Indonesia
Kelimutu
Three crater lakes on one summit change colour independently, black to turquoise to rust.
The jeeps leave Moni while the stars are still out, and the three lakes reveal themselves at first light, each a different colour, none guaranteed to be the colour it was last month. The Lio say each holds a different kind of departed soul, and from the rim it is easy to see why.
Kelimutu's summit in central Flores carries three steep-walled crater lakes whose colours shift independently as volcanic minerals and gases work on the water: turquoise, green, black, brown and rust have all been recorded. The Lio people of the surrounding highlands hold the lakes sacred, each associated with a destination for souls, a living tradition rather than a scientific account. The summit circuit is a short walk from the park access above Moni, best at dawn before cloud closes the craters, and Kelimutu remains an active volcanic site where barriers and ranger direction hold.
Solo
An early solo start earns the summit circuit at its quietest and coldest best.
Couple
Share the cold pre-dawn drive up, then a slow breakfast back down in Moni.
Friends
The natural centrepiece of a Flores road trip, argued over back in the warm.
- Three lakes on one summit hold three different colours at once.
- The colours change over months as mineral chemistry shifts, so no two visits match.
- Lio tradition assigns each lake a different destination for departed souls.
- Dawn from Moni beats the cloud that usually takes the craters by mid-morning.
Moni's small kitchens, Good Moni among them, serve hot food around the pre-dawn departures.
Cafe MOOn and Mopi's Place mix Indonesian and traveller plates back in the village.
Arenal & La Fortuna
Costa Rica
Hot springs steaming through jungle beneath a volcano's perfect cone at dusk.
Drakensberg
South Africa
Basalt walls rise above sandstone caves painted across thousands of years.
Parque Nacional Volcán Isluga
Chile
Volcanic horizons and high wetlands surround living Aymara settlements in the altiplano.
Sani Pass
South Africa
A switchback road climbs from green foothills to a high border above the clouds.
Nias Island
Indonesia
At Bawömataluo, jumpers still clear a two-metre stone tower in a single leap.
Ijen Crater
Indonesia
Sulphur miners and blue fire share Ijen's crater with a kilometre-wide acid lake.
Lake Toba
Indonesia
A volcanic island the size of Singapore floats inside the largest caldera lake on Earth.
Mentawai Islands
Indonesia
Sago smoke in the longhouse, heavy water on the reef: the Mentawais run two worlds.