Climbing The Seven Volcanoes
Everyone has heard about the 7 Summits challenge, it is very popular to climb the highest peak on each of the seven continents. But for many it is not achievable due to the price and extremes of Everest and Denali.
What is known as The Volcanic Seven Summits?
The Seven Summits are the highest mountain peaks on the seven continents, and The Volcanic Seven Summits are the highest volcanic peaks on the Earth’s seven continents. Two of the Volcanic 7 Summits are also on the Seven highest mountains in the world list – Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Elbrus.
Why volcanic mountains you might ask?
There is something special about volcanoes, most of the time it is a stand-alone mountain (free standing and not being part of the mountain range), usually with magical snow-capped peaks, built from many layers of lava, beautiful, mysterious, unpredictable, powerful, destructive, they inspire imagination, often surrounded by interesting legends and folklore stories. There are four main types of volcanoes: cinder cone, composite, shield, and lava domes.
According to the National Geographic (2022) there are approximately 1500 possibly active volcanoes worldwide; majority of them are located around the edges of the Pacific Ocean – the area called The Ring of Fire, which actually extends further to Antarctica, including Mt Erebus – the second highest volcano in Antarctica, after Mount Sidley – which is on my list of seven volcanic summits. Interesting fact: *Mt Erebus is the southernmost active volcano in the world.
The volcanoes that I climb are in their dormant state or inactive, however I have few on my list that are still active and my dream to visit like for example: Mount Etna in Sicily, Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland (yes that’s the famous volcano from 2010, which impacted the air traffic all over the world), Popocatepetl in Mexico. My absolute dream! The dream volcano to climb is Cotopaxi in Ecuador, I’ve heard about it for the first time from my mountain guide in Mexico – Juan Mendoza. What is so special about Cotopaxi? Hmmm, it is almost perfectly symmetrical stratovolcano, snow covered, majestic, dangerous with a long list of violent eruptions. After its last eruption in 2015/2016 it was closed by the authorities until October 2017 when it reopened to climbing.
The volcanos offer such a diverse terrain as well as climate conditions, look at Mt Kilimanjaro – possibly one of the most climbed mountains in the world – you will be passing through five different ecosystems, Mt Sidley will require trip to the most remote corner of the world and experiencing extreme coldness, Ojos del Salado – the highest volcano in the world – will offer the high altitude mountaineering in the desert, whereas Mt Giluwe jungle experience in tropical terrain. That is why the 7 volcanic summit challenge is so interesting and unique, plus it has been only completed by a small number of people.
List of 7 Volcanic Summits:
- Kilimanjaro @ 5,895 m (Continent – Africa, Country – Tanzania – Completed June 2018)
- Pico de Orizaba @ 5,630m (Continent – North America – Mexico – Completed March 2022)
- Mt Damavand @ 5,610 m (Continent – Asia, Country – Iran – Completed September 2022)
- Ojos del Salado @ 6,893m (Continent – South America, Country – Argentina/Chile – attempted in January 2023)
- Elbrus @ 5,642 m (Continent – Europe, Country – Russia)
- Mount Giluwe @ 4,368 m (Continent – Oceania, Country – Papua New Guinea)
- Mount Sidley @ 4,285 m (Continent – Antarctica)
In the making … Volcanic Dreams
I would love to climb each of the highest volcanoes on the seven continents. It’s better to attempt something crazy than to leave it untried; after all, mountaineering is full of a certain madness, and if we don’t struggle a little, what’s the point, right?
When I first considered this challenge, only about 20 people worldwide had completed it. By 2022, around 30 climbers had conquered all the ‘Volcanic 7 Summits,’ only six of whom were women. By January 2024, that list had grown to 45 climbers, including the first Polish ascent of Mount Sidley by Ryszard Pawłowski (also the oldest person to summit Mt. Sidley) and Tomasz Bryl.
It must be an unforgettable, exceptional experience to be in Antarctica, surrounded by vast whiteness, cold, endless space, and an unbroken horizon. I imagine that being in such an environment would feel mentally freeing. I love mountain climbing because it pushes my mental, physical, and endurance limits to the extreme, while also giving me an essential inner peace—a way to reset and recharge my batteries. While the Volcanic 7 Summits is my dream, it’s not a necessity, as there are countless mountains and places in the world waiting for me to explore, experience, and learn from.
So far, I’ve completed 3 out of the 7 Volcanic Summits:
– Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Pico de Orizaba in Mexico and Damavand in Iran. I also attempted Ojos del Salado but was unsuccessful.
What is coming next?
Only the time will tell ….
You can find more information about the Volcanic Seven Summits here:
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