1000 Amazing Places: volcano

Showing posts with label volcano. Show all posts

Monday, March 24, 2014

#697 Taal Volcano, Philippines

www.flickr.com by Jet Alvarado

In the Philippines, volcanoes are really nothing new, no big deal. Whether it's the infamous and destructive Pinatubo eruption in the early 90s, the picture perfect cone of Mt. Mayon towering over the city of Legazpi at the southern end of Luzon Island, the Mt. Makiling that every Manila student has climbed at one time or another, or the cutely named Hibok-Hibok in Camiguin province. Wikipedia lists 25 active volcanoes and 339 inactive ones. Like Indonesia, New Zealand, the Aleutian Islands, Guatemala and Ecuador -- it epitomizes the Pacific's Ring of Fire. Despite this commonality, Taal volcano is one of the most unique I've ever seen in the world, because it is the relic of a massive volcanic explosion (the mountain could have been 18,000 feet high) of one of the biggest volcanoes in the world. This formed a caldera lake (Lake Taal, aka Lake Bonbon in historical texts, 3m above sea level, 172m deep, 15-30km wide, formed between 500,000 and 100,000 years ago) with little Volcano Island in the middle (5km long, 23 square kilometers), with a little lake in the middle of that, and another little volcano in the middle of that. And the lakes are on different levels and breathe, incredibly. The recent explosions originate from Volcano Island, but are simply the surface level of the massive activity happening below.

www.taalvolcano.org - Volcano Island with Mt. Macolod in the background as viewed from Tagatay Ridge

Unfortunately, my own photos are printed and stacked under our family home, and they mostly consist of the views from the ridge town on the caldera cliffs, Tagaytay so probably not all that impressive anyway, but I have tried to collect some of the most awe-inspiring ones I could find -- what a spectacular place.

www.geog.ucsb.edu

During the recorded history since 1572, more than 33 eruptions have been recorded and 6 major eruptions have claimed several fatalities from pyroclastic flows and tsunamis in the lake (1572, 1591, 1605-1611, 1707, 1709, 1715-16, 1729, 1749, 1754 was a 200 day eruption, 1790, 1808, 1874 killed all the livestock on the island, 1878, 1904, 1965, etc, etc). One of the most famous was in 1911, which killed 1334 people. It has been dormant since 1977, despite increases in activity in 1991, 2003, 2007, 2009 and 2011 showing hot pools, earthquakes, mud flows/geysirs and a raised lake level. The lake is home to species such as the freshwater sardine (the only one in the world) and the Taal Lake Seasnake as well as endemic blue green algae, diatom, ostracod, sponge, reptile and fish.

taaltours.blogspot.com

From Wikipedia: "The crater lake on Volcano island is the largest lake on an island in a lake on an island in the world."
Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taal_Volcano

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jetjpg/5841397111/

http://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5026/

http://www.taalvolcano.org/

http://www.taalvolcano.net/

http://www.tagaytay.com/taalvolcano.htm

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/taal.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_active_volcanoes_in_the_Philippines

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_inactive_volcanoes_in_the_Philippines

Thursday, March 13, 2014

#703 Jeju Do, South Korea

Tolharubang

It's often reported that the most highly trafficked plane route in the world is the route from Seoul (#970) to Jeju Island in Korea, although I really couldn't say where I heard it and if that statistic is really up to date. This island, 85km south of the peninsula in the South Sea (East China Sea), is a honeymoon, holiday paradise. It has been compared to Hawaii, the Mediterranean, and Disneyland for valid reasons.

With a beautiful sub-tropical volcanic landscape, a unique culture that evolved separately from the mainland due to few visitors, and the ocean beyond, it is not surprising that it is the place Koreans tell you to visit. Jeju City is the location of the main airport on the northern coast of the island. Similar to many other Korean cities, it holds the Samseonghyeol Shrine (with harubang) as well as a nice seafront and history museum.

The isolation allowed Jeju to form a unique architectural style: stone houses with thatched roofs tied down in the strong winds. It was for a time during the Joseon dynasty, a haven for exiles: intellectuals, Catholic converts and political undesirables.

Harubang statues (see right) are as connected to Jehu as Easter Island's are to them. Translated as 'grandfather', the first ones was carved in 1750 and left outside fortresses (45 of these still exist). Purpose unknown, they are distinct in their helmet heads, bulgy eyes and noses, and their asymmetrical hands on stomachs.

Jeju Folk Village

Manjanggul Grotto - the world's longest lava tube

Site 1: Manjanggul Lava Tube Caves

The world's longest system of lava tube caves is east of Jeju-si: 13.4km long, 2-30m high, 2-23m wide, 10 degrees inside, these huge black tunnels are an impressive view of ancient geological forces.

Pony - the special Jeju breed

Sunrise Peak at Songsan

Site 2: Seongsan Ilchulbong Crater

At the island's eastern point is the extinct volcanic plug, Ilchulbong, with Seongsan-ri Fortress at its base. 182m at the summit, the inside of the crater has been left to wild grass. The ground is so porous that any crater lake has drained away despite its punch-bowl shape. 20 minutes walk to the summit affords spectacular views back towards Jeju-do.

Port Seogwiko

Site 3: The Southern Coast

Seogwipo, Jeju's second biggest city, lies on a pretty harbor in the southern coast's subtropical zone of inlets and cliffs. A touristy town with several charming waterfalls nearby, there is good diving off the coast, as well as ballooning and the World Cup Stadium 6km west of town.

Cheonjeyeon Pokpo is a three-tier waterfall in a pretty gully near Seogwipo. The Seven Nymphs footbridge above, named for the seven carved beauties who served the Emperor of Heaven and supposedly slid down the moonbeams to bathe here every night.

Seven Nymphs Bridge

Chonjeyon Waterfall

Jusangjeolli Rocks just south of the Convention Centre, are a 2km stretch of spectacular hexagonal-shaped-rock-strewn coastline. Made during the rapid cooling and contraction of lava when it hits the ocean, there are also waterfalls streaming off (such as the Chongbang falls pictured below) to increase its spectacle.

Chongbang Waterfall

Rugged Rock of Chungmun

Harubang at the World Cup Stadium

Yongduam (Dragon Head Rock)

Woidolgoi Rock

Paengoktam Crater of Hallisan

Site 4: Hallasan
The central mountain, Hallasan (Mt. Halla) is South Korea's highest, and its national park has a unique range of flora and fauna in its four separate ecological zones that change with the seasons. It tends to collect clouds easily, so I didn't actually see it!