A Night on Volcano

This trip will approximately take 24 hours in total. All gears will be provided. We will meet at the hotel or other agreed venue. We could later share stories -or not- along 2 hours road trip on a Land Rover to the village where located nearest Merapi trekking route, where we’ll parked our vehicle here, before continue our trip by foot. This trip package is prepared for a group of 3 people. The trip package will be rearrange if there any changes of package upon request.

It will approximately take 5 hours of hiking through the Merapi woods until we found a small cave on Pos 2. Here we will take a long rest and maybe a sleep, or spend the night beside a fire while watching the stars. We certainly hope that the weather is on ourside, cause the view of the lights of Boyolali and Solo is such a waste to be ignored. From this point too, the next standing mountain Merbabu is look like a giant stone in black silhouette. The best view is when the sky is clear, and in full moon season.

To get the sunrise, we have to climb up to top on 03.00 a.m. In 2 hours we'll catch the summit, which is now completely different after it last eruption in 2010. From above, we'll see the volcano line of Merbabu, Sindoro, Sumbing, and Ungaran, and the warm tropical sunrise.

Mount Merapi is an active stratovolcano located on the border between Central Java and Yogyakarta, Indonesia. It is the most active volcano in Indonesia and has erupted regularly since 1548. It is located approximately 28 kilometres (17 mi) north of Yogyakarta city, and thousands of people live on the flanks of the volcano, with villages as high as 1,700 metres (5,600 ft) above sea level. Merapi is the youngest in a group of volcanoes in southern Java. It is situated at a subduction zone, where the Indo-Australian Plate is sliding beneath the Eurasian Plate. It is one of at least 129 active volcanoes in Indonesia, part of the volcano is located in the Southeastern part of the Pacific Ring of Fire–a section of fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and South East Asia. Stratigraphic analysis reveals that eruptions in the Merapi area began about 400,000 years ago, and from then until about 10,000 years ago, eruptions were typically effusive, and the out flowing lava emitted was basaltic. Since then, eruptions have become more explosive, with viscous andesitic lavas often generating lava domes. Dome collapse has often generated pyroclastic flows, and larger explosions, which have resulted in eruption columns, have also generated pyroclastic flows through column collapse.

Typically, small eruptions occur every two to three years, and larger ones every 10–15 years or so. Notable eruptions, often causing many deaths, have occurred in 1006, 1786, 1822, 1872, and 1930—when thirteen villages were destroyed and 1400 people killed by pyroclastic flows.

A very large eruption in 1006 is claimed to have covered all of central Java with ash. The volcanic devastation is claimed to have led to the collapse of the Hindu Kingdom of Mataram; however, there is insufficient evidence from that era for this to be substantiated.