How many volcanoes do you think there are in Kamchatka? You may be surprised: there are almost 300 volcanoes in Kamchatka, and 29 of them are active. Big and small, extinct and active, destroyed and nascent volcanoes. They differ in age, structure, formation and volcanic activity. Each volcano has its own character. Kamchatka today is one of the most active volcanic regions in the world. The land of “giants” is capable of changing the planet one day… Volcanoes are very dangerous and that's why they are so attractive. I’ll tell you about the most interesting volcanoes on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
Avachinsky Sopka, or Avacha Volcano is one of the most popular volcanoes for climbing. it is located 47 km from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. It is also the most “civilized”: there is a checkpoint with a rescue team on duty in the summer on the pass. There is also a mountain hut where you can stay overnight. Everything around you reminds you that you are on a volcano: warm soil, remains of lava, red volcanic bombs lying around under your feet, fumaroles and sulphur deposits. Scientists say that during active phases, Avachinsky's crater fills with lava.
Ascent: a trek to Avacha takes 6-7 hours for well-trained climbers, the descent will take 4 hours. You will need good hiking shoes, warm clothes, snacks and a lot of water. Another popular route is the passage to the Nalychev Valley through the Avachinsky Pass. You need to get permission in the Volcanoes of Kamchatka Nature Park to climb the Avachinsky volcano.
Geologists call this hill a volcanic extrusion. In other words, a low “camel” is the “bastard child” of the Avachinsky volcano, which is in fact a big pile of stones.
Ascent: easy, anyone can climb it. The moving stones are the only minior danger.
Kozelsky is the closest volcano to the Pacific Ocean among of all the “domestic” ones. It’s just about 25 km from its foot to the coast. In summer, a kind of “nature oxymoron” is going on around the volcano — next to last year's snowfields you can see glades of flowers and heaps of volcanic slag. Kozelsky is a favorite volcano of geologists. So much to find on its slopes! The rarest thing to find is the black diamond mineral — carbonado, which can only be found in a few places on the planet. Previously, the origin of dark diamonds was considered cosmic, but now it has become clear — the carbonado comes from the Earth. Kozelsky is also loved by snowboarders — the snow on the volcano’s slopes doesn’t melt almost all year round.
Ascent: Trekking to the very top will be interesting only for climbers and athletes, the most difficult part runs along the southern ridge. However, anyone can climb it, but idle volcano lovers will be bored. Kozelsky is considered to be an extinct volcano; on its slopes, there is not even a fumarole.
This giant with its steep slopes is an active volcano in Kamchatka. You can see many large fumaroles on its slopes. Koryaksky is the only volcano on Kamchatka that is included in the short list of 16 potentially dangerous volcanoes which are closely monitored by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior (IAVCEI). Most of these volcanoes are very close to settlements, and there are a lot of examples in history of their destructive eruptions.
Ascent: climbing Koryaksky is allowed only with a guide and only to those who understand the classification of difficulty from 1B to 4A, and who have the ability to traverse in a rope team. But experts say technically the trek is not complicated. There are steep slopes at 35 degrees along the route, sometimes rockfalls occur. Equipment should include safety systems, crampons, an ice axe, a helmet and goggles. Climbing time — 12 hours one way. In winter, skiers and snowboarders often climb to the top.
This cone-shaped giant is now very peppy. From time to time, ash clouds burst from its volcanic vent and smoke soars. It “smokes” the sky for a long time. In its ancient caldera with a diameter of 5 km there is a “young” cone with a crater. The lava from Karymsky volcano is so thick that it hardens before it reaches the foot of the mountain. At the southern slope of the volcano, there is the acidic Lake Karymskoye, it is considered the largest acid reservoir in the world. Until the most recent eruption, the lake was bland. But while it was boiling, salts and acids fell into it and turned it into an acidic lake.
Ascent: Any trips to Karymsky are forbidden because of its activity — at any moment an explosive eruption and a pyroclastic flow can happen and then a dirty avalanche will sweep away everything in its path.
There is an airway to the Valley of Geysers right near Maly Semiachik. A small volcano famous for its turquoise acidic lake directly inside the crater. The temperature of this “spicy” liquid (a mixture of hydrochloric and sulphuric acids) ranges from 27°C to 41°C. The depth of the lake is 140 meters.
The neighbors of Mutnovsky maintain a calm disposition. But they are energized and cheerful. Mutnovsky breathes deeply — through multi-colored fumaroles, drooling sulphur droplets and puffing with geysers. There is a scattering of colored stones and black sand underfoot. Mutnovsky has four craters, each with a diameter of up to two kilometers. The largest is located at an altitude of 1600 meters. On the way to Mutnovsky, everybody makes a stop at Opasny (“Dangerous”) Canyon — a deep cleft where the Vulkannaya River breaks down with a beautiful 80-meter waterfall.
Ascent: Even a trip to the foot of Mutnovsky will be very memorable. You can get to the foot only with an SUV. But such a car will often get stuck in melted snow and bogged down in mud. Climbing the craters is simple and takes about an hour. It’s 125 km from the city to the volcano.
Well, every family has a black sheep. Gorely is absolutely unremarkable. But its caldera has an area of 9 x 14 km with a chain of 11 craters, it is known for its acidic lakes of an unreal emerald color. The most spectacular crater is called “Active”. There is a lake inside of it with smoking fumaroles on the slopes. The largest crater is the Blue Lake. There is also an irregularly shaped lake in the funnel, where ice floes float at the beginning of summer. It is located 114 km from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
Ascent: Trekking to the top takes 4 hours one way. Climbing along the slag fields and lava is not difficult at all.
