Kabooommmm - Volcanic Explosion in Vanuatu!

We had another long passage to tackle – this time on our way to the island of Tanna in southern Vanuatu. 460nm should have seemed like a breeze after all of the miles we’ve clocked up but with inconsistent winds it took 3 long days and 4 nights before we spotted Mt Yasur – the forever erupting volcano offshore just as the sun rose.

Enjoying the beautiful sunrise as we wait for more light to enter Port Resolution.

Shortly after arriving we were greeted by Stanley who works on behalf of the Port Resolution Yacht Club. He greets all of the incoming boats and provides information on what to see and do in the area. Most importantly he arranges transport to Mt. Yasur – the world’s most accessible active volcano, where visitors can get as close to 150m to the rim of the crater. With no safety lines or gates we were super excited to get up close and personal with Mt. Yasur.

We were collected at 3:30pm along with our friends from Lateral Thinking and made the 1 hour drive to the base of the volcano. 

For some bizarre reason, there is a working letterbox at the top of the volcano, Megan couldn’t resist – this one’s for you Julieanne!

As the sun started to set, we made our way up the path to the crater’s rim and immediately heard, felt and saw the amazing power of Yasur.

We were a few days late but the original idea was to celebrate Megan’s 35^th b-day on top of the volcano – memorable!

We were prompted to climb even higher for a better look into the smoky cauldron. 

After another 20 minute vertical climb we were literally looking down into two vents that were taking turns spitting rockets of red molten rock and smoke up into the air before us. We could feel the ground shaking every few minutes and then bright red boulders as big as trucks were launched into the air in front of us. The only way to describe it was a natural firework display and it was awesome!!!! 

Here's a quick video while it's still light out to show you how close we were to the rim of the crater

A quick video showing the spectacle at night with sound and everything!

After ticking off a major bucket list activity, we were free to explore the east side of Tanna for a few days, including the village of Port Resolution where time has literally stood still.  There are no stores, no Internet and the village functions as it has for hundreds of years. 

Trading and sharing information with the visiting yachts has become an important part of the social dynamic here and so Stanley was quick to offer some fresh bananas, papayas and breadfruit in exchange for some rice, fishing lures and canned vegetables we had on board.

Looking at photos in a geography book with Stanley and his family.

We were also given permission to walk freely around the village and to observe daily life. These are subsistence farmers who live completely off of the land so most of their time is spent managing their pigs and tending to their root vegetable crops.

Stanley's sister Miriam preparing the evening meal of root vegetables and suckling pig - all which were steamed in an earth oven for the afternoon.

And once the day's chores were done the children would spend time at the beach, learning to surf on whatever the ocean had dragged in or what visitors had left. We spent two great afternoons watching the fun!

Or they would play with whatever they could make, like this boy who used two old fish cans, a nail and a long piece of wood to create a fun toy he drove up and down the beach!

And for the adults, as we’ve seen almost everywhere in our travels – soccer still proves to be the sport of the world.

We wanted to support the local community's efforts so we made a reservation at Leah’s restaurant for a lunch of local fare. This is the only ‘restaurant’ in the village and it caters solely to the yachting community. Leah established the restaurant to help fund her children’s school fees.

We invited Leah to join us for the meal so we could gain a better understanding of life on Tanna. She was very forthcoming about village life and her food was delicious.

On the menu - omelets served with papaya salsa, 3 root vegetables dressed with homemade coconut milk, snake beans and bananas for desert.

Lunch was served on homemade plates made out of banana leaf - talk about sustainable practices!

After stuffing ourselves at Leah's, we set off on a 10km return walk to the next village which had great views over the ocean, including a bay of resident yellow reef sharks.

It's difficult to see but there are a dozen sharks swimming in the shallows in the picture above.

Mike taking Stanley's canoe out for a spin. These canoes are handmade and can last up to 10 years if taken care of properly.

While our time in Tanna was short and we only saw a fraction of the island, we were absolutely taken with the locals - their warmth and hospitality was a highlight. This was by far the closest we've come to interacting with locals in an authentic setting.

Up next - New Caledonia and our last country before we land in Australia in early November.