The crater
About 2 km wide.
Nina R from Africa — CC BY 2.0 · Joseph Lionceau — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cai Tjeenk Willink (Caitjeenk) — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Congo Tourism Gate — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Congo Tourism Gate — CC BY-SA 4.0
Mount Nyiragongo is an active volcano rising to 3,470 metres in Virunga National Park, in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It stands north of the city of Goma and Lake Kivu, close to the Rwandan border. Its main crater is about two kilometres wide and usually holds a lake of molten lava. At times its lava lake has been the largest known in recent history, and its depth changes greatly. In the eruption of January 1977 it drained suddenly from a depth of about 600 metres. Together with neighbouring Nyamuragira, it accounts for about 40 percent of Africa's recorded historical eruptions. From the rim you see a vast round pit with stepped grey walls, and at the bottom a black crust split by glowing red lines that move slowly, with thick white smoke rising. At night the orange glow lights up the crater walls. Forest covers the slopes and gives way to volcanic rock near the top, where snow sometimes falls. The summit is about 15 km from Goma in a straight line. Visitors climb with park rangers for about five to six hours and sleep in huts on the rim. The UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to North Kivu, and tourist visits have been suspended several times, so read the current advice before any planning.
About 2 km wide.
At night.
On the rim.
Virunga National Park, north of Goma, DR Congo
About five to six hours, with a night on the rim.
Yes, the UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to North Kivu.