A Song of Ice and Fire

Ok so this post is actually about rain and lava, but I couldn’t resist the Game of Thrones reference (and for those of you that recognized it, mad props). Yes, that’s right, I said lava!

This weekend I went into the DRC with three of my friends to climb Nyiragango volcano. It was spectacular! I think the best way to tell you about it will be via photos, so here we go…

Here are my friends and hiking companions! From left to right: Jacob, Me, Christina, and Zach

 

The landscape throughout the hike was constantly changing. It started off very jungley and green, but as we continued the path eventually turned entirely into chunks of dried lava, left over from the last time the volcano erupted in 2002.

Periodically throughout the hike we would come across fissures in the earth where steam generated by the lava far below would rise up.

The volcano was hidden from view by the fog and clouds for the first part of the hike, but around midday our destination became visible. We were headed for the rim!

Just before the last stretch of the hike, we emerged from the jungle into a landscape that looked almost desert like and these plants that reminded me a lot of yucca covered the hillside.

The final leg was by far the hardest part. It was very steep and slippery because the ground was entirely loose dried lava gravel and the elevation was putting a lot of pressure on our lungs. However, this was the stretch where the nerd in me relived some epic Lord of the Rings fantasies!

Then we were there and the view was unbelievable! As usual, pictures can’t do it justice. A 2,000 foot drop over the edge into the heart of the volcano where lava was boiling away. It was breathtaking!

As you can see, the lava became more visible as darkness fell, and by night-time, it was glowing!

 

I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. It was like staring into a fire only a million times more awesome. The surface was in constant motion. It was alive. Bubbling and cooling into black floating icebergs of rock and then boiling over again in a new location and folding in on itself. You could hear the lava hissing and steaming as the heat hit the cold air. It was magical.

The trip was exactly what I needed. Not only was it visually stimulating and physically invigorating, but it reminded me of why I am here. It reminded me that I want to be here. I was in the Congo, the place that I have been reading and dreaming about for the last four years of my life. It brought me into the present, got me thinking about my future here and helped me let go of some of the things I miss most about home.

We also passed through the city of Goma on the way to Virunga National Park. Goma is the main city in Eastern DRC where those displaced by the conflict of the past two decades have fled. It is a desperate scene and more so because of something I didn’t realize until this weekend, almost half of the city was destroyed by the volcanic eruptions of 2002. I guess with all of the human inflicted suffering happening in the region, somehow I missed the fact that this place got covered in lava ten years ago, killing over 100 people. The city has been rebuilt on top of the dried lava. This, combined with the dire circumstances under which most people fled to Goma, the poverty in which they eek out an existence there, and the constant violence that continues to plague the city and the region, makes it feel distinctly, well, hell-like. That said, I think I’d like to work there someday, go figure, and finally seeing this place was a significant moment for me personally.

Quickly before I end, the “Ice” half of this post. The rains have come! The pineapples and I are very happy with the periodic storms, which  last for a couple of hours tops. Though, none have been quite as intense as the downpour that started it all off last week. Look at what our quiet lunch meeting turned into…