is estimated to be between 100,000 and 200,000 years old. John and Rebecca, our knowledgeable tour guides, shared with us intriguing stories about the old factory ruins and the various human inhabitants. What struck me is the rawness here, where little plant life survives and all that surrounds me is hissing, steaming vents and towering columns of hardened yellow sulphur. “I feel like I’m walking through a Star Trek movie”, whispers the Swiss girl. I raise my eyebrows – I was just thinking the same thing. I found out later that scenes from the Narnia series had been filmed here. Just to top it off, we venture right up to the main crater’s edge and peer over hoping for a glimpse into the centre of the earth. A steaming cauldron greeted me. Stories regaled about neighbouring Donald Duck and Noisy Nellie Craters and pieces of hardened sulphur got handed round. John stuck a piece of driftwood the grandsons had been carrying around into a soft white lump and pulled out bright yellow hot liquid goo. We even got to taste the water in one of the streams – it was bizarrely sweet.
I have every confidence in the guides as they assure me that whilst there are always elements of risk in such a visit, White Island Tours has been bringing visitors here for over 21 years and have experienced the island through different levels of activity. This island has also long been a destination of choice for fishermen and divers. With rugged cliffs disappearing into deep ocean, crystal clear water, abundant fish life and underwater thermal vents it is a perfect marine haven. “Divers say it’s like swimming in champagne,” John tells me. If we had visited during the summer we could have swum and snorkelled off the back of the boat – now that would be an experience of a lifetime. However, going by boat is not the only option to get here. If I was strapped for time or prone to chronic seasickness I would probably opt for appreciating the strange, haunting beauty that is White Island arriving via one of Frontier Helicopters’ White Island Volcano Adventures. It’s a great way to get to the island quickly and see the majestic volcano in action from all sorts of perspectives.
I am a bit of an ecotourism advocate and it is great the White Island Tour place such a focus on keeping the island as natural as possible. There are no safety barriers or signage meaning access to the geothermal and volcanic activity is as close as you would ever want it to be. I was pleasantly surprised at how near we could to get to the hot steaming vents. I particularly appreciated how the guides followed watercourses so that all of our footsteps would be washed away. Nice touch.
But a boat trip offers more time to soak up our surroundings and as we left, Pete the skipper drove us around the island while everyone enjoyed a supplied lunch of sandwiches, fruit and yummy cake. Given this tour’s emphasis on the splendor of nature it is not surprising we saw New Zealand Fur Seals lounging on the rocks, or the dramatic ash-burnt pohutukawa forests clinging precariously to the island’s edge. I had hoped for dolphins, but Rebecca pointed out it was a wee bit cold for them this time of year.
John pointed out monitoring equipment discreetly located which is constantly checked by scientists. I feel like I am flirting with danger being here on this island, it’s strangely exhilarating. White Island is currently on a Level 1 alert status meaning there is constant background activity. But
Heading home, a sleepy calm descended as we reflected on our surreal adventure and enjoyed the comfort of the soft sofas inside. The grandsons crashed out. Suffice to say I was going home a little more in awe of this country’s amazing geologic history and natural environment.
www.travelnewzealandmagazine.com
107