Collateral & Caldera-Mt Yasur Vanuatu

Shooting Mt Yasur is not a recommendation. This is not a guide. Active volcanoes are extremely dangerous and unpredictable and, as the sign says there “The only way to avoid risk is to stay off Yasur.” Lava bombs do not choose targets; they land where they land.

I was frightened and very nervous about going, but made a clear decision that if it was too intense, I would leave and not climb. I wanted to express one black and white series called Collateral for a very long time, and the best way to show how it feels to stand next to unstable power and to feel the consequences of it in my own personal life was by going to a place where I risked it all.

My photography career is something I am extremely grateful for and I do not encourage others to do the same. The caldera and rim are fragile. The earth shakes. The gases sound like jet engines. The sulfur itself can poison you. The vacuum force after an eruption can pull you forward if you are unstable. You cannot use a tripod, the ground beneath you is quaking and lava bombs fly without warning.

Mt Yasur ( The Lighthouse of the Pacific) is a place I wish to protect. It is not a commodity for social media. It is a living,breathing, active volcano with warnings and extreme danger.

I did my research and packed accordingly with safety gear and first aid kits before heading the beautiful nation of Vanuatu.

Day 1 Sydney to Port Vila

As I spoke about above, my nerves had kicked in during the week leading up to this trip. Mostly, I worry about safety on my own. I have traveled alone overseas most of my life, but this trip felt different. I was not just facing solo travel, I was coming face to face with fears, emotions, and an active volcano that could kill me. There have been three deaths on the rim of Mt Yasur

It was an early 3am start from Sydney for my flight to Port Vila. This was my second time in Vanuatu, and I do love the South Pacific islands -the people the culture and island

life. I arrived in a dodgy, really bad hotel and only stayed a few hours before my once again early flight to Tanna Island.

Day 2 Port Vila to Tanna Island and Mt Yasur

I arrived at Port Vila airport via taxi, and it was shut. The airport does not open until 5 am for a 6am flight. Of course, I had to pay for extra baggage when it did open as my camera bag was overweight for such a small plane.

During the flight, I chatted to friendly locals. The flight to Tanna Island was short and the scenery was breathtaking. As we approached I felt a mix of anticipation and apprehension knowing the adventure ahead would be unlike anything Id experienced before. Landing in Tanna, the air was thick with humidity and the vibrant green landscape stretched as far as the eye could see. The journey to the village was bumpy and dusty passing through dense jungle and across rugged terrain. I was excited to finally arrive and settle in ready to take in the unique sights and sounds of the island before heading to Mt Yasur. The bungalow where I was perfectly positioned,allowing me to hike as many times as I wished without the two hour trip from the posh resorts on other side of island.

Vanuatu is tropical heat, and I was happy I had packed hydralte tablets for my water to keep my electrolytes up, along with purifying tablets for use in the jungle. The bungalow had no running water so there was no shower, no power apart from an hour a night from a generator. The toilet needed to be topped up with water to flush and it was shared with everyone.

It was like what I experienced in the Amazon in Peru. This was not my first time in a jungle, and I loved it. No pretenses, no influencer energy just remote, raw island life. No stores. just a breath of fresh air to be somewhere genuine and real.

I could hear and see Mt Yasur, a 361 metre high volcano, from my bungalow with ash already falling in my hair. I unpacked and explored and met the village family, who were so welcoming and beautiful. I gave them the school supplies I had bought for the children,then I went across the road to pay for the entry to do the sunset tour of Mt Yasur at the visitor centre and had a look through the small Mt Yasur museum.

Mt Yasur does have safety guidelines for an active volcano. You sign a waiver -it Is at your own risk and they also have supplies of high- visability jackets, hard hats and masks (the covid style). I bought my own safety gear beforehand, but most people did not use any, this surprised me. Many looked at me as if I was over prepared- until we were up there.

There is a safety briefing for everyone. You must follow the guides at front or back of group. If the lava bombs come close, you are told not to run but stay still and watch. Safety gear is strongly advised although only a couple of people listened to that advice.

There is almost a 90 degree climb for 150 metres to reach the rim. It is here the reality of “oh my gosh what am I doing?” kicks in. The sulfur smell is overwhelming and the earth shakes violently beneath your feet. The loudest grumbles I have ever heard from mother nature.

 On this first ascent, anyone without a mask was not allowed up on the rim and we had to wait as the wind had changed. Sulfur is poison and can be life threatening to those without masks within 20 minutes and it was blowing straight at us. People began coughing, and some decided that they would not climb further and went back down. I went up and took my first steps on the rim, surrounded by sulfur gases, with the ground shaking beneath me. I felt vulnerable and weak and at same time strong and brave.

“I did it ! I am on an active volcano rim “

My hands were shaking. For handheld photos I was trying hard to calm my nerves. “Breathe Toni, just breathe” By the third trip, I had developed a coping strategy i will speak about later.

Then came the lava bursts as little rocks bounced off my hard hat. Everyone without a hard hat cursing why they didn’t listen to the safety advice- so even more people climbed back down. I didn’t feel it hit my skin; I was covered in hiking pants and a jacket. It was then reality kicked in “what on earth am I doing up here”

It was incredible.

The tears started to fall not from the ash but from the raw power of it. Mother nature in all her glory. I just knew I could channel my fears and trembling hands into shooting Mt Yasur!. It was not too active on the first night. The view into the caldera was obscured by the sulfur and gases but I got amazing shots and was on an adrenaline high.

The tour ends after sunset, or if activity gets too intense. The gases are risky even with masks, and our mask time was up at around 2 hours, so we headed back down the volcano with headlamps.

Back at bungalow, was followed by dinner with the village and guests then bed.

Adrenaline crash.

Day 3 Mt Yasur

In the morning, after breakfast with two new friends, we hired one of the village family to drive us to the hot springs. I was expecting the usual hot springs, very small but I was met with a hot spring lake!. The whole lake was boiling hot, with a view of Mt Yasur casually erupting behind us. It was there I got to bathe the ash out of my hair and off my sweaty jungle skin. I was so happy I had climbed a volcano and now in a hot spring lake but it got better- this lake met the cold ocean. So a swim in the ocean and a bath in hot springs, meanwhile Mt Yasur just continued to erupt like she has done for centuries ( it is estimated for 800 years. Crazy to think about. ) I was pinching myself and smiling with gratitude.

From the hot springs we drove to the ash plains. The Siwi ash plain leads to Mt Yasur and again,as we found out when we left, it can be dangerous. The plains are centuries old and formed by the ash and lava of Mt Yasur. The landscape is a grey, stark and harsh, with a small hot stream running through the lava walls. It is here I walked barefoot in ash quicksand and climbed the side of Mt Yasur collecting lava bomb rocks. As we were leaving, there was huge explosion luckily we were already at the 4wd truck to go, but it was scary to see that where I had stood only moments earlier was now covered in gas and ash. The lava plains are a cross roads and intersection for jungle villages.

From there it was the orange mud plain and back to bungalows, so I could go alone again to Mt Yasur for both the sunset and the 3am in the dark hike.

So again there was a safety briefing and the 150 metre climb and an incredible sunset over the volcano. I knew what I was prepared for this time, so shooting was easier, though handheld shaking ground and low light meant higher ISO’s. It was another incredible visit to the rim and a stunning sunset, I went back down with my headlamp for dinner and early night ready for the 3am climb.

This climb was scary. Only six brave souls and me -the only photographer- decided to go up. A quick safety briefing and we began the ascent in the dark with headlamps and torches. I stepped onto the rim. The eerie red glow and loud grumbles before the explosion walking where we could actually see into the core of the caldera. It was frightening as Yasur was very, very active. The booms and explosions had my legs ready to give out and I dug my feet into the ground to stop the pressure vacuum after the explosions pulling me in with force. I was petrified. I got some incredible shots, Then it happened. The second caldera started exploding and the explosions were way taller than us but the bombs were landing on the other side. My approach and coping strategy became “ Don’t think just do, Don’t think just do”. and I focused in on what I was shooting. I am a big believer in fate and destiny and that I had angels watching over.

 Then a massive explosion!, had it been any bigger, I would have been in the caldera! I put the camera down and thought “Ok its time to go”. I am out! Then the guide said to everyone “We have to go now!!” It was sunrise and we hurried back down, my heart racing. I am so grateful to have experienced it and to have been safe over the course of those two hours. I did question my life choices to be there. It is not for the faint- hearted, that’s for sure

This series was important to me after all I have been through to face fears, doubters and people that have hurt me. I was proud of myself to photograph the series that scared me the most.

Once again on an adrenaline high, I headed back to the bungalows for a power nap and breakfast

Day 4 Mt Yasur

After breakfast, I really needed a shower- ash everywhere from two days- so I was guided to the river to swim, about 8 km away, hiking in the jungle heat. I got to walk through villages and arrived at the cool mountain lake for a swim.

After the swim, I booked my fourth and final trip up Yasur for sunset and went back to the bungalow to rest with the village girls, who braided my hair and filled me in on the life on the island and the culture and customs.

As usual, I gave away my clothes and some nice dresses to one of the girls and koala bear toys to the children. I met the most amazing and generous people who took me in as family.

My last hike up Yasur, I was totally exhausted- three climbs, swims and hikes in jungle heat but- every moment was worth it. I got to say goodbye to a volcano that treated me well and had shown me not just it’s majesty but allowed me to face myself and be proud. The caldera was filled with gases and not as pretty as the last two climbs, and it was a soft goodbye, like an I will remember you my friend. An incredible four days I shed a tear as I did most goodbyes and thanked Mother Nature and the angels watching over on this trip.

I then packed and headed to the beach side of the island. This was where I intended to scuba dive but I ended up eating at the resort restaurant and was hit with three days of severe food poisoning -which was not fun.

On the 7th day I had enough strength to snorkel in the Blue Cave. It was stunning at high tide swimming under into the beautiful blue but that was all I could manage.

On the 8th day I flew back to Port Vila. By this point I was exhausted from the climbs, jungle heat and food poisoning so I tried to get an earlier flight back to Sydney but couldn’t, so I spent two days in an eco retreat with no wifi and rested as much as I could still being quite sick.

A quick visit to Tanna coffee on the way to Port Vila airport. The place where the coffee I drank all trip is made. I then flew back home to Sydney.

Thank you so much to the people of Vanuatu for such an incredible trip. I am truly grateful.

Both series, Collateral and Caldera will be released in my galleries later this year. I truly appreciate all your love, support and reading along.

See you on the next adventure and out shooting.

Toni xx

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