Day on the Volcano

The next day we made a very early start to head off to the Volcano. We had decided that a trip to Reunion Island would not be complete with out a walk up volcano to the craters. An early start was needed because there is no shade & the sun could get very strong. So, having made it to the carpark soon after 7am we got our walking boots on & got ourselves ready to head off after taking a few photos of the view we had missed the last time we were there.



The walk starts with a long descent from the carpark to the lava fields, zigzagging down the side of the cliff (505 steps in all - I counted on the way back up). We then headed off across a level area before starting the ascent up to the craters. The route was marked out with white blobs of paint which you were to follow, & apparently can guide you back down if you get lost in a cloud. Not sure I'd like to be the person sent out with a tin of paint to climb the volcano....

The good point about no shade is that at every point up to the top, we had brilliant views, and could gauge how high we were.

Finally we got to the top - Time for some chocolate and a good drink of water! After a bit of a rest, we went for a bit of a walk around, looking into the craters from time to time, and making the most of our high vantage point to take in the views of Piton des Neiges and the clouds bubbling up below us. Some people were cheating by coming in by helicopter but we knew we deserved our view!

Due to the fact that the Volcano was in eruption pre-alert we weren't allowed to walk the whole way around the two craters. There were lots of warning signs about because some areas had become unstable. They knew something was going to happen - & they were right! We did see a few people who were crazy enough to climb down into Crater Bory (the smaller one) even though there was a massive crack visible! If you don't already know, the day after we left the volcano started to erupt & as a result there was a massive collapse of the big crater (Dolomieu) so the view has changed a bit from what our pictures show - rather than a fairly full flat crater there is a massive 300m hole! I think we'll have to go again to see the difference for ourselves!!!

Before on the left & after on the right.

We had our lunch while still up at the summit & after a while (when the walking boots started to hurt) we headed back to the car knowing that there were those 500 or so steps to climb before we could take the boots off. Counting them helped. 505 to the top of the zigzag & then another 60 or so to the car.

As there were still no clouds Tim took the opportunity to take more pictures with rather different lighting to the glare & deep shadow of early morning.

Back at our gite after some dinner we enjoyed a well deserved soak in the jacuzzi.

Day 10 - Visiting Tim's home

A day for memories.
We started the day by going for a short walk to a waterfall (casacade biberon - the Baby bottle) we had seen a few times on our way across the mountains. I'll let the pictures tell the story ...
After this, it was time for lunch so we continued down to the coast. Here is were the reminessing began: "This coast has eroded! that park used to be much nicer..."
I (Tim) Showed Fi where I was baptized in the river. Next we went to see where I lived for the last 7 years of my time on Reunion. It had changed a bit: its now a learning center of some kind... It was sad to see a few of the trees Me and my brother and sister like to climb were cut down and the big balcony at the rear had been built on. Used to spend hours playing out there, and when I was a bit older, we had a hammock hug up there... Happy days...
Next we went to Bassin la Paix, one of our local easy walks to an impressive waterfall... well it was an easy walk. Seems that the upkeep of the path and picnic areas has been neglected... Click on the picture below for the album for today

Day 10 pictures

Day 9 - Salazie

One of the highlights of the holiday was going to Salazie.
Salazie is a "Cirque": a depression in the mountain caused by empty magma chambers collapsing. This has created a dramatic landscape with great scope for waterfalls and great views.
We couldn't have asked for a better day to see Salazie. Blue skies and sunshine all day.
We spent the day driving to various waterfalls and view points around the cirque and had a picnic with a breathtaking view.
On the way back, we were treated to an other beautiful sunset. The few clouds that did roll in were almost flowing off the mountain like a waterfall.
I think I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...

Day 9 - Salazie pictures

reunion Island holiday - Day 8 - meeting up with old friends

Day 8. The only full Sunday of our Stay in Reunion Island.

