26 July - Day 52: Igneous Rocks are super cool (well they started out really hot, but...)

One of the highlights and low points of discount travel is never really knowing what exactly is going on... today I only knew that I was to be up for breakfast at 7 am and then... the VOLCANO tour! Since I'm alone they just hook me up with other groups. Today I got stuck with a group of 25. Four people I recognized from the boat ride over and two were volunteers at Jatun Satcha. The one girl from the reserve is a super huge beeaattcchh and is constantly bragging about how "correct" she is in every way - oh - I don't drive a car, I only use public transportation - oh - I don't flush when the water is yellow, let it mellow - I am so politically correct - super annoying! I made a point early on in the day to avoid her and it worked. I ended up hiking with the guide who just happens to have been born in Isabella (oh if you could only see the hospital). Wait til I can upoad photos of the town... He was a joy to walk with and very excited about working for the National Park and his English was fantastic.

We drove up to the cloudy zone and started the soggy hike in the mud and mist. This island is the youngest and the most recent eruption was in 2005. It reminds me of the Big Island of Hawaii - lava everywhere. Of course the cloudy zone is moist enough to support vegetation so there is a lot of growth, but as you continue up to the crater you emerge from the clouds and suddenly it's very dry.

We stopped at a look out to see the Sierra Negra crater - the 2nd largest only behind Ngorongoro in Africa.

Sierra Negra is 10 km (6.2 mi) in diameter and the magma chamber in only 2 km deep! That's amazingly shallow when you think about it... oozing hot magma spinning around only 2 km below! There are vents on the crater floor - breathing. Sulfur is a common mineral found here and on the other side of the crater they are mining for sufur.

Shooting off from the same magma chamber as Sierra Negra are some parasitic volcanoes. The name implies just what they are... parasites sucking from the same magma source, but erupting thorough weaker points around the larger, main volcano.

Volcan Chico is a series of parasitic volcanoes. As we walked over I sped up to be alone, and was in absolute heaven. It's really difficult to find the right words to describe something that is so amazing. As I walk through the cooled lava field I notice the colors and think - mineral content - yellowish = sulfur, reddish = iron, blueish/greenish = mangenese, and black = magnesium - swirls of color in the ropey texture. I think of the magma source - the firey, liquid rock swelling under the crust. Pressure, temperautre - building... until... release. But the ropey texture imples not a burst, but an ooze. Oh there are signs of bursts here too. The pyroclastic debris - pieces of rock punctured by tiny holes - pockets of air trapped during the explosive event. Active.

Now in addition to my 1000's of photos of turtles, marine iguanas and sea lions I have volcano photos! Today was worth a lot of crappy travel days.

After the hike I decided that a baby powder shower wouldn't help remove the cakes of mud - so I did it - I braved the frigid hose they call a shower. There isn't a fresh water source on the island so they use brackish water in the pipes. Regardless of my shower, my hair still feels a bit stickey. I'm going to be a filthy mess by the time I get back to Bolivia.

Since it was only 3 pm I decided to explore the "town". Just wait... I did meet a couple of street puppies that were so excited when I crouched to take their photo that I couldn't get any background, but are you kidding me with those faces!