Reunion Island, France
Sweat drenched my shirt equally I stumbled through pitch dark darkness, groping at jagged glass-like walls for back upward spell trying non to striking my caput on the shrinking ceiling.
We were deep within Piton de la Fournaise, an active shield volcano on Reunion Island. It’s job of Réunion National Park, a UNESCO Heritage Site.
Earlier our grouping explored the desolate carmine landscape on top of the volcano at La Plaine des Sables, which looks really similar to NASA pictures I’ve seen of Mars. Bizarre stone formations inward many hues of carmine set out across rolling hills together with craters inward all directions.
The abrupt modify of scenery from lush greenish forests to carmine apocalyptic wasteland is quite shocking.
Piton De La Fournaise
Reunion is a tiny French isle off the East coast of Africa. The tip of a giant underwater volcano that rises 4000 meters from the bottom of the Indian Ocean. It’s i of the most active volcanic hot-spots inward the public amongst over 150 recorded eruptions since the 17th century.
In fact the “peak of the furnace” erupted only a few days earlier nosotros arrived.
However these detail lava tubes nosotros were exploring are left over from an eruption inward 2010. The lava cooled off together with stopped flowing through them years ago, nosotros weren’t inward whatever danger.
The June 2014 eruption occurred on a dissimilar side of the volcano.
Inside The Earth
Kneepads together with helmets are strapped on earlier next our Laventure guides over a hardened dark lava plain dotted amongst greenish plants. Volcanic soil is incredibly fertile due to the large amounts of iron, magnesium, potassium, together with other minerals that it contains.
The entrance to the caves is through a pocket-sized hole inward the crust.
It looks a fleck similar a gaping mouth. We switch our headlamps on together with climb downwards into the darkness.
Lava tubes are formed when ribbons of carmine hot lava drain from a volcano, the edges cool downwards together with thicken into an insulating crust, creating a roof over the still-flowing lava.
Eventually the period of time gets diverted or stops altogether, leaving tunnels.
Exploring Lava Tubes
Lava subway scheme walls are really shiny, almost glass-like, reflecting the low-cal of our headlamps. Frozen stalactites of lava drip from the ceiling to practise “lavacicles” of dissimilar shapes together with sizes.
The passageway is 8-10 feet wide, together with 5-6 feet tall for much of the hour-long hike. However approximately sections are much smaller — making it necessary to crawl on your hands together with knees.
Portions of the ceiling oftentimes erode together with autumn in, thence the importance of wearing a helmet spell exploring these veins of the Earth. Brightly colored mineral deposits of Fe & sulfur draw of piece of work the crumbled basalt inward hues of red, orange, together with yellow.
Occasionally you’ll discovery pocket-sized holes leading upward to the surface, the death-mask of a tree burned away yesteryear the lava leaving behind a hollow tube.
Reunion Volcano Adventure
At i betoken nosotros all plow off our headlamps together with concur on to each other, attempting to motility forwards inward full darkness. It’s clumsy together with difficult, a few of us striking our heads on the ceiling.
It’s amazing to intend nearly the ribbons of hot lava that flowed through these tubes only a few years ago. Volcanoes are much to a greater extent than than expiry & destruction, they likewise select rebirth.
Coughing upward minerals from the midpoint of the globe together with creating novel nation volume on which plants & animals volition eventually thrive.
Hiking deep through the volcanic lava tubes within Piton de la Fournaise on Reunion Island was a fun learning experience. I select a deeper appreciation for what Mother Nature is capable of. ★
Location: Reunion Island, France
Accommodation: Cases Couleurs
Company: Tours Reunion
Packing Guide
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#GoToReunion is made possible inward partnership amongst iAmbassador together with Reunion Island Tourism. As always, the content & opinions expressed hither are exclusively my own.
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