We had organized to go to Church in Bras-Pannon, On the east coast of the island. The service started at 9:30, so it was an early start for us, to get over the top of the mountain. This takes about 1h15, and as early morning is the best time of the day cloud wise, we got some very nice views on our way.
We had a lovely service, with songs on French and in creole :-) , prayer and a sermon about being life givers to all around us. The services are a lot more interactive in Reunion Island, as in the congregation joining in, offering prayers and bringing testimonies and praise to God about the things that he had done during the week.
We went for a picnic with a good number from the congregation (with more people joining us from further a field) after the service to nearby rivier-des-roches. It is an estuary, with lots of green shady spaces to sit and play. We had a lovely afternoon catching up on how the church in the east of Reunion is going, and catching up with people.
The churches on the east of Reunion Island seem in a variable state of heath: The sad New being that the Church that our family has been most involved with towards the end of our time in Reunion (Saint Benoit) has been having a very hard time, with only the core 3 families still coming, and building problems. Bras Pannon seems to be doing relatively well, with people I met for the first time and old friends still coming, and St Andre seemed to be doing very well, with a new building nearly finished and the project of opening a teaching center in the pipeline.

Day 8 pictures

It was nice to see friends, and Merci Beaucoup Les Bonneau pour votre hospitalitee.
Tim

Day 7 - Market and beach

Saturday is market day in Saint-Pierre, the capital of the south. Its a particularly good one too: they close of the seafront road and have the market there!
We spent the whole morning wandering around seeing, smelling touching and buying all kinds of things.
There were things that you would expect such as tomatoes and onions and chickens (yes, live). There were also spices, honey, bread... also crafts, carvings from wood and from volcanic stone, needlework, tee-shirts and other clothing. It was great fun but HOT and by the end of it, we were glad to go back to our base, where its a bit cooler for a long drink.
The market wore us out so we went to the beach to relax, read, swim and write postcards for the rest of the day.

Day 7 pictures

Day 6 - A closer look at the south

On day 3, we spotted a couple of things we wanted to come back for. First stop: Jardin des parfums et des épices The Garden of perfumes and spices.
While we were waiting for our guide to arrive, we were amused by a chameleon deciding that it felt a little watched and try to escape along some rather flimsy leaves... it nearly fell a few time. poor thing!
We were taken on a guided tour of the garden and were introduced to a wide range of native and imported tropical plants. I (Tim) translated what I could for Fiona, but with such a beautiful garden, you almost didn't need commentary... I can hardly remember what the guide told us... He gave us a coffee bean straight from the tree and quite a few other leaves and berries to sniff.
After this, we were quite hot, so found a nice shady spot by the sea for our lunch. The sea was so clear and blue! after lunch we just sat and watched the waves break against the cliffs. Totally relaxing and cooling.
In the afternoon, we went to follow a trail we found on day 3, too see where it went... I had hoped it would go along a recent lava flow all the way to the sea. but no it didn't go very far. never mind. we found an other random path that did so that's ok :)
By the way, the volcano is erupting right now. there are a few pics here. we just missed the start of it :(

Day 6 Pictures

Day 5 - A day at the beach

After having stretched our legs on day 4, we though a day at the beach was a good way to relax.
Well, in fact, we went to 3...
All the Beaches on Reunion Island are on the west coast. Etang-salé, a black sand beach, is the first beach you get to when you travel north along the coast from where we were staying. The sand can get very hot in the sun, so we quickly made our way from the shade of the trees to the waters edge for a walk along the beach, watching the amazing waves break while surfers try to ride them.
You may have gathered that Réunion Island is a relatively new volcanic island. This means that the natural colour for sand to be here is black (with a tint of green!). There are only a couple of "white" sand beaches made from coral breaking up.
Next we went to Saint-Leu, world famous for is surf (a rare left hand breaking wave...) It also has a nice, quiet lagoon and beach. The sand is ... well gray I suppose! We had a nice swim in the warm sea, then some lunch and a snooze under the shade of the "Filaos" (Standard beach tree).
Next we moved on to L'hermitage: This is were Tim would go to for a day out to the beach when he was small. The sand here is closer to white, with a very big coral lagoon. The 2-3 meter waves breaking breaking on the reef are just a rumble in the distance, and all that remain of them lap the beach gently. Time for an other swim with the fishes, then a lie-down on the beach to read.
We left for home when we felt like it, and only after having an ice cream.

