Located in the eastern part of Java, the Kawah Ijen volcanic complex is a group of stratovolcanoes (made up of many overlapping layers of solidified lava).
The crater lake on its top is known as the largest acid lake in the world: a beautiful green-like sulfurous lake.
In the Sixties, the first miners planted metal pipes in the bowels of the volcano to extract sulfur. Their task is still to transport downstream the sulfur coming out from the volcano at high temperatures once it has cooled.
Every day, miners walk on the 3-km trail that goes from the base camp located at the foot of the volcano to the top of the mountain, then descend the walls of the crater along a steep uneven path to reach the shore of the lake. After extracting the sulfur, they smash the huge yellow blocks that are formed. All of this still occurs under unbearable human conditions because, in the proximity of the lake, the air is unbreathable due to sulfurous fumes. Obviously, nobody wears any protective mask.
Ale and I had the unfortunate idea of going down to the lake shore to see it up close and just as we were down there, we were literally hit by a gust of sulfur fumes. I remember trying to breathe as little as possible and when I tried to, it was almost impossible. It was impressive and scary. Then suddenly the air cleared up and at that point we climbed up back to avoid finding ourselves again in the midst of that toxic cloud.
We only had a glimpse of what life is like for those poor miners who transport sulfur blocks from the lake to the valley. Placed in simple baskets and then lifted as a barbell and loaded on their shoulders, these blocks can reach up to 80 kilograms.
Once at the collection point, the sulfur is made liquid again to be cleaned of impurities, and it is cooled down in the form of plates which are then collected in bags ready to be sent to their destination. Finally, they will be used to make fertilizers, cosmetics and explosives.
Although from a natural point of view the landscape is extraordinary, the situation is really dramatic from the human perspective.
In recent years, this area has become very famous since Ijen’s electric blue flame has started to be popular. The number of tourists visiting the area has increased each year. The blue fire ignites due to the sulfuric gas, which emerges from the fissures with temperatures up to 600 degrees C°. These can reach 5m in height; a part of the gas condenses into liquid and ignites again. The blue flames are also formed above the lava, which is red by day and bright blue by night.
