints the mountain peaks in delicate colors.
An ancient functioning temple was built on the northern side of the volcano. It was created by the inhabitants of a small village, accustomed to a dangerous neighborhood. Every year they arrange peculiar sacrifices to nature, throwing fruits, flowers and rice into the crater, thus trying to appease the forces of nature.

Volcano Krakatoa.

Sadly famous volcano, or rather, what is left of it is located in the west of the island. A gigantic eruption in 535 caused global climate change, and as a result of the disaster, the Sunda Strait was formed. The last eruption in 1883, almost swept away the island, the ash column reached a height of 30 km, the tsunami raised destroyed cities and towns, raised by the explosion air wave went around Earth. In 1930, on the site of the destroyed vent, a new volcano— Anak Krakatoa.
Today it reaches a height of 1000 meters and a diameter of 3 kilometers. The crater is still active, regularly releasing gases, rocks and lava into the atmosphere. Scientists around the world are constantly monitoring the volcanic activity of Krakatoa. Local residents and tourists are prohibited from approaching the crater closer than a kilometer. You can travel around the volcano by boat, and at the same time visit National Park Ujong Pendant.

Papandayan Volcano.

The crater of the volcano is located at an altitude of about 2000 m. It is famous for the fact that numerous geysers erupt here, and a warm-water river flows along the slopes, in which those who wish can swim. In addition, mud pots formed at the foot.

Volcano Tangkuban Perahu.

Translated, the name sounds like “upside down boat.” To the top in given time Not active volcano You can drive up along a pretty good road. The slopes are covered with evergreen forest, and from the top of the crater there is an impressive panorama of the surrounding area.

Volcano Ijen.

The volcano is part huge complex, consisting of craters and cones surrounding the main caldera within a radius of 20 km. Its depth is about 250 meters and width 1.5 km. It contains the famous miracle of nature - the sulfur lake Kawah Ijen, which has a turquoise hue. On the banks there is a large natural deposit of sulfur, and here you can observe the process of its extraction itself. There are many picturesque waterfalls and geysers in the vicinity of the volcano. Here you can also observe an unusual natural phenomenon: blue flames and steam break through to the surface from the crevices. The reason for this phenomenon is the combustion of sulfur dioxide at temperatures above 600 degrees. The glow is best seen at night. In addition, local residents offer unique souvenirs - sulfur stalactites.
Residents of the Indonesian islands have learned to put up with such a dangerous neighborhood and even benefit from it. After all, eruptions richly fertilize the soil, which makes it possible to harvest several harvests a year. And numerous guests of Java get a rare opportunity to see unique landscapes up close and enjoy the incredible beauty and power of nature.

The organization of the Ijen tour from MyBaliTrips was at the highest professional level. Everything was very clearly thought out: a brand new comfortable bus with air conditioning arrived at McDonald's at 16.30, gathered a group (while 7 more people were arriving, we drank coffee with tiramisu and got to know each other), at 17.30 everyone was in full force, the driver explained the route and timing in English ( By the way, there were two drivers and they replaced each other on the long journey there and back), on the way to the ferry to Java in the west of Bali, we had dinner in a pleasant cafe with those who amazed the group low prices and delicious food (combinations familiar to European taste buds and soft sofas for relaxation, there were suggestions “That’s it! Let’s move to this part of the island, there is beauty and a chip price tag for normal food!”). Total journey to the foot of Ijen: 4.5 hours by car + 1 hour lunch + 1 hour ferry. We stopped a couple of times along the way (visiting the restroom, buying water and chocolates, refueling), warming up and chatting. We arrived at the parking lot an hour and a half before the opening (the time difference is 1 hour), there was time to change into warm clothes, prepare mentally and physiologically for the ascent and descent into the crater. Tip: Comfortable shoes, a warm hat or hood, a waterproof top and socks are a must have. It’s better to take it off during the day and replace it with something clean and dry than to freeze and get wet. In the mountains at night it is cool and humid; you need to walk in the dark for an hour and a half just to get to the crater. The road is surprisingly smooth, it may seem like it is paved, but the descent into the crater itself and the ascent back is a test of strength. My sneakers didn't survive it. There are “rickshaw” taxis to the crater (about $70), but this is for the faint-hearted and elderly, it seems to me. Ijen with its blue lights, clouds of choking smoke, the largest acidic mountain lake in the world and picturesque view- GREAT. It’s definitely worth seeing with your own eyes and stamping your feet to say “We did it!” The masks provided by drivers save you from suffocation right next to the swirling sulfur deposits, but your eyes are defenseless, so the blue lights are a quest! Then, towards dawn, the darkness dissipates, stones, a lake, and the sky appear of unearthly beauty. Local workers carry 90-120 kg of sulfur on seemingly fragile shoulders. These are incredibly strong little people! After the photo shoot, we climb up the stones, still damp from the pre-dawn fog, to go down the serpentine road, finally breathe in the ozone-rich mountain air and admire the majestic landscapes. We descend to the foot as winners, exhausted, disheveled, stunned by the beauty and power of the lone active volcano on the island of Java. We found a guide to the volcano to be a real optimist and good-natured person. He encouraged us all the way, sang in English, showed miracles of patience and tact, humor and interest in learning the Russian language, and was recognized by the group as an ideal photographer for any phone We drove back, wound up, impressed and sleepy. In Java we had breakfast in a restaurant. It started to rain and we were glad to take a nap in the car. We reached our destination by 15.30. This is much faster than stated on the website. I think we were lucky with the lack of traffic jams, weather and life in general Great experience, there is nothing to compare with! If you have eyes, ears, a soul and an understanding of the value of such moments, then Ijen will reveal itself to you from its brightest side, just as it does to us. Thanks again to the organizers and everyone who contributed to our adventure!