Day 5 pictures

Réunion Island - Day 4

On our forth day we decided to stretch our legs a bit & get the walking boots out. The walk was in the Forêt de Bélouve to le Trou de Fer waterfalls - about a 7km round trip (you can just about see the little red line on the satellite image showing where the walk is - click on it to see a bigger version). Just getting to the starting point of the walk provided a few photo opportunities.

The walk began with a view over the Cirque de Salazie (an area we visited later on in the holiday) which was really beautiful. After that it was quickly into the mud. The walk consisted of three main parts. The 1st & last were though the indigenous 'rainforest' of Réunion & the bit in the middle along a track between the native & a planted European pine forest. Some stages in the last part of the walk had wooden walk ways but there was a lot of mud and clambering to be done.

It was great fun & there was so much to see - we took over 300 photos between us but don't worry the web album is the very edited version!

Day 4 Pics

Unfortunately we must have started a little too late as the clouds had got there before we did. Never mind! We had really enjoyed the walk regardless. This picture is not ours but lets you see what we were hoping to see...well...from a different angle anyway.

It was a hot walk so we were very glad when the was a shower of rain as we made our way back - even if it did make things even more slippery.

Réunion Island - Day 3

We decided to spend the next day seeing a bit of the south coast (or Sud Sauvage as it is known) starting with a visit to Grand Anse, our closest swimming spot. Not much sand there but it had a ringed off area for swimming to protect you from the big waves that were rolling in. It was lovely warm water - not a bit like the Atlantic that Fi is used to swimming in!

Day 3 - Beach Photo Link

One of our next stops was Le Grand Brûlé where most of the lava flows occur. The road goes through some of the bigger ones & has to be cleared & relayed, once the rock has cooled enough. The two flows we stopped at for a wander were from 2002 & 2004. They were different in texture, one being crunchy like charcoal & the other being much more smooth & shiny.

Day 3 - Lava Flow Photo Link

We finished off the day with another swim. This time in fresh (much cooler) water. Basin Bleu was one of Tim's closest & favourite swimming spots when growing up so it was an absolute must! The water is bubbling out of springs in the rock & is so pure that people come to bottle it for drinking. It has a blue tinge (hence the name) from copper in the rocks.

Day 3 - 2nd Swim Photo link

Afterwards we headed back over the mountain to our gite for some dinner.

Reunion Island - Day 2

On our first full day we woke to clear skies & after taking our time over breakfast we headed off on a drive up towards the volcano, the plan being to stop for lots of pictures so that when we were going up to do the walk up the volcano we didn't keep wanting to pull over...

Day 2 - drive to the volcano link

These are a selection of the shots we took. The colours were so vivid & the landscape a bit Martian to my way of thinking (Fiona says...men really are from mars! Well Tim anyway).

By the time we got to the car park at the end of the drive unfortunately the clouds had arrived to so we couldn't actually see across to the volcano to see where the walk would be.

The rest of the day was spent getting in the essential supplies (food) & relaxing as we were still recovering from the journey.

Day 1 of our Reunion Island Holiday

We arrived in Reunion after a 10 hour flight plus hanging around time & some dodgy airplane food (the Gluten free stuff was just weird - breakfast esp) to a beautiful hot day. Fiona enjoyed the view from the terminal while Tim went for the car.

We made our way in a leisurely fashion south to St Benoit & then over the mountain, stopping for food on the way in Plaine des Palmistes, to where we were staying in Le Tampon (no laughing Mr Witt...)

Edith, the Gite owner, was there to welcome us & once we had settled in we joined her & her husband for some sirop de tamarin on the veranda.

That evening we enjoyed the first of many lovely sunsets.

Day 1 Photos Link