Mount Yasar in our backyard

The three day passage from Fiji was easy and mostly pleasant. We arrived in at Tanna Island, Vanuatu on a dark night about midnight. We had been advised to keep an eye out for signs of the volcano, but we think there might have been some cloud cover and... we didn't really know where to look--nothing seemed out of the ordinary. We did however, occasionally, get the whiff of sulphur in the air but it didn't seem bothersome. In the morning we woke up to a lovely bay. The head of the bay was filled with 20 or so outrigger canoes. Each canoe had at least one man and a pile of fishing line. They were busily working to bring in the day's catch.

Tanna Island fisherman

Around 9 AM Dan was ushered ashore to complete captains duties upon arrival in a new country to clear immigration & customs. At the 'yacht club', which consisted of not much more than a shack and a covered porch, there was a make shift 'bank' where he was also able to exchange US currency for some Vatu (Vanuatu currency). We weren't anticipating an ATM for another week. When he returned to the boat we were permitted to lowered our yellow quarantine 'Q' flag and explore the bay.

On one side of the bay, there were multiple vents of hot water/steam and interesting caves (I thought it a bit scary considering the seismic activity in the area, but harmless enough if you enjoy caves & bats). Later in the afternoon, we had a pre-arranged tour planned for us. At the tour rendezvous location, we loaded up into 4x4 trucks (ours had a metal cage, that 'protected' us from the elements). We sat on 2"x 8" wood benches that were mounted to a rather rustic frame--it was going to be a bumpy but fun ride. We were whisked off down the road, across the beach, across a few 'rivers' and then up into the hills. Most of the roads were unpaved and were just wide enough for the truck to fit, with mud/trees lining the sides of the track so high that in some places you couldn't see much else of the scenery. Occasionally a tree branch would wack one of us in the head or a bump would bounce us off the bench.

Dave, Dan, Britton and I sitting in the back of the pick up

After an hour and 45 minutes of jostling, we found ourselves on an overlook, perfectly framing the volcano. Here a group of local villagers had gathered to provide us with a 'cultural' experience. The women of the village greeted all the female visitors by pressing noses, then cheeks to share their face painting as a sign of welcome. Then, dressed in their traditional grass skirts, they sang for us, accompanied by their woven percussion instruments. One of the first dances they did, they started out slow and quiet and the music became faster and louder, until a sudden stop. Not more than a second after the silence, Mount Yasar made a giant rumble and emitted a pillar of steam. We were all quite impressed at their ability to awake the volcano! It was a spectacular bit of luck on their part -- but with the volcano erupting about every 5-10 minutes, I suppose their odds were fairly good. It was a magical moment for sure!

The villagers sharing their customs and dances with us, Mount Yasar in the background

We had a few more demonstrations from the village (how to open a coconut, how to carry an injured person on taro leaves, how to store water in a bamboo stick) and then we proceed to the Volcano visitor center. After our short 'safety briefing' and waiver signing, we jumped back into the truck to make the final ascent up to the crater rim. From the 'parking lot', we had a short hike up the side of the crater until we stood behind a rickety old fence. On the other side of the fence was a sheer cliff that ended in a pool of lava. The ARC team had advised us that the 'safety standards' in Vanuatu may not be what we had been accustomed to in the US and Europe. That was for sure! We didn't have to linger long before we heard the volcano start to rumble and then spew giant bursts of lava "bombs" up into the air almost as high as we were standing. The ground was shaking, the wind would blow and the sound of the rumble would resonate across the crater. As the bombs fell, you could see rivers of liquid rock rolling back down the sides of the crater returning into the lava cauldron below. It was an epic experience and one that I don't think either us will ever forget. By the time we left the crater it was dark (our timing was planned such that we could see the embers better at night...) we hiked back down the crater side with our headlamps, hoped back into our truck and completed our "indiana jones disneyland ride" back to the beach where we had left the dingy.

Mount Yasar

Overlooking the crater rim into the lava pool below

After dusk the light show was fantastic and awe inspiring!

The next day, all the boats had arrived & cleared in so we were invited to join the village with a formal exchange of gifts. We marched up from the beach to the community lawn and there we were met by several women who donned us with woven hats & handed us fresh coconut water to drink. All the students from the primary school sang us a welcome song. Then the chief and his designates welcomed us with eloquent speeches. Finally, the gifts that we had brought (clothing, batteries, boat parts, solar panels, medical supplies, school supplies) were presented to the village. And the gifts from the village to us (Vegetables, fruits and woven baskets and bags) were presented to us. The local religious leader blessed the piles and goods were distributed. If you seen the hunger games, well, it sort of felt like the cornucopia -- there was a mad dash to distribute everything as fairly as possible to the each of the families. Organized chaos. The children were being doled out skittles, and other candies one by one, it was a desperate frenzy. It took at least two hours until all the goods had their new home and we took our fresh veggies and fruit back to the boat.

Wearing our grass hats

The villagers distributing goods into piles for each family group

The cruisers dividing up the fresh vegetables

For dinner that night we had made "reservations" on the far side of the island, a short 15 minute walk around the village at the local resort. (Local resort = 2 extra grass huts with doors in which visitors could stay). For dinner we were served a beautiful omlet with stir fried vegetables, coconut rice and coleslaw. It was just the four of us sitting under a single light bulb in a 3 side hut. We could hear the surf crashing just around the corner.

Dinner at the beach

The proprietor was fun to talk to, sharing with us more about the local customs, teaching us a few local words and discussing more about village politics and life since independence. On the way back to the boat, we passed by the local kava bar which we were advised to avoid, taking a large circuitous detour as women were most certainly not allowed (someone told me historically this offense was punishable by death!)

The local school room, which had the walls blown off in the last hurricane. The WorldARC participants contributed funds to have this repaired.

In just a few days, our experience in the country of Vanuatu far exceed any expectations we had and is on the books as perhaps our favorite place thus far and we looked forward what would come next. Onward.

Beautiful wild white sand beaches of Tanna, Vanuatu