By volcanic standards, Vilychinsky is already a “grandfather”. An extinct volcano in Kamchatka that has become a beautiful mountain. But scientists do not believe it — life has not left it, such a stage of volcanic “hibernation” is called solfatara. Viluchinsky is located 80 km from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
Ascent: There is a stunning view of the ocean and all the famous volcanoes of the Mutnovsko-Gorelovsky group on top of the mountain. But only physically fit tourists can enjoy the sight. In order to climb it, you need to take both crampons and a towel; almost every trek usually finishes with a swim in the Paratunka Hot Springs.
Photo: NASA Earth Observatory
Klyuchevskaya Sopka is the most formidable of the 13 volcanoes included in the group. It is the highest volcano in Kamchatka and Russia, after the Caucasus Mountains. It is the most active volcano in Eurasia and is 650 km from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. It is young — about 7 thousand years old and it is “handsome” — Klyuchevskoy has an almost perfect cone shape with a crater 700 meters in diameter. Even when it’s calm, Klyuchevskoy is capable of throwing volcanic bombs weighing up to a ton! It has been active for several hundred years. And in the spring of 2020, lava poured down the eastern slope.
Ascent: This volcano is only for professional climbers. The climbing category is a difficulty of 2A. It is on the short list of “Snow Leopard of Russia” (an honorary title in Russian mountaineering). The peak can be reached in 10 hours. Before climbing, you need to get all details, news and instructions in the volcanic station in Klyuchi Village. From there, all climbers have to ride in a Kamaz truck to the foot of the volcano. There are two climbing routes: the northern one, from the volcanologists' camp called “Horseshoe”; and the eastern one, from the Apakhonchich camp, through the Volcanologists' pass. Climbing without a guide is a very bad idea. Climbing during an eruption is prohibited.
Photo: NASA Earth Observatory
The two brothers Plosky (Flat) Tolbachik (3140 m) and the extinct Ostry (Sharp) Tolbachik (3682 m), which had grown together at their craters, recently easily defeated their “boss” Klyuchevsky when they showed the world a colossal “Hawaiian” fissure eruption with lava in 2013. Lava flows rushed through magma-conducting faults, burned down a volcanology camp, formed a beautiful lava field with caves, a dead forest, and new types of diamonds. Even before the new eruption, the first Soviet moon rovers were tested on the slopes of Plosky Tolbachik. At the top of the volcanoes, there is a complex system of calderas, formed like a Matryoshka one inside another.
Ascent: Tolbachik is very far from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, so climbing this volcano turns into a great adventure. Usually, on the night before the ascent, the group sleeps in the Tolbachinsky Dole near the Kleshnya (“crab claw”) cone. In the visitor’s center, you need to pay an admission fee for trekking in the Klyuchevskoy park. At the top of the Plosky Tolbachik, all tourists fry sausages. They say: if you ate a volcanic hot dog — you were at the top. It is 6–8 hours one way; anyone can handle it. But only professionals climb Ostry Tolbachik.
Bezymianny was considered “retired” until suddenly, in 1956, it woke up and erupted. Since then, it has been surprisingly predictable: the perfectionist Bezymianny erupts almost “by the clock” twice a year. At the top, volcanologists recorded a powerful release of gases, and the lava dome continues to grow.
Ascent: It is considered a classic, Bezymianny is lower than Klyuchevskoy and more comfortable for climbing. And from the top, there is a fascinating view of the Klyuchevskaya Sopka and all the other 12 volcanoes of the group. And this is a great stimulus for trekking, right?
Photo: Nasa Earth Observatory
Sheveluch is the northernmost and one of the most ancient volcanoes of Kamchatka. It has been in continuing eruptive activity since 1999. Both times, its “night show” destroyed forests and covered everything around it with fragments of lava and ash. The longest lava stream travelled 28 km down from its foot. Still today, it is an inconvenience to aviation — frequent ash emissions are a hindrance to flights. The lava dome on Sheveluch is getting thicker and is almost 560 meters high, so we are waiting for a new season of the volcanic show.
Ascent: the lava dome of the volcano can explode at any moment, so it is better to stay away from Sheveluch, at a distance of 15–20 km.
Zhupanovsky volcano is 100 km north of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. It woke up again during the 1950s of the last century, and like all active volcanoes, it periodically spits out emissions of ash. There were days when it did it twice a day, up to an altitude of 3,500 km.
It “messed up” from 2010 to 2013. Kizimen managed to change the banks of the Levaya River during its last eruption and created a whole lake out of the Poperechny Stream. Now it has been “punished” , probably for 30 years. But it is still active, from time to time, it blows gases from the Revushchaya (Roaring) fumarole on its lava dome, the diameter of which reaches 200–300 meters. It's been alive since 2010, periodically hiding in a hot lava blanket, bombarding the surroundings with ash and volcanic bombs. Scientists are sure that a large eruption is coming soon, its lava dome is already at the limit.
The Four Seasons of Russia project is supported by the Russian Geographical Society www.rgo.ru
Travel to the Kamchatka Peninsula is recommended by the Russian Geographical Society.
Also read about Kamchatka:
Mutnovsky Volcano on Kamchatka: How I climbed into the crater of an active volcano
Trekking to Vachkazhets Mountain range
Kuril Lake: something about the life of bears and humans
Climbing Mount Camel
The Small Valley of Geysers
The Valley of Geysers
Avacha Bay
Kamchatka: Life-hacks and tips
Translation: Irina Romanova, Instagram: @astrabella1
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