Nyiragongo volcano

From Wikitravel

Mount Nyiragongo is located in the east of Democratic Republic of Congo at about 15 km from Goma. The country is just beginning to recover after 30 years of brutal civil war. But the volcano is very close to Rwandan border, in a safe and easily accessible area. In 1997 and 2002, flows of very liquid lava broke out from cracks in the slopes. They covered 17 km to Goma in just a few minutes, killed dozens of people in refugee camps, and left hundreds of thousands homeless. The eruptions temporarily drained the lava lake in the summit crater; volcanic gases suffocated heather forest on the upper slopes. Now the forest is recovering, and the wildlife is coming back. The climb of Nyiragongo volcano takes 4-5 hours.The crater is 1200 m wide and 800 m deep, with a circular terrace halfway down. Descent to the terrace requires using about a mile of ropes. But the view from the rim is spectacular enough. The lake of lava inside the crater itself is about 100 m across. It is constantly churning, and the view can be obscured by smoke for up to an hour or two. As the night approaches, you begin to realize that the show is worth $100 entrance fee and all the trouble of getting to the crater.The red glow of violently spinning lava gets so bright that it can be seen from Rwanda. You can spend the rest of the night in a metal hut just below the summit.