We took advantage of the relatively clear weather yesterday to visit the Aso caldera, the world’s largest crater which came about when ancient volcanic explosions about 100,000 years ago were so strong that they collapsed a giant volcano to make the caldera.
At first, there was a huge lake, but continuing eruptions pushed up five smaller cones, one of which – Nakadake has been active since 2014.
The caldera is so big that 700,000 people live in villages scattered about it, and hang-gliders float overhead enjoying the views:
The path to the viewpoint of the caldera is strewn with beautiful grasses and wildflowers which flourish in the volcanic soil:
But we decided that this was all tame stuff: we were up for visiting Nakadake itself if it was open. It was difficult to find out so we decided it was worth the detour even if we failed.
And we were so lucky! After meeting the compulsory requirements (no heart problems, no asthma, no breathing problems of any kind), we were let through the toll gate:
We drove up, parked and started walking up to the rim of the crater. On our way, the serious risk of volcanic activity was in plain sight – the tarmac was littered with filled-in holes:
And then we saw the shelters which we were supposed to rush to if there were warning sirens:
Inside the shelters was further proof of the potential risk:
As we approached the edge, we watched with our mouths open as the steam shifted and revealed the bottom of the smoking crater – a weird green – from time to time:
The immediate landscape is littered with evidence of volcanic activity:
And the views of beautiful mountains and grasslands took our breath away (and not the poisonous gases!)
Looks amazing. Reminds me of the volcano we visited in Costa Rica but the whole thing was wreathed in clouds so we couldn’t see the crater. But I think the green colour means the water is heavily acidic. Same for the CR volcano which last time it erupted sprayed acid water over all the visitors who didn’t get to a shelter on time. So thank your lucky stars!
We felt very lucky to see it at all as the cloud and wind often mean access is blocked. There were announcements all the time in Japanese, Chinese, Korean and a bit hard to follow English. I guess if you see everyone moving at speed for the shelters, you don’t wait till you’ve understood the announcement.. tonight our hotel room has a view of the most active volcano in the world, at least that’s the claim.
How brave you both are but obviously a risk worth taking. And oh so beautiful
It was really stunning and you felt the incredible power blocked up in the crater, just waiting for the moment – very exciting!
For some strange reason this went to my junk mail so I’ve just found it. Love the atmospheric swirling steam and the stark landscape.
Yes, it was extraordinary and dramatic – I sent one of the pics to a friend who doesn’t read the blog and she suggested it was like an extreme onsen!