Traveling to an active volcano can be the thrill of lifetime—or a fatal attraction. Last month’s eruptions of Iceland’s Fagradalsfjall volcano drew thousands to the Geldingadalur valley to watch flaming gobs of lava splutter and spill from the crater’s first eruption in nearly 800 years.
“It was mesmerizing,” says photographer Chris Burkard, who captured the eruption for National Geographic. “I never thought something as simple as molten rock would get me this excited.”
His incandescent images capture hikers, their faces reflecting the radiant orange of molten rock, clambering across the moss-covered basalt landscape to stand perilously close to rivers of lava snaking down the volcano.
In the last decade, volcano tourism has boomed, fueled in part by social media and so-called lava chasers, writes Rachel Ng.
But this glowing allure has a darker side: Eruptions, such as the one at New Zealand’s Whakaari/White Island volcano, have killed and injured tourists—not to mention the millions of people who live near the world’s roughly 1,500 active volcanoes in 81 countries.
For lava chasers drawn to Iceland, Italy, Hawaii, Japan, and beyond there are ways to play it safe, says Rosaly M.C. Lopes, author of the Volcano Adventure Guide.
“We’re lucky that the most beautiful eruptions are also not the most explosive ones,” she says. You can start planning post-pandemic volcanic excursions by learning about the location and activity of these fire-breathers at Smithsonian’s eruption tracker.
Volcanoes can offer gateways to learning about geology and culture, says Benjamin Hayes, chief of interpretation and education for Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
Ancient Hawaiian chants refer to Pele, goddess of volcanoes and fire, as “she who shapes the sacred land,” he says. “You feel the power of Mother Earth near this lifeblood of the planet.
