Nyiragongo Volcano

Nyiragongo rises to around thirty-four hundred metres inside Virunga National Park, and the crater at the top has held a lava lake for most of the last century, one of a small handful worldwide that persist rather than appear and drain. The climb from Kibati takes five to six hours up through forest and then bare lava, and climbers sleep in shelters on the rim. At night the lake lights the whole crater and the cloud above it, which is why people make the walk. The lake level rises and falls and has drained entirely after eruptions.

What you actually see

• The lava lake - molten rock circulating in the crater floor, visible from the rim at night.
• The crater - a bowl around two kilometres across with terraces marking former lake levels.
• The climb - five to six hours through forest, then old lava flows and scree.
• The rim shelters - simple huts on the crater edge where climbers spend the night.

When to go

The drier windows, June to September and December to February, give the best chance of a clear crater. Cloud frequently fills it and some groups see nothing. Nights on the rim are near freezing at this altitude, whatever the season.

Honest expectations

Access depends entirely on the park authority, which opens and closes the route at its own discretion, and permits are arranged well in advance rather than on arrival. The climb is hard: steep, high and cold, with a night on bare rock. The volcano is genuinely active and has erupted with little warning, most recently in 2021.

Nearby

Goma is an hour south, and Nyamulagira is the neighbouring volcano to the north.