Bromo at Alam

Posted by Roni on 4th January, 2013

Mt. Bromo volcano in East Java is the active cone inside the giant Tengger caldera, one of Indonesia's most scenic locations destination in East Java, famous for its magnificient sunrise views and the panorama over the caldera with Semeru volcano in the background.
Background:
The 16-km-wide Tengger caldera is located at the northern end of a volcanic massif extending from Semeru volcano. The massive Tengger volcanic complex dates back to about 820,000 years ago and consists of five overlapping stratovolcanoes, each truncated by a caldera. Lava domes, pyroclastic cones, and a maar occupy the flanks of the massif. The Ngadisari caldera at the NE end of the complex formed about 150,000 years ago and is now drained through the Sapikerep Valley. The most recent of the Tengger calderas is the 9 x 10 km wide Sandsea Caldera at the SW end of the complex, which formed incrementally during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene. An overlapping cluster of post-caldera cones was constructed on the floor of the Sandsea Caldera within the last several thousand years. The youngest of these is Bromo, one of Java's most active and most frequently visited volcanoes.

Typical eruption style:

• Explosive.
• Frequent small,
• phreatic eruptions at Bromo cinder cone on the bottom of the caldera.

Bromo volcano eruptions: 1804, 1815, 1820, 1822, 1825, 1829, 1830, 1835, 1842, 1843, 1844, 1856, 1857, 1858, 1858, 1859, 1860, 1865, 1865, 1866, 1867-68, 1877, 1885, 1885-86, 1886, 1886-87, 1888(?), 1890, 1893, 1896, 1906-07, 1907, 1907-08, 1909, 1910, 1915-16, 1921, 1922, 1928, 1930, 1935, 1939, 1940, 1948, 1950, 1955, 1956, 1972, 1980, 1983(?), 1983, 1984, 1995 (March-May), 1995 (Sep-Dec), 2000 (Nov)-20001 (Jan), 2004 (June), Dec 2010 

PENANJAKAN SUNRISE VIEW

LOCATION:
Gunung Penanjakan can be accessed from the village of Tosari or Wonokitri. I rented a 4WD (jeep) from my hotel Bromo Cottages for Rp275.000 ($30) for round trip travel to Penanjakan (and then later to Bromo Crater before back to Tosari village for the complete journey). The journey usually starts at 0330 hrs from Tosari and the climb takes about 1 hour. The last portion of the journey should be done on walking for 15 minutes because of the narrow roads and lack of parking space at the top.
There are also trips conducted from either Pasuruan, Surabaya, Malang or Probolinggo, but the journey will start much earlier (you will spend a portion of your sleeping time in the car).


DESCRIPTION:

At an altitude of 2,770m, the viewing deck at Mt Penanjakan is considered a must-visit for every travel itinerary to the national park. Travelers sometimes travel as early as midnight and as far as from Surabaya to get here by 0500 hrs when the golden shimmering sun hits the mountain peaks.
When I arrived at the viewing platform, it was already crowded. Everyone was rather quiet. In the far eastern horizon, a magical hue of dark blue, red, yellow and orange started to appear. Everyone started to see the dark silhouette of the eastern volcano peaks like Mt Argopuro (3,088m) and Mt Raung (3,332m).
I managed to secure a prime spot in the already crowded deck. Reason being everyone was so enthralled with the sunrise view, that they forgot the main reason we were all here in that bitterly cold morning. Yes, the sunrise was, to some extent, beautiful, but people will fight tooth and nails to say what day and which place has the better sunrise. I was at Mt Penanjakan to see the spectacular caldera which view is famous the world over. Perhaps the rest of the visitors wasn't aware of that, until it was too late.
As the glistening ray of sun started to grow stronger, I spotted the first glimpse of Mt Semeru far in the distance. Soon enough, in between adjusting my camera position and fighting the frost bite, the magic began. Mt Bromo started to appear in the frame, along with the furrowed slopes of Mt Batok and Mt Kursi. As the angle of sunlight changed, so were the hues of these majestic volcanoes. At that point, I sat back and relaxed, while enjoying every moment of it.
The magic didn't stop there. Mt Semeru, the tallest peak in Java, began to do her routine act - by spewing a handsome amount of hot gases, ashes and volcanic rocks to the air. Everyone was awestruck. The resulting mesh of earthly objects eventually mushroomed into a large dark cloud. Amazing!

MY VERDICT:
Watching the sunrise from Mt Penanjakan is a MUST for visitors. The view is simply magical!

Last changed: 25th November, 2016 at 7:08 PM