In the waters of the Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea there is an archipelago consisting of 7107 islands. Their total area is 299, 700 km². They extend south for 2, 000 km, east - for 35, 000 km. This is a truly unique place in which there are a variety of inhabitants and there are many unusual places, including the volcanoes of the Philippines. There are 37 of them, 18 of them are active. Some showed themselves not so long ago, not more than 10 years ago.
Mayon
This volcano is very famous, as it often erupts. Over the past 400 years, more than 50 of its eruptions have been recorded. Mayon Volcano is located near Bicol, in the southeastern part of Luzon Island. It is an interesting attraction of the islands, has a regular conical shape with a narrow crater, from which smoke always comes. The height of the Mayon volcano is 2462 meters. This mountain looks very beautiful and, by the way, is considered the most picturesque volcano in the world.
During the eruption, the named volcano of the Philippines acquires special beauty and at the same time a terrifying look. Hot lava begins to flow along its slopes, and thick puffs of smoke rise upward.
The most destructive eruption here occurred in 1814. Then this powerful mountain of the Philippines destroyed the city of Sagzawa and caused the death of over 1, 200 people. The last eruption was in 2009, but we can say that the mountain warned about this in advance: smoke began to come out more actively, and lava slowly flowed down the slopes. And only after three years the eruption became active. In order to save the local population, a large-scale evacuation was carried out.
Pinatubo
Of all the volcanoes in the Philippines, Pinatubo is considered the largest. It is located on Luzon Island, 93 kilometers from Manila. This volcano is active, although for many years it was considered extinct. His last eruption was in 1991. In power, it surpassed other eruptions of the last century.
Now the height of the mountain is 1486 meters, and until 1991 it was higher - 1745 m. Due to activity in the center, a new crater with a diameter of 2.5 km was formed. Now there is water in it, the reserves of which are replenished during the rains. The new lake is very popular with tourists coming to the islands.
The eruption of this volcano in the Philippines began unexpectedly. The mountain slept for six centuries, but at the end of the twentieth century it suddenly woke up. During the week, the volcano raged. Powerful explosions caused strong smoke emissions, the deaths of thousands of people and the devastation of the surrounding area. The strongest explosion caused an eruptive column 34 km high. Huge pillars of ash covered the sky for several hours, and the entire surrounding area was in complete darkness.
Now scientists are monitoring the activity of the volcano, since it exhibits little activity in the form of tremors. Because of them, construction within a radius of two kilometers is prohibited. After the last eruption, vegetation gradually appears on the slopes.
Taal
On the island of Luzon, 50 km from Manila, is another volcano in the Philippines - Taal. It is considered the smallest active volcano on the planet. Taal rises in the form of an island on the lake of the same name, which was formed due to early eruptions occurring about 500 thousand years ago.
Since 1572, he erupted more than thirty times. His strongest activity was noted in 1911 - more than 1300 people died. The eruption was so powerful that in ten minutes it destroyed all life in a radius of 10 kilometers, and a cloud of ash was visible from a distance of 400 km. This eruption was called Pelein, when emissions occur not only from craters, but even from cracks on the slopes. At the same time, the formidable mountain of the Philippines did not throw out lava, but ash and superheated steam. Its last eruption was in 1965, then 200 people died.
Canlaon
The islands of the Philippines have many active volcanoes, one of which is Kanlaon. It is located 30 kilometers from the city of Bacolod. This mountain has several craters and volcanic peaks. Kanlaon is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire - a strip of active volcanoes that runs along the borders of the ocean from Kamchatka to Antarctica.
The top of the mountain is at 2435 m and is the highest point on the island of Negros. Near Kanlaon rise the mountains of Silay and Mandalagan. For 125 years, the volcano erupted 26 times with small emissions of lava and ash. In 1996, there was also an eruption, although scientists did not predict it. At that moment, 24 people ascended to the summit and several of them died.
Despite its nasty nature, Kanlaon is considered a real Mecca for tourists. Over 40 tourist routes leading to the top have been laid in the surrounding area. The shortest path is eight kilometers, and it takes more than two days to reach the summit.
Apo
Near the city of the Philippines, Davao on the island of Mindanao is Mount Apo - a potentially active volcano. It consists of the ancient crater Pettil McKinley and the stratovolcano Apo. This is the highest volcano in the Philippines, with a height of 2954 meters. The diameter of the crater is 500 m; it contains a small lake.
Apo is one of the most popular mountains among climbers and climbers. You can reach the summit by the shortest route in two days, and on the most difficult route - on average eight days. Tourists will pass Lake Venado along the way. This is a very beautiful alpine place where you can see how sulfuric gases escape to the surface.
In 1936, the entire mountain was included in the national park. And in 2009, the Philippine Department of Nature Protection filed an application to include the park on its natural heritage